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It is 1939. Nazi Germany. The country is holding its breath. Death has never been busier, and will become busier still. Liesel Meminger is a foster girl living outside of Munich, who scratches out a meager existence for herself by stealing when she encounters something she can’t resist–books. With the help of her accordion-playing foster father, she learns to read and shares her stolen books with her neighbors during bombing raids as well as with the Jewish man hidden in her basement.
Every winter, I love to dive into some excellent historical fiction; I prefer it to be long and epic. I don’t know what about the season makes me want to dive into the past and into stories that span generations. Still, the chilly wind, the cozy energy of a soft blanket, a pet snoozing nearby, and a nice hot cup of coffee or tea always make those books so appealing.
But no one wants to dedicate all of that time and energy to a book that hasn’t been pre-vetted and approved. That’s why this list is populated entirely with books that have earned their designations as modern classics. They’re books that have been much beloved and enjoyed several times over as the years have gone by.
There’s a little bit of everything here. We’ll see World War II France and the Haitian Revolution. We’ll travel to the forest of northwestern China. These immersive reads feature bleak, stark realism and vivid surrealism, imbued with ghosts and other forms of magic. All eight novels tell well-researched stories about the history of marginalized communities, powerful protagonists, and families with centuries of history. And they’re not just well-researched–the writing is compelling, keeping you hungry for more.
All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr
A young blind girl named Marie-Laure escapes to the walled city of Saint-Malo as the Nazis invade France, bringing a hidden treasure with them. Meanwhile, a German teen is slowly drawn into the Nazi ranks thanks to his instinctive skill with radios and tech. The two youth illuminate what it was like for kids and teens to try and survive, persist, and come of age in the midst of the violence, fear, and tragedy of World War II. This emotional, lovely work has quickly become a modern-day classic and must-read.
Sing, Unburied, Sing by Jesmyn Ward
Jojo, raised mainly by Pop and Mam, who are both full of stories, is forced to be Kayla’s strong older brother in the absence of their mother Leonie’s affection. Pop tells Jojo tales of his time at Parchman prison, bringing a crucial, vivid perspective to the forefront of a real, devastating period in southern American history. This magical realist book allows ghosts to make their own appearances. The novel won the 2017 National Book Award.
Pachinko by Min Jin Lee
In the early 1900s, a Korean immigrant family settled in Japan, beginning with a young pregnant woman named Sunja and the sickly minister Baek Isak. Over the next century, Sunja, as a matriarch, fights to feed and keep her family alive, fostering her sons into what she hopes will be a prosperous future. This modern historical fiction classic covers everything from the temptation and pressures to assimilate and “pass” as Japanese to the institutional, social, and political oppression of Koreans in Japan over the years.
Dance on the Volcano by Marie Vieux-Chauvet, translated by Kaiama L. Glover
Entirely based on real people from history, this novel follows a young woman named Minette, whose magical voice gives her a real chance to get onto the opera stage. The problem is that Minette is mixed race, and the strictly segregated society of Haiti may not be ready to see a Black woman on stage. As she grows up alongside her country, Haiti approaches revolution, and she and those around her must decide where they stand and what action they’re prepared to take.
The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah
On track to be adapted into a movie and having sold more than 4.5 million copies, this novel tells the story of two sisters in France who survive the Second World War. While older sister Vianne tries to keep her head down to keep her family alive, younger sister Isabelle is immediately determined to resist German occupation at all costs. As Hannah follows these two sisters through the war, readers are introduced to the bleak realities of the war and the occupation. It’s a compelling tale of sisterhood and female power.
In the Shadow of the Banyan by Vaddey Ratner
Author Vaddey Ratner is a survivor of the Cambodian genocide that began in 1975. This gives the story an authentic, painful edge. Raami and her family, Phnom Penh royals, are forced to flee their home and try to survive as the reign of the Khmer Rouge imposes brutal violence, family separation, and famine. Ratner includes the stories of Cambodia, the sadness of intergenerational trauma, and the rich beauty of a country that, in some ways, is gone to Ratner forever. It’s a rich and impactful novel covering decades of Cambodia’s history.
The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini
This internationally successful classic follows the stories of two young boys living in Kabul—wealthy Amir and his servant and friend Hassan—over the course of 30 years of Afghanistan’s history. As the monarchy crumbles and war erupts, Hassan and Amir are separated. When the Taliban begins to take over, refugees flee Afghanistan. The book illuminates the harsh realities of war, the power of childhood memories, and the themes of redemption and guilt. And if you enjoy this one, you can (and should!) jump into A Thousand Splendid Suns, another modern historical fiction classic.
The Time In Between by María Dueñas, translated by Daniel Hahn
Sira is left penniless when the man she loves leaves her, and she finds her chance for independence and success in the world of fashion as a powerful, capable dressmaker in Tetouan. In the midst of the Spanish Civil War and at the beginning of World War II, Sira’s access to the lives and conversations of wealthy women in Spain enables her to become a powerful spy. This bestseller took Europe by storm, covering the corners and cities of World War II and its preceding events that previous works of historical fiction hadn’t.
Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi
A woman gives birth to two half-sisters in the 1700s, and readers follow both family lines through the generations. One line is haunted by water, their members enslaved and forced across the Atlantic; the other line is haunted by fire, and its threats. Each chapter is both a gorgeous character study and a link in an epic family chain, and Gyasi doesn’t waste a single sentence. A vivid, beautiful story that all fans of multi-generational tales will enjoy, tracking the histories of Ghana, colonialism, and slavery.
Chronicle in Stone by Ismail Kadare, translated by Arshi Pipa
A young boy growing up in Gjirokastër, Albania, watches as history unfolds around him: his city shifts between Italian and Greek control and is then occupied by the Germans. In all three cases, the community endures varying kinds of violence and control. Despite this, the book is charming and full of heart: the narrator falls in love with airplanes despite his parents’ dismay and is proud when their home is declared the neighborhood bomb shelter. Author Ismail Kadare himself sought asylum in France in 1990, and in this classic, we see a piece of World War II that isn’t often explored.
Want more great historical fiction? Check out our lists of historical fiction that covers little-known history, exhilarating stories about real people, or must-read historical fiction set in India.
English (US) · 