Historical fiction for kids

Hi, Faith - if this were my situation, I would look in the adult historical fiction section of my local library. Either ask a librarian for help or search the catalog yourself, maybe plugging in words like "Florence, Venice, Rome, Italy, Ancient Rome, Pompeii" etc. Then you could just search the shelves and take a look at some of the books you came up with in your search. Children of 11 and 13 could definitely enjoy books maybe a little more advanced. You could screen out any books that are on the spicy side. I'm curious to see if anyone comes up with a specific suggestion. Have you watched any travel DVDs? Also, you could search Amazon books more specifically for juvenile fiction in that genre.
Best wishes, Brianna

Faith, I just did an extensive search of my old email because I got the answer to this question 3 years ago when I was planning a trip with my then 11 year old. I think I've given away most of the books I got, but there was one about the Duomo - Brunelleschi's Dome, there are a lot of good books about Gallileo out there also.

I've not read them myself, but my friend's children are keen on the Roman Mysteries series by Caroline Lawrence, set in ancient Rome.

Faith, I congratulate you on being a good mother who wants to stimulate your children's minds and imagination. Literature helps bring history to life. I always tried to find stories that help connect my kids to different times and places. It makes the difference between kids being bored out of their minds or completely engaged on a trip. (I think the same could be said for many adults!) Knowledge brings appreciation.

I agree with Terry. The kids are 11 and 13. They have given up the sandbox! I also admire Faith!

My two main recommendations would be:

Daughter of Venice by Donna Jo Napoli
City of Masks (Stravaganza series) by Mary Hoffman

I would also recommend going to your fantastic used bookstores downtown (every time I visit Bellingham I go!) and generally having a browse - I think you'd find some more in browsing the kids sections, some things for yourself (for mysteries, I recommend Iain Pears), and some great non-fiction too. I love Henderson's and Michael's so close together.

This is not precisely historical fiction but I would highly recommend the book "Florence Just Add Water..." It is a young persons guidebook to Florence written as a story about a young boy who goes to Florence with his uncle. It is full of great pictures and information about the main sights in Florence.

My kids are the same age and do read A LOT. Including adult literature. However, I'd be VERY careful giving them adult historical fiction. The biggest issue there being that they tend to be very thick volumes that come pretty close to 1000 pages!

I was looking for literature for them before we went to Italy and also came across the books by Laurence. But in this case my kids were just not interested and simply took their regular favourites along on the trip. Yes, they wanted to have fun! Considering the amount of time we forced them to spend in museums and such that's quite understandable ;-)

It's an oldie, and even though it is set in Manhattan, it's a fun book and the plot revolves around the art work of Michaelangelo (which they may be seeing if you spend time in Rome) but I would get them a copy of "From the Mixed Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler".

My 12 yr old loves to read,, she does consider it fun, not a chore at all. It was hard to find suitable historical fiction for her last year( although we did find The Thief Lord too, and she liked it).
I would be very guarded about what adult historical fiction you find,, some is NOT suitable for children, often spiced up with alot "bodice ripping" LOL ,, although of course there is some excellant stuff out there.

My dd liked the Princess Diaries that feature a princess from history, they are written as if it was in fact the princesses diary,, written as a young teen. A young girls perspective of the time. She has read the one on Marie Antionette, Isabella of Spain, and Cleopatra,, there are many more, so I would check out the series to see it there is one that would be interesting for your trip.

We found a few other suitable books for her age, but none featuring Italy, so I can't help more. Good luck.. I think reading as much as one can, either fiction or non fiction does add alot to a trip to another country.

I would go to a public library and talk to the librairian, I find they are a treasure trove of suggestions, if you have a larger library you may hit it lucky and they will have a devoted children librairian who will really be a big help.

My daughter from age 4 and my step daughter as a teen loved "A Room with a View". For my daughter's first trip to Europe, by then they were 15 and 29, I asked where they wanted to go and it was Italy due to this movie, which is also a book by EM Forster. I would recommend this for your daughter. For your son and daughter I would recommend biographies of the young Leonardo Da Vinci and Michelangelo.

Hey Faith, I am 16 and a huge fan of historical fiction especially when it's set in Europe. I have a few recommendations for you, but I read young adult/teenage novels, so they might be a bit above your daughter's level (if I understand right, she is 11?)

The Royal Diaries were mentioned. Those were my FAVORITE books when I was 11. If I remember right, alot of the Cleopatra book is set in Rome when she escapes Egypt as a teen. It's an easy read.

I totally agree with the person who mentioned 'Daughter of Venice' by Donna Jo Napoli. It is one of my favorite books. However, I read it when I was 12 and didn't get it, then read it again a year later and enjoyed it alot more, so it may be a bit hard for your daughter right now.

The book 'Duchessina' by Caroline Meyer is really good. It is set in Florence, Rome, and France in the 1500s and spans the childhood and youth of Catherine de Medici. It's a pretty easy read.

I just finished reading 'The Queen's Soprano' by Carol Dines. It is a novel based on the true story of a court singer for Queen Christina in 1600s Rome, and the challenges she faces as a female performer. Very good but very sad book. It may be a bit old for your daughter, but I don't know, I read young adult books when I was 11, maybe it just depends.

I also have a book called 'The Smile' by the same author as 'Daughter of Venice.' It takes place in Florence and is about the girl who posed for the MOna Lisa. I haven't actually read it yet, but I'm sure it's good, I've liked everything I've ever read by that author.

That's about it, not alot of historical teenage novels are set in Italy, most are in England or France. You live in Bellingham, so I would suggest checking out Village Books in Fairhaven if you haven't already, they have alot of really good titles. Feel free to contact me if you want more book info. ;-)
Good luck! Nicole

To all who took the time to reply to my post a great big THANK YOU! I am so appreciative of your suggestions (and supportive statements)!

And... I have taken your suggestions to heart and already have most of the books mentioned in my possession (checked them out on Amazon then found most at the library). To those who mentioned the great bookstores in Bellingham, you are so right...and I will peruse their aisles for more inspiration.

You have all saved me quite a bit of time and I have some great titles I am sure I would have missed.

Grazie!

Faith

Gosh I need to read closer, I was going to recomend The Thief Lord.
Pippo the Fool is about the Doumo in Florence. I know there is a middle school age pop-up book about the dome, but I can't remember the name or the author.
The Hinky Pink by Megan McDonald, is recomedned by my librarian friend. It is a princess sort of story set in Florence.
We have Guido's Gondola, but it may be too young for your kids.

While reading this all the examples of historical fiction for teens was based in the US. I happen to have a copy of our latest book on Young Adult Fiction in the 21st Century and just checked out the chapter on historical fiction. Most of it is US based. I dug through the list and found two books on English Princesses/Queens, another based in medieval England, Nazi occupied Sweden, 16th century Japan, a version of the Pied Piper of Hamlin, a girl in Scotland in the middle ages, a boy in 14th century England, a story about Robert the Bruce's daughter's time in the cage, another on a female robin hood, another girl in medieval England, a boy in Carcassonne, and 15 year-old slave in Viking age Scandinavia!

Finally, I did find Duchessina: A Novel of Catherine de'Medici by Carolyn Meyer, Harcourt Brace, 2007! And then there was Leonardo's Shadow: Or, My Astonishing Life as Leonardo DaVinci's Servant by Christopher Grey, Atheneum/Simon & Schuster, 2006.

Interestingly there is a whole category around Inhumanity none of which were set in Italy.

You might look for resources at Western Washington University. It looks like Dr. Christine Schaefer might have the background to help you.

Pam

Hi- I'm a teacher and you've gotten fabulous suggestions! So instead of more books, I will share three ideas for Rome- 1)online you can find a list (with photos)for all the obelisks (if your 13-year-old is too young for Dan Brown)to keep an eye out for. 2) the RS book tells how to find the hidden keyhole in the gate of the Knight of Malta headquarters (the creepy armed guards were exciting!) and 3) the catacombs- also at the suggestion of RS we toured the Priscilla ones- smaller and more intimate, although we splurged on a taxi both ways. Climbing the duomo is an incredible experience in Florence and they will love shopping there, too! In Venice definitely take a sunseet gondola ride no matter how expensive it is and how touristy it looks- it's magical...have a wonderful trip!

I think I must have been in Junior high when I read a book about a Vestal Virgin. It was an historical novel, but I cannot think of the name of it. I loved it! It told so much about what Rome was like and when I got to Rome 40 years later! I couldn't wait to see where the Vestal Virgins temple was at the Forum. I also think "Pope Joan" is good. Though a good part of it takes place in Germany, one gets a good picture of Rome in the late 700's. Not sure if it is appropriate for your age kids, but you might take a look. Have you tried looking up books about people, like Julius Ceasar, or the Medici family, or Da Vinci? I know the woman who wrote the "Thornbirds", Colleen McCullough wrote a big novel about the life of Julius Ceaser, though it was kind of boring to me. There might be something else out there though that is similar.

I posted to her privately, but I thought I would also post here about how impressed I was with Nicole's post. For a 16 year old she showed tremendous maturity and a grasp of language beyond that of many of the adults who post on these forums. Her parents are doing something right and must be very proud of her.

My kids love the Roman Mysteries. For Florence, I would also recommend the guidebook Florence: Just Add Water. It's not historical fiction, but my kids (11 and 9 when we were in Florence) really enjoyed it. It's not a typical guidebook; it has a narrative structure. We found it in Florence and still pick it up to read and remember our trip last fall.

The book that keeps popping to mind is Cornelia and the Audacious Escapades of the Sommerset Sisters. It's not historical fiction and I don't think any of it takes place in Italy, but it would be a great book to reinforce your kids' excitement for world travel. I loved it, it's a darling story about travel and friendships and it's a lot of fun.