Historical Fiction

For this assignment I read two historical fiction stories. The first was a novel by Gary Paulson called Soldier's Heart. The main character is Charley, who is fifteen when he leaves to fight in the Civil War on the Union side. He had no idea what he was about to see or experience in this war. He saw bloody battles that scarred him for the rest of his life. He even, unknowingly, help a wounded soldier kill himself by setting up his riffle for him. Charley was in constant survival mode and grew up rapidly through the war. When he returns to Minnesota he contemplates ending his own life because of the war demons that live inside him. This can be used in reading class as a whole group novel. While reading the story, I would create a class assimilation by dividing the class into North and South. The students would have a lot of opportunities to see what the soldiers went through both through the novel and the assimilation.

I also read Pink and Say by Patricia Polacco. In this picture book, Say is wounded in the civil war while fighting for the Union. Pink, an African American, finds Say and brings him to his home. Pink is also fighting for the Union. Pink's home is in the Southern territory. Pink's mother is put at risk by them being there, so Pink knows that they both must return to the Union for war. Unfortunately, Pink's mother ends up dying. While trying to return, the men are stopped by Confederate army members. Even though Say tries to cover up their identities, the Southerners are not fooled. Pink ends up being hanged and Say is sent to prison, from which he is released months later. I would use this book as a mentor text during my fiction writing unit. I think it shows a good connection between reality and fiction, which usually makes student writing stronger. I also think it can be used to show themes in writing. I encourage my students to use a theme in their fiction writing and Pink and Say has several themes in it.