Rhys Bowen: Hallie’s post on Monday talked about anachronisms in novels. It’s something that drives me bonkers. To read about a character in Victorian times who says she’s stressed and needs to relax, who calls other people by their first name is such a red flag to me. (Freud hadn’t published at that time and mentioned those words).
So when Clare and I write our Molly books together we really work hard at getting everything right. Clare reads the New York Times for every day we write about. This gives a feel for not only what was happening, what the concerns of the time were, but attitudes and vocabulary. Then we decide on our setting and I have books of photos of old New York, exteriors and interiors, maps. For the first Molly books I went to New York and walked anywhere that Molly walked, noting what one heard, smelled, felt.
Now we are writing Molly 22. (We don’t have a title yet, but like something like As We Go Marching On). The story actually presented itself from the time. We are up to fall 1909 and in New York there was a huge celebration called the Hudson-Fulton. It celebrated three hundred years since Henry Hudson discovered the river that bears his name and one hundred years since Fulton invented the paddle steamer and thus brought commerce to upstate New York. The whole city was strung with electric lights--still a novelty at the time.
The occasion was marked with impressive parades for two weeks—floats that rivaled the current Rose Parade and also a naval parade that stretched sixteen miles up the Hudson and included battleships from other nations as well as replicas of the original ships of Hudson and Fulton.
What struck us was that the committee was composed of 150 men. No women invited to give input in the design or composition of any parade. Not a single woman was invited to the opening banquet. And suffragists were not allowed to participate in the parade. At the same time suffragettes in England were being force-fed in British jails. So we had a story waiting to happen. What if suffragists were planning to disrupt a parade? And Molly was asked to spy on her friends? And what if something went wrong???
So we have the basis for our story and we’re just working out who is going to wind up dead and why. But we love featuring the suffrage movement because we are very conscious that half the population couldn’t vote at the time, that women were the property of their husbands. We are also conscious of women’s right being eroded at this moment so we hope the story will touch a nerve.
I just had a lovely letter from a fan who thanked me for opening her eyes to real history. She said she hadn’t enjoyed history in school but through my books she has learned so much and now wishes she had been a history major. I feel exactly the same way. I did not enjoy history in school. It was all about learn these dates and these battles and I got in trouble for asking how people went to the bathroom. I wasn’t being cheeky. I wanted to know.
I've learned so much from other writers: Charles Todd, Jacqueline Winspear, Anne Perry... So do you feel the same way about historical novels? Do you enjoy learning new things as well as getting a good story?
I do enjoy learning new things, so having history brought to life in terrific stories like Molly's is truly wonderful . . . thank you!
ReplyDeleteFrom Diana: Love how history is brought to life, Joan.
DeleteRHYS: I was like you, hating the way history was taught in our school. I had no connection to the events in far-away Europe. Memorizing a bunch of dates for tests was tedious. Why we were not taught more Canadian history is a mystery to me. And no mention of Canada's poor treatment of indigenous peoples, either.
ReplyDeleteLearning history by reading books such as yours is much more enjoyable.
Nobody was taught the evils of colonialism, were they?
DeleteFrom Diana: So true! I learned some of the indigenous Canadian history from several Canadians whom I met at the Left Coast Crime conference in. Vancouver in 2019. I am also reminded of my father saying that History is written by the Winner in a War.
DeleteHistorical novels let us step into the time period and learn what life was like rather than the drab dates of history class. In school, we were taught about those who made the headlines. I'd rather learn about the non-newsworthy people living their daily lives. Thanks for providing that, Rhys.
ReplyDeleteFrom Diana: thank you, Annette, for saying this. I often wonder how people who were not royalty nor not VIPs lived during these times. That was one of the reasons I loved the Renaissance Faire. I got to see how people may have lived at that time in history.
DeleteDuring my years as a U.S. history teacher, I became accustomed to parents telling me that they were amazed by their child's interest in my class, because they themselves had "hated" history when they were in school. Hate history? The story of courage, greed, lust, daring, and betrayal? It's a cliffhanger, generation after generation! (Selden)
ReplyDeleteSelden, that speaks well for you as a history teacher, that you made it alive and not merely dry and dusty recitation of dates, places, names, and facts. Some of us need to know the passion and story behind all those boring bits!
DeleteSelden and Karen in Ohio, I am reminded of a classmate in the 10th grade. Math and science was her forte. I remember she complained that she had to remember all of the dates for history class. We were in the same history class so I came up with an idea to do a timeline graph of dates and events so we could keep track of when different events happened. I also dramatized the stories during study hour to make history come alive. I cannot recall who our history teacher was. Diana
DeleteI agree. Great stories to be told but at my school it was learn these dates and nobody made the battles or struggles real
DeleteAbsolutely! Reading well-researched books like yours and Clare's, like Nancy Herriman's, Alyssa Maxwell's, John Copenhaver's, and Winspear's have taught me so much about the past.
ReplyDeleteI also love doing the research for my own historical mysteries. When I started, I had no idea how much I would love becoming an amateur historian.
An accidental expert, Edith. That’s how I see it
DeleteI always loved history. Even the way it was taught in elementary school opened so many possibilities and raised so many questions. (I would have wanted to know the answer to your bathroom question, Rhys.) But by age 11, I was selecting historical tomes by authors like Leon Uris and James Mitchner. (Not steadily, but included in my choices.)
ReplyDeleteI minored in history at UCONN and studied with a professor whose concentration was slavery and the Civil War, before and after. Totally brutal, eye-opening and timely it being 1965- 69. (I am reading CAMINO GHOSTS by John Grisham. I highly recommend it if you can stand to read about the brutality of slave trade.)
Clare and Rhys, you nail it. I believe that I am in my grandmother's New York City when I read your books. There are many authors who take me back in time and some are believable but few are as skillful as you two are.
Thank you for including the plight of women in these stories. Our grandmother's fought for the right to vote. If we don't stand up now, what rights will be left for out daughters and our daughters' daughters?
Thank you, Judy. I have always tried to be as faithful as possible about taking my readers in New York and have had some lovely letters from New Yorkers
DeleteFrom Diana: Thank you, Judy and Rhys. At University, one of my History professors was a child of Immigrants and he was conscious of the dark side of American history like Slavery. He wrote a book about Slavery and I still have his book. His name was Leon Litwack and he outlived my other History professors. And I appreciate the historical research into New York, Just remembered that I read a historical series about New York from the time it was New Amsterdam to the late 1800s by Maas Meyers. I loved that series.
DeleteRhys, thank you so much! I too wonder about things like how did they go to the bathroom? They never told us things like this in the history books. I've tried doing research about the kinds of underwear women wore, and if some reports are to be believed, they didn't wear any. Maybe that was the poorest class, but chances are if I lived back then I might very well be one of the poorest.
ReplyDeleteA series of books that I otherwise enjoyed, took place in the late 1800s, at a time before running, let alone hot water. There was a family, no servants, but the mother bathed the children every night before bed. Upstairs is where they had a tub! So that weary mother carried buckets of water she had heated, up those stairs to give her children their nightly bath. Her husband had died a few years previously so he was no help. Seemed off to me.
One of the many things I loved about Mr. Rogers was that when he toured a factory (a pencil factory, once!), he often asked about the bathroom for the workers. He knew kids would be interested.
DeleteWhen my daughter was very little, maybe around 3, no matter where we were she always needed to go to the bathroom. I became a bit concerned and wondered why she was so ancxious. Until I realized she didn't have to go at all, she just wanted to check it out. This was especially true if we were in someone else's house. She liked seeing other people's bathrooms.
DeleteThis was my sister as well!
DeleteYes, it is interesting to learn about bathrooms. The question about bathrooms reminded me of when my class from Oxford University in England ventured out to Wye Valley in Wales and visited medieval castles. I think there was a special name for the bathroom outside. It was a hole in the ? Bench ? Or ? Seat ? And I wonder if “Water closet” is another name for the bathroom?
DeleteDiana
It must be universal, this curiosity about bathrooms. The first time I took my oldest daughter to Disney World, she was 7, and we changed planes in Atlanta both ways. All four times she "had" to go on the plane. The two youngest were slightly less curious.
DeleteIn fact the poor people bathed once a week in a zinc tub in front of the kitchen stove. Same water for all the children
DeleteI love the historical novels that bring history to life. History was one of my favourite subjects all through school.
ReplyDeleteDianne Mahoney
I am so looking forward to this new book, Rhys and Claire. Living in New York, and doing some writing about NY history myself...and I have never heard of any of these events! Yes, it's a wonderful way to learn about the past and I think I was hooked as a child for two reasons. My librarian aunt saw that I was introduced to some terrific children's history books (anyone remember Landmark series?) ...and I learned that some of my most-loved books were "long time ago" stories ( let's hear it for Betsy-Tacy books and the All of a Kind Family). I've been reading them ever since. I know enough history to be critical, I admit, but when the author gets facts and story and characters just right? Then I am a big fan and love the journey.
ReplyDeleteAll of a Kind Family were some of my favorite books! Among many other things, I learned about the various Jewish holidays and practices.
DeleteTriss and Edith, why on earth haven’t I heard of All in the Family books? Now I am going to look for the All in the Family books. An author friend told me about the Betsy-Tacy books a few days ago when I interviewed her for my now defunct blog. Diana
DeleteAll of a KIND Family - 5 sisters, in a Jewish family,with distinct personalities, growing up in early 20th century New York. Well-ilustrated, too. Based on the author's own childhood. Betsy-Tacy books are about the same period, also the author's childhood, but very different place. And of course there is the Little House in the Big Woods series. All of them would make any modern little girls ( or me, anyway) want to visit their worlds...from which you get history fans, right?
DeleteThe All of a kind Family was one of our family favorites. So real and touching
DeleteJust have to add that my sister and I both loved the All-of-a-Kind Family series, and we read all the Betsy-Tacy books (through Betsy's Wedding!) over and over. Caddie Woodlawn was another child's book set in the American past that I loved. Did anyone read Rosemary Sutcliffe's historical novels set in early Britain?
DeleteFrom Diana: Not yet, KIm, though now I am adding Rosemary Sutcliffe’s historical novels to my reading list.
DeleteI missed Sutcliffe as a child but read them in library school. In fact, I wrote a paper about them and they remain the 4 star examples. So beautifully written and so believable. Best of the best
DeleteRhys, one of my high school history teachers taught us nothing. For him it was all about memorizing dates. My other history teacher had us do interesting things, like pretend to be a colonist writing to King George III. I think if more high school teachers did things like that, kids would be more interested in history. When I first saw and fell in love with the musical 1776, all I could think was “why didn’t our high school teachers show us this?”
ReplyDeleteFrom Diana: In the 3rd grade, my class was part of the school Bicentennial celebrations and we sang a song reciting the Pledge of Allegiance., Cathy.
DeleteI love the ways by which you and Clare do your research--reading the newspapers of the time and walking the same steps that Molly would have walked. Brilliant!
ReplyDeleteI studied history in college and, before I discovered mysteries, read mostly historical fiction. I loved Sharon Kay Penman's works, particularly The Sunne in Splendour, about Richard III, and her series about Eleanor of Aquitaine and Henry Plantagenet. Recently for book group, we read (a re-read for me) Denise Giardina's novel, Storming Heaven, about the Battle of Blair Mountain, the 1921 incident where US government troops went to war against striking coal miners in West Virginia. Very powerful! Mary Doria Russell's A Thread of Grace (WWII Italy) and Women of the Copper Country (union struggle in Michigan during the early 20th Century) are two other favorite historical novels.
I loved Lindsay Davies’ Rome. She made it real
DeleteYes, yes, Rhys, Lindsey Davis! Real as in, "This is how people behave, no matter the era or the ruler."
DeleteFrom Diana: This is going to be long! I do feel the same way about historical novels. And it is wonderful learning new things as well as getting a good story.
ReplyDeleteEvery time I read about Molly in 1900 New York, I am reminded of my own great grandmother Molly who was quite a feisty character. When she decided to cut her hair at the barber and get a bob, my great grandfather the clergyman said “I cannot bring you to church now” and my great grandmother said “I do not care.” She was not a fan of that particular church because they treated women as second class citizens. Ironically my great grandfather encouraged ALL of his daughters to be educated. He wanted my grandmother to go to University.
Now that the new book is set in the fall of 1909, I am thinking that is when my grandmother was born. She was born in Quebec, Canada because that is where her family arrived from the New World. My grandmother was born in September 1909 and her baby brother was born in July 1910 in the States.
Clare and Rhys, thank you for writing the Molly novels because I have learned so much. The historical details come alive in your books. If I was teaching American History in school, I would use your books because I believe that history can be interesting instead of boring.
Read History at University. I practically grew up with a historian and an English teacher who taught Shakespeare. There are some wonderful History teachers and some lackluster history teachers.
. One of my teachers objected to television and I always said I get to learn history from watching PBS television, which had many historical dramas from the BBC.
Every year my Mom would take us with her English classes to the Renaissance Faire and to the Dickens Christmas Faire. These were wonderful opportunities to learn about history too.
At University, for a history class, we had to read this very DRY, boring history book. Luckily, I found a Jean Plaidy historical fiction novel that covered the same people and the time period as the dry and banal book from class.
There are many wonderful historical fiction books, When I was in school, I recall that Lady Antonia Fraser wrote about Mary, Queen of Scotland. At University, it was Jean Plaidy who wrote about women in history from the Plantagenets to the Tudors to Queen Victoria.
Who are the other authors of historical novels that I currently read? Besides Clare and Rhys, there are:
Jacqueline Winspear
Charles Todd
Susan Elia MacNeal
Charles Finch
Anna Lee Huber
Celeste Connally
Dianne Freeman
Charles Spencer
Karen Odden
Nadine Nettman (THE BOOTLEGGER’S DAUGHTER)
Harry Lang (from Gallaudet University Press)
Stephanie Barron
David McCullough
Nancy Herriman
James Benn
Erica Ridley
Janna MacGregor
Eva Devon
.
James Michener
DeleteMariah Fredericks
Alyssa Maxwell
Carola Dunn
Thank you! Read James Michener in high school. All these four that you mentioned are wonderful historical novelists.
DeleteThank you, Diana. Such a great post
DeleteFrom Diana: Thank you for your kind words, Rhys.
DeleteThanks, Rhys and Claire for portraying history as accurately as you can. I was so interested that you read the daily papers as you are writing the books – that is adherence to what was happening at the time!
ReplyDeleteOn Monday, after the discussion on anachronisms, we waffled into a chat about history as we were taught in our day, and in our provinces. Harrumper grew up in Quebec and was educated in French Catholic school, while I grew up in Nova Scotia in English school for all (we did not separate along religious or language laws). We both learned of the skirmish between the French and the English on Canadian soil in two very different stories. The Seven Years War was important in British/French history, and Louisbourg (town where I lived) was pivotal in the fighting on Canadian soil. Wolfe attacked the French occupied fortress in Louisbourg in June 1758, decimated the place and took the eastern seaboard for the Brits. He then took his ships and shuffled off to Quebec City, where he was to meet his arch nemesis Montcalm. He arrived in September, they had a bit of a to-do on the Plains of Abraham which lasted about an hour, and culminated in both leaders succumbing to their wounds, and the fight and city being claimed by the British. If you follow the various threads, you will eventually come to the creation of a country Canada, and by the Treaty of Paris in 1763, the Seven Years War ended. Britain had obtained New France (Canada) and the eastern half of French Louisiana.
Ok, that was a long bit of history, but the underlying point was that to English children and especially those who grew up in Louisbourg, Wolfe was a hero. To Quebec kids, Montcalm was the hero, and you were required to spit when mentioning the name of Wolfe. Louise Penny gives an excellent rendition of this history in her book “Bury Your Dead”. In it you can feel this history, not portrayed in who is the hero, but in the conflicts of the war.
I appreciate this insight into history, so much more than the naming of battles. I do admire any teacher who can make history become more than just dates to memorize. I now read many books especially of the world wars, where lives and goings-on are the story. There are so many stories to explore, and so much life to learn. I applaud (and often remark) when an author does the research, and teaches me something, and opens up the many rabbit holes that then need exploring. Thank you.
MARGO: That is so true about how English-French history would be taught differently in Quebec vs the rest of Eastern Canada. I just found it weird that history about Upper and Lower Canada was taught from grades 4-6 in my Toronto school. But that my history teacher in grades 7-9 (same one for 3 years) focused on European history. And not even making the connection to Canada. The 80th anniversary of D-Day just brings home how little I learned about Canada's contribution in WWII (and WWI).
DeleteThat’s so true, Margo. History is always colored by who you are
DeleteDo I enjoy historical novels? Hmmm. Actually, the ones I've read have not be very accurate, and some down right wrong on so many levels. Which really bothers me. Rhys, I applaud you and Claire for making accuracy a priority. I enjoyed history and geography in school and I've always preferred either autobios or biographies. I look forward to your new book Rhys about women's rights.
ReplyDeleteRhys, I enjoy historical fiction that is well written and well researched. That’s why I love all of your books ❤️📚
ReplyDeleteAs I wrote to Selden above, way too many history teachers expected us to memorize dates and other facts, with dry and boring context, if any. My mind always wandered. When my two youngest daughters were in elementary school there was a fantastic fifth grade teacher who taught a section on Egyptian history where the kids got to make hieroglyphics, and they mummified whole chickens from the grocery store. You can bet they still remember the history they learned from her.
ReplyDeleteAnother issue for me, as a female, was that the only women I ever heard about in history classes were Florence Nightingale and Betsy Ross, and most of the drivel they taught us was probably wrong. Historical novels have helped put women figures into context in those settings, which makes such a difference. I hated how history was taught in the '50's and '60's, but my own self-directed learning via well-researched novels has given me much better perspective.
When the American Girl dolls came out, each one came from a different area of history: Victorian times, Colonial, prairie settlers, 1950's America, and so on. Each doll also had five novellas apiece that showcased how they lived in those time periods, what they ate, what they wore, how they were expected to act, and what kinds of living situations they had. There was furniture and other historically accurate accessories available for each doll. They were pricey, and I only knew a couple families who could afford to buy them for their daughters. However, the catalogs had such vivid descriptions of each item that reading them was enough for an imaginative kid to visualize those worlds.
Karen, I was an elementary school librarian so I shelved the American Girl books many times. I never read any of them, but could tell by the covers (e.g., a slave girl, a Pilgrim girl) that they represented different decades (approximately). We had received a donation of a gently used copy of the first book of the “Julie!” series so I was looking at the cover and reading the blurb. The cover had Julie on a cable car which caught my eye, having grown up in a suburb of San Francisco. Then I started reading about the time frame: 1974. The year I graduated from high school…. But that couldn’t be right because these books were about “historical times”. My youth was certainly not far enough back that it could be considered history! Oh, the humanity! — Pat S
DeleteKaren, we bought the knock-off version of the dolls and the clothing, but we had ALL the American Girl books for our kids! Their success kicked off a whole bunch of kids historical fiction, and my daughters devoured them. So, so much more than what was available when I was a girl - that series of "Famous Biographies" that included only, yes, Betsy Ross and Florence Nightingale!
DeleteI wish I’d been a child when American Girl dolls came out. I’d have loved them
DeleteFrom Diana: Thank you, Karen and Julia. I read the children’s books about historical figures like Helen Keller, Elizabeth Fry, George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, Alexander Pushkin (from my Dad’s collection of historical novellas) and several others. I remembered Helen Keller because she was Deaf like me. One difference was that she was also blind and I could still see.
DeleteRegarding the American Girls, they did not exist until I was at University, I think, And a friend’s daughter loved the American Girls. Though I read the books, I never was interested in the American Girls dolls. We had a girls’ day out in New York City and the kiddo wanted to go to the American Girls museum. It was amazing. We loved seeing everything!
Julia, we had those autobiographies, but they were mostly "lives of the saints". Hard to relate, really.
DeleteOh, dear, Pat. I'm even older than you are! LOL
Diana, the original American Girl Dolls store and museum is in Chicago. Pleasant Rowland started the company, then called Pleasant Company, in 1986. They were really high-end, well-made dolls, with beautiful clothing and accessories. My middle daughter, Robin, wanted the Victorian one, called Samantha, which had long dark hair and bangs like hers, when Robin was six. $82 for a doll was a lot of money for our family at the time, but I told her if she did chores, and saved half of it, I would pay the rest of the cost. She had the money in her hot little hands in a few months. So I bought the patterns for Samantha's clothes (I don't they they have these any more, but they were identical to the ones Pleasant sold), and made a set for her for Christmas. She and her little sister eventually had five of the dolls, under the same arrangement.
Sounds like a wonderful story, Rhys. I enjoyed history in school, but I also enjoy learning through a researched novel.
ReplyDeleteI was lucky enough to have good history teachers in high school and I loved it. My favorite history teacher was when I went to Aix-en-Provence for my semester abroad. We had a wonderful Frenchman as our history teacher. He had been in WWII; his father had been in WWI; and his grandfather had been in the Franco-Prussian War so he taught from genuine knowledge. His classes were vibrant and I can remember most of what he taught us to this day.
ReplyDeleteBy the way, I always did wonder where the bathroom was on Little House on the Prairie.
Atlanta
I expect it was dug in the sod outside then covered over when it was full!
DeleteI’ve learned more history from reading historical fiction I did in 16 years of formal education.
ReplyDeleteMy knowledge of the struggles between Catholics and Protestants had been limited to the story of Henry VIII. It was eye opening to read Ken Follett’s A Column of Fire and learn the whole story. I’m sure there are other examples, but this is the one that left an impression.
I do love historical fiction, and it’s a great way to get a more well-rounded picture. History taught in school was all from the perspective of the white male scholars who wrote the texts. It’s so much richer to hear the stories of women, BIPOC and other marginalized people.
ReplyDeleteThis is why I write about WWII. All the previous stories were about males
DeleteFrom Diana: Thank you, Lisa and Rhys. Most of the historical fiction that I have read are written by women about women who lived through history. I find that historical fiction is so much richer with the stories of women, BIPOC and other marginalized people.
DeleteI love historical novels. My husband is a history nut and whenever I read one, I sometimes check interesting facts with my husband and he usually expands upon that point for me! Alicia Kullas
ReplyDeleteI love historical fiction, and history in general. When I started college, I was torn between majoring in English or History. English won out! Whenever I’ve visited a place for the first time, I’ve made it a point to read ahead of time about the history of the place, and to read some historical fiction about the place, if I can find some. Before I went to Hawaii for the first time, I borrowed a lot of history books about Hawaii from the library, and I also read James Michener’s book HAWAII. When I finally arrived there, I recognized places I had read about in Michener’s book and in the history books.
ReplyDeleteKeep on writing those Molly books, Rhys and Clare!
DebRo
Growing up in the Boston area, I was exposed to a lot of history, particularly the Revolutionary War and the early 1800’s.
ReplyDeleteWe went on school trips to Paul Revere’s House, the USS Constitution and other historical sites. My parents also took us to places such as Louisa May Alcott’s house and Henry Wadsworth Longfellow’s
house
I have currently been reading several books by Jennifer Ryan about England during WW ll. She uses
government issued publications to show the types of food and materials that were rationed, the impact it had on the residents and the ingenuity people used in finding substitutions.
She also describes the emotional and psychological effect the people living in bomb targeted areas experienced.
There was a series of biographies that I read as a child. They had orange covers and were written by a variety of authors. They covered people from all backgrounds. There were authors, athletes, presidents and other well-known historical figures represented. I went through all the orange books in the school library regardless of the time period from Francis Marion, the swamp fox to George Washington Carver to US presidents.
My history teachers were from the Joe Friday school of history--"just the facts, ma'am." I can't make dates stick in my brain (or chemical formulas or mathematical equations); they just won't stick no matter how hard I try to memorize them. But give me a story! History comes alive. I've mentioned Charles Todd's series before--these really brought the horror of WWI home to me in a way that recitation of names, dates, places had never done. The research that you and Clare do, Rhys, pays off in sucking the reader right down a wormhole into the past!
ReplyDeleteReading historical fiction is my favorite way to learn! A well researched book contains so many interesting tidbits. My history classes always left out the good stuff and whitewashed the dubious stuff.
ReplyDeleteOh, this is fabulous, Rhys. You and Clare are a force! I love it. I've always thought that if history textbooks were written as novels I would have learned so much more.
ReplyDeleteOh, absolutely! It is part of the fun--and this sounds absolutely perfect. Perfect! Cannot wait to read. And so agree, Jenn---history is a STORY, after all. Just tell it that way!
ReplyDeleteYes! I read Swiss Family Robinson and asked where their bathroom was? There were all these details about other everyday things, like the water in the kitchen. Why nothing about their bathroom? It just seemed perfectly reasonable to ask.
ReplyDeleteI've always loved history! My undergrad degree was in history (and theater) and I did loads of historical research while getting my masters. Law school, I like ti say, is just applied history!
ReplyDeleteAnd I've always loved historical fiction - general, romance, mystery, you name it, I've devoured it. However, as a writer, I know my limitations. I'm just too lazy to do all the meticulous research necessary for GOOD historical fiction. I'm very glad Rhys and Claire are happy to do it, though!
From Diana: Totally get what you mean about historical research, Julia. When I read history at University, I had to do a lot of historical research for my thesis. All history majors had to write a thesis in order to earn a Bachelors degree in History at my University.
DeleteTeachers can make all the difference. One day in high school we walked into our social studies classroom to see the desks had all been rearranged in an unusual way. Turns out the teacher was going to tell us the story of Lincoln’s assassination. She’d set up the desks to represent the seats in the theater, the stage, Lincoln’s box seat, etc. Talk about putting you into the story! I walked out of that room thinking, “Why isn’t history taught like that more often?” Rhys, you and Clare do exactly that for your readers. Keep up the good work! — Pat S
ReplyDeleteFrom Diana: Teachers definitely make a difference, Pat S. I noticed that.
DeleteJust back at 3:30 having to take a cat to the vet and have her put down – thyroid tumor, probably would not have lasted another week. Sad day. At 3:45 the first Monarch butterfly that has been seen here in 2 years appeared, went straight to the milkweed patch and started laying eggs. It is 4:30 – she is still at it. Miracles can happen! Thanks for listening. Now to find a shovel…
ReplyDeleteOh, Margo! Sorry for the loss of your cat. I'd shovel for you if I were there.
DeleteThanks Flora - she is now buried near the stunningly beautiful rhododendron facing the lake - does it get any better than that. What amazes me is that with tragedy comes beauty - you cannot imaging how much the Monarch's arrival cheered me up!
DeleteWhen I was thirteen or fourteen, I read a historical novel called Prince of Foxes, published in 1947. It was set in the Italian Renaissance, and Cesare Borgia was the bad guy. I loved it! I couldn't judge how accurate it was at that age, but it gave me an interest in Italian Renaissance history and art that has never gone away.
ReplyDeleteThe author was Samuel Shellabarger, in case anyone has heard of him!
DeleteFrom Diana: My grandfather loved historical novels by Shellabarger, Kim.
Delete