Brainstorm 205: Obscure History I Learned from Fiction Books Part 1

I’ve read a couple fiction books lately that have taught me rather obscure bits of history as they spun their magnificent tales. And it reminded me that I’ve learned quite a bit of history I never picked up in classes from the books I’ve read. I’m going to highlight books that talked about/brought to life history I’d never read about anywhere else or introduced it to me for the first time. And these books are where I remember clearly coming across this history for the first time. I came up with such a long list I’ve decided to split it into 2 parts. Part 1 will be middle grade or books that could be shelved in either middle grade or young adult, and Part 2 will be young adult and adult books next week. Click on the titles here for my full reviews of each one including any content to be aware of for various readers.

Beyond the Bright Sea by Lauren Wolk
Crow has a very loving home on a tiny island near Cuttyhunk island with Osh. Their life is simple, but between the ocean, Osh's care, and Miss Maggie's lessons, there's nothing more Crow needs. But that doesn't stop her from wondering where she came from or who put her in the boat she washed up in. The islanders believe she came from the leper colony that used to be on Penikese Island, and therefore give her a wide berth. In her desire to be treated the same and answer deep questions about where she came from, Crow draws herself and Osh and Miss Maggie into grander adventures than any of them had ever desired.
Obscure History Bits (for me): Injustices lepers faced in late 1800s/early 1900s in New England, and the real leper colony on Penikese Island, Massachussetts

Target Readers:

• Island Life Fans, Historical Fiction Fans, Mystery/Thriller Fans, Lovable Character Fans, Middle Grade Readers

Climbing the Stairs by Padma Venkatraman
Vidya is the younger of two siblings in a more modern Brahmin Indian family during the beginnings of WWII. Her father is a doctor, active in the nonviolent Indian freedom movement, who believes that the caste system isn't necessarily right and that his daughter should have the freedom to go to college before marrying (uncommon at the time). Vidya and her father are returning to their home one day when they have to stop because of a protest. Vidya gets swept up in the hype and leaves the car against her father's wishes. He tries to stop her, ends up helping a woman being beaten by the British police, and is himself beaten until he suffers severe brain damage. At this point Vidya's life dramatically changes. She, her mother, brother, and her father must then go to live with the rest of her father's family in a more traditional Brahmin household. Vidya's life is made miserable by her aunt and uncle, and she realizes she will probably never get to go to college now. The one bright spot in her life is the library, which she at first visits on the sly --since it lies up on the mens' floor where women are forbidden-- and then, thanks to the all-powerful word of thatha (her Grandfather) she is granted access to daily. Climbing the stairs to the library ends up changing her life for the better in several ways.
Obscure History Bits (for me): WWII era in India

Target Readers:

• Indian History Fans, WWII Era Fans, Fans of Stories about Women’s Rights Issues, Historical Fiction Fans, Middle Grade Fiction Readers & Young Adult Fiction Readers

The Night Diary by Veera Hiranandani
Nisha starts a diary writing letters to her mother, who died when Nisha and her twin brother Amil were born. As a girl who struggles to get words to come out as speech, she feels the need to talk to someone about the events rocking her world. The India she knows and loves is about to be divided, and her family who is mostly Hindu since her Muslim mother died will be on the wrong side of the division. She is heartbroken that this means they will have to leave their cook, Kazi, since he is Muslim. Kazi is one of the few people she can talk to. She helps him in the kitchen all the time. Life is challenging enough. But as she, Amil, Papa, and Dadi make their way toward the border as refugees, Nisha realizes there are worse challenges out there and a very broken world. Can a girl survive in such a world?
Obscure History Bits (for me): India’s Independence and division from Pakistan

Target Readers:

• Indian/Pakistani History Fans, Historical Fiction, Fans of Stories about People with Disabilities (Nisha has selective mutism and her brother is dyslexic), Refugee Story Fans, Award Winner Fans, Middle Grade Fiction Readers

The Surrender Tree: Poems of Cuba’s Struggle for Freedom by Margarita Engle
Through free verse poems from various points of view, Engle tells the tale of Cuba’s struggle for freedom from 1850-1899 by following the life of Rosa la Bayamesa and those around her. At the start, Rosa is a girl learning to be a healer. She is a slave who learns how to treat the illnesses and injuries of her fellow slaves. But she goes on to become a woman of legend, a healer who primarily aids those fighting for freedom. But above all a healer of any injured, regardless of their alignment.
Obscure History Bits (for me): All of it. I knew nothing of Rosa or Cuba’s struggle for freedom in the 1800s before reading this.

Target Readers:

• Novels in Verse Fans, Quick Read Fans, Award Winner Fans, Cuban History Fans, Cuba Setting Fans, Biographical Fiction Fans, Compassionate Character Fans, Middle Grade Fiction Readers

Under the Broken Sky by Mariko Nagai
Natsu and her little sister Asa didn't have a lot on their farm in Manchuria, but they had their father and enough food to get by. But as WWII comes to a close, the Emperor calls up all the able bodied men in their town and their father must leave. Their neighbor, Auntie, moves in to care for them as her son also left for the war. Very soon, though, Auntie gets news that the Russians are on their way and they must run from their town and try to make the last ship to Japan before they are stuck.
Obscure History Bits (for me): All of it. I knew absolutely nothing about the history of Manchuria during WWII. I had no idea that the area was settled by 5 different people groups and somewhat independent and then claimed by the Japanese. I had no idea that the Japanese had to flee the area as WWII ended to be safe from the Russians. And the whole refugee camp of displaced Japanese Manchurians and Japanese Manchurian refugee children being adopted by Chinese or Russian families was new information for me.

Target Readers:

• Survival Story Fans, WWII Story Fans, Refugee Story Fans, Historical Fiction Fans, Novels in Verse Fans, Middle Grade Fiction Readers

Words on Fire by Jennifer A. Nielsen
It is late 1800s in what used to be Lithuania but is now part of Russia. Audra thought her father was just a normal traveling magician, and her mother a normal house wife until the day the Cossack's come to arrest them. Audra barely escapes. The last thing her mother did was hand her her father's traveling bag and tell her to run to Milda in a nearby village. Audra has been a quiet and rather reclusive girl up to this point. She had suspicions that her parents had secrets to tell her, but had no idea what they were involved in. With the help of Lukas, a boy she accidentally meets at a stream, she finds Milda and discovers that her parents were book smugglers helping keep the Lithuanian language and culture alive. Audra can't understand why her parents would risk their lives for books. She agrees to finish a delivery her father was supposed to do, and her life will never be the same again.
Obscure History Bits (for me): Lithuanian book smugglers and their role in preserving the Lithuanian culture and fire for independence

Target Readers:

• Thriller Fans, Lithuanian History Fans, Russian History Fans, Lithuania Setting Fans, Secret Operative Story Fans, Historical Fiction Fans, Middle Grade Fiction Fans