Tag Archives: Historical Fiction

Narrative Writing, student choice

Book Review: Lovely War

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This multiple award-winning book sat in my teenage daughter’s room for a couple of years before I got around to it. I remember skimming it in Barnes and Noble and putting it down because it starts off with a romantic triangle between Aphrodite, Ares, and Hephaestus in a New York City hotel suite in 1942. I thought it would be too slow and boring for my 10th-grade World History students. I was wrong. The book has a slow burn.

Author, Julie Berry demands patience from her readers as she weaves together three stories: a love triangle between Greek gods, the romance between YMCA war volunteer, Hazel Windicott and WWI solider, James Alderidge, along with an interracial love story between Harlem Hellfighter, Aubrey Edwards and Belgian singer, Collette Fournier. Tension increases and the stories have plenty of surprises and satisfying endings.

Patience pays off for the readers who stick with the 480-page novel. There is more than enough historical content for students studying WWI. Berry adroitly includes specific details in James’ sniper training, Collette’s recounting of the Rape of Belgium, and of course the treatment of colored troops by the US and France. The author slowly slides race relations into a major theme in the narrative. This subplot is a great way to get teenagers to consider presentism and help them consider how change over time has improved race relations today.

The historical notes at the end of the book give young readers plenty of historical references to check out if they want to learn more about the British Expeditionary Force (BEF) 5th Army, the 369th Infantry, and the unfortunately short-lived life of James Reese Europe. Beautiful music glides in and out of the audiobook, adding some atmosphere and introducing young readers to Jazz. The author also recommends some movies for students to add to their Netflix queue such as Testament of Youth (2014).

While I probably wouldn’t use Lovely War as a whole-class read, I would definitely recommend it to any students who want a deeper dive and enjoy a good love story. I hope it is well-stocked in school libraries.

Disciplinary Literacy, Historical Writing

Seven History Reads

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Due to my participation in an exciting teacher strike, I failed a friend who challenged me to post seven books in seven days. To make amends I have turned the challenge into a blog post. Thanks to my mother, I love to read. Thanks to being a teacher, I love to talk about what I am reading and share the best titles with my students. Many of my favorites (First They Killed My Father, The Harlem Hellfighters, Hellhound on His Trail, and The Things They Carried) have become mandatory reading in my World and US History classes.  Here are seven of my favorite reads from the past year.

The Audacity of Inez Burns by Sephen G. Bloom

The Audacity of Inez Burns: Dreams, Desire, Treachery & Ruin in the City of Gold by [Bloom, Stephen G.]

Black Hearts by Jim Frederick

Black Hearts
Recommended by a student. This book is not for the faint of heart and probably not appropriate for high school students.

Origin Story by David Christian

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I have fallen under the influence of the Big History Project and would like to see their course taught in my school. I read this to better understand Christian’s work and find intersections between History and the other subjects taught in high school. Some inspiration for interdisciplinary education.

The Congress of Vienna and Its Legacy by Mark Jarrett

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Warning: This book contains 379 pages of bonafide historical research and scholarship. As someone with learning gaps in this subject, this was a difficult read and it made me feel like a big boy History teacher.

The Professor and The Madman by Simon Winchester

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My work spouse, promance partner, and English teacher extraordinaire Holly Avdul recommended that we team teach this book. I read it the first time and was lukewarm on it, but then I read it a second time and fell in love. This is a great read for students struggling with the academic vocabulary.

Devil In The White City by Erik Larson
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This was highly recommended by my English teacher colleague @scrymscrym. My 11th grade US History students read it and did Ignite Talks on figures from The Gilded Age and Imperialism.

On Desperate Ground by Hampton Sides

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Patriots From The Barrio by Dave Gutierrez

Honorable Mention – Some YA historical fiction that I read with my 14 year old daughter. A great story about a real female espionage network spanning two wars.

The Alice Network by Kate Quinn

Disciplinary Literacy, Historical Writing, student choice

Make Writing

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Inspired by Angela Stockman’s new book Make Writing, today my students brainstormed ways they could demonstrate their knowledge of the historical novel The Plot Against America without writing to a prompt that I created for them.

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Pictures are posted below and my review on Angela’s new book will be published in a couple of days.

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Angela’s book turns conventional writing strategies and teaching upside down. She spills you out of your chair, shreds your lined paper, and launches you and your writers workshop into the maker space! Who even knew this was possible?

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Stockman provides five right-now writing strategies that reinvent instruction and inspire both young and adult writers to express ideas with tools and in ways that have rarely, if ever, been considered.

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Many schools are converting classrooms to maker spaces–vibrant places where students demonstrate learning by constructing things, using newly-acquired skills and applying newly-learned concepts.

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With inspired creativity and ingenuity, Stockman shows you how to bring modern maker moves into your writers workshop, giving birth to new environment  that rockets writers to places that were previously unimaginable.

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We will see how well my students’ projects on the Philip Roth novel turn out.

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