General Guidelines:
You need not answer all of these questions in your paper. However, consider the ones that may
help guide the focus of your paper.
How does the book/author support, challenge, or add to the conversations we had in
class?
On the one hand, how does a work of historical fiction complement the study of history?
On the other, how might engaging with a work of historical fiction detract/take
away/confuse the study of history?
What were the possible biases of this work?
o What did the book/author leave out or not consider (if any)? Do you think the
omission(s) were on purpose?
o What could have been added to make it better (if any)?
What was the agenda or main focus of the work, what was it trying to convince the
reader to believe?
o Is an agenda the main point of fiction/this work, or is it entertainment?
o Are there subthemes or secondary points of the book that you find to be
important?
o What, do you believe, were the most important events/topics, and what did they
show, encapsulate, or prove?
Was the author successful in his/her goal?
Why did you like or dislike the work?
o What parts did you like, dislike, and why?
If you were a professor/teacher of history, sociology, literature, ethnic studies, etc. (pick
one) studies would you assign this book or a work of fiction and why? Perhaps consider
if you would not use it in one class/field, why you would use it in another.