LIS 721 - Historical Realism Review

 Let's Look at Some Historical Fiction Books!

Lai, Thanhha. Inside Out & Back Again. HarperCollins, 2013. 288 pages. $16.99. ISBN 9780061962783

Summary: Hà has only ever known Saigon: the thrills of its markets, the joy of its traditions, and the warmth of her friends close by. But now the Vietnam War has reached her home. Hà and her family are forced to flee as Saigon falls, and they board a ship headed toward hope—toward America. -- Amazon

Review: Thanhha Lai's Inside Out & Back Again is a Newbery Honor Book and National Book Award winner, capturing the impact of war and the immigrant experience through verse. Lai reflects on her own experiences living through the end of the Vietnam War and immigrating to the United States to create an authentic story through the eyes of Hà, the main character. Themes of displacement, resilience, and cultural identity are skillfully narrated through the three parts of the story, "Saigon", "At Sea", and "America". Here, readers can see how Hà's life has been segmented, from life in wartime Vietnam to her experience facing prejudice and isolation in America, reflecting the historical realities of the 1970s. This will still be relatable to those who have emigrated from their home countries. The story's pacing feels accurate to what a child in a new country would experience, where she narrates her experiences as the events occur, in verse, similar to diary entries. Lai's descriptions are both simple and expressive, depicting the settings and characters through the mind of a child. An example of this is Hà's description of a boy in her class, "A pink boy with white hair on his head and white eyebrows and white eyelashes" (p. 145). Besides the physical descriptions of the characters, the readers can reflect on the characters' attitudes throughout the story, from the strong-willed mothers to the kind and unkind townspeople of Alabama. While this historical fiction novel does not include a bibliography or an extensive timeline, readers will be able to understand the authenticity of the events in the story. From sorrow to hope, plus a little bit of humor, the audience can see what it feels like to be displaced in a new country. Overall, Inside Out & Back Again is an emotionally powerful story that feels historically intimate to the experiences of refugees having to leave their home country during times of war. The story was beautifully written in verse, providing an emotional and educational story.

Behar, Ruth. Lucky Broken Girl. Nancy Paulsen Books, 2018. 272 pages. $16.99. ISBN 9780399546550

Summary: Ruthie Mizrahi and her family recently emigrated from Castro’s Cuba to New York City. Just when she’s finally beginning to gain confidence in her mastery of English—and enjoying her reign as her neighborhood’s hopscotch queen—a horrific car accident leaves her in a body cast and confined her to her bed for a long recovery. As Ruthie’s world shrinks because of her inability to move, her powers of observation and her heart grow larger and she comes to understand how fragile life is, how vulnerable we all are as human beings, and how friends, neighbors, and the power of the arts can sweeten even the worst of times. -- Amazon

Review: Lucky Broken Girl by Ruth Behar is a moving Pura Belpre Award winner, inspired by the author's childhood, capturing the journey of a young Cuban-Jewish immigrant adjusting to life in New York City in the 1960s. Here, Ruthie Mizrahi faces challenges with social integration, language barriers, and cultural expectations. Behar captures the intersectionality of New York City by including diverse characters with authenticity. In her new school, Ruthie meets other immigrant children, such as Ramu Sharma from India. At home, she befriends her neighbor, Chicho, who is from Mexico, and by the end of the story, she prays to God, Shiva, and Frida Kahlo.  The cultural representation in the story plays a significant role in shaping Ruthie's worldview, especially with Ruthie being Cuban in heritage, Jewish in identity, and immigrating to America at a young age. As she is learning to adjust to life in America, she and her family get into a terrible car wreck, where her family members are left with minor injuries, while she ends up with a broken leg that leaves her bedridden in a full-body cast for almost a year. Readers quickly watch as her world shrinks when the setting changes from spots around New York City to just her bedroom. Through this experience, the audience follows along as Ruthie finds her inner strength and learns the power of resilience and recovery, which are all central themes of the story. The tone of Lucky Broken Girl is hopeful and reflective. Not only do we see Ruthie balance the challenges of recovery with moments of personal growth and joy, but we are also able to see how the author gets to return to her youth and reexperience the events of her own childhood. Overall, Lucky Broken Girl is a beautifully written and culturally accurate story depicting the experiences of a young girl trying to overcome the challenges of being an immigrant in America and finding strength in herself as she heals. This would be a good story for those interested in historical realism and those looking for a story of resilience.

Rinaldi, Ann. My Heart Is on the Ground: The Diary of Nannie Little Rose, a Sioux Girl. Scholastic Inc., 1999. 209 pages. $10.95. ISBN 0590149229

Summary: In the diary account of her life at a government-run Pennsylvania boarding school in 1880, a twelve-year-old Sioux Indian girl reveals a great need to find a way to help her people -- Amazon

Review: My Heart Is on the Ground: The Diary of Nannie Little Rose, a Sioux Girl by Ann Rinaldi is an inauthentic historical fiction following the experiences of a young Sioux girl taken from her home. This diary-formatted novel has been criticized for its inaccuracies and unbelievable portrayal of Native American perspectives. The story follows Nannie Little Rose, who is taken from her home and placed in a government-run boarding school in 1880s Pennsylvania that is modeled after the Carlisle Indian Industrial School. She is told to keep a diary by her keepers, and in it she documents the emotional hardships of strict discipline, cultural erasure, and being separated from her family. The novel explores themes of identity, assimilation, and resilience. While acknowledging the realities of these boarding schools, it does not give an accurate representation of the trauma and suffering these real Native children have faced. In her journey, Nannie starts to accept her assimilation, while finding moments of friendship with the other Native children, but her transition seems too easy and inauthentic once again. An example of this is her quick (about six months) perfection of the English language. From pages 103-104, she can transcribe Red Cloud's speech. While this example is relatively tame, Rinaldi still only briefly touches on the oppressive and violent atmosphere rather than exploring the details of forced assimilation. The tone of the story as a whole is shallow. There are not extensive historical notes or bibliographies and it does not address any long term affects of forces assimilation. This novel would be problematic as an educational tool. Overall, My Heart is on the Ground attempts to tell the story of Native children and their experiences in boarding schools, but falls short of this task with its inaccuracies in its perspective. At most it may be used as a talking point or start of the discussion about the oppression faces by Native American of the time period. To learn more about the boarding schools Native children were forced to go to it may better serve the audience to look for Indigenous authors.