Daily Human – A different type of historical fiction and why it’s so awesome

There is a well known genre of books called historical fiction

As per definition, Historical Fiction is set in a real place, during a culturally recognizable time. The details and the action in the story can be a mix of actual historical events and ones from the author’s imagination as they fill in the gaps. Characters can be pure fiction or based on real people. They are usually the famous people from that time and place in history. Most of the book covers the important historical events.

Historical Fiction is great. It is anathema for the historians but an easy, interesting way to learn about history. I have read lots of them and will continue to do so.

I recently discovered a very different kind of historical fiction. These are regular fiction books based during important times in history. I call them fiction set in history. One example being. “The stationery shop of Tehran” based during the Iranian coup and resulting unrest of 1953. They have two important differences from the regular Historical Fiction books. One, the main protagonists of the stories are regular citizens who are purely fictional. Not famous historical caharacters. Second, these are stories about the protagonist and all the history stuff happens in the background.

These books are amazing for two different reasons. One, it really humanizes the history. The common folk are rarely spoken about in history or historical fiction. But these “fiction in history” books tell you how the historical events impacted and shaped the common person’s life. It opens up a completely new world for the reader where they meet regular people like themselves. And not kings and queens and military generals.

Usually we read history and start taking sides based on our political affiliations. But when you meet the regular people in these fictional books, you forget what side you are on. You relate to and empathise with these people who are caught in the cross hairs of historical events. It doesn’t matter whether you support or oppose Iran and its policies or the Shah or the Islamist revolutionaries. You just feel for poor Roya and Bahman whose dreams are shattered by the coup.

These books are also a great way to learn about a country’s culture. You understand it very differently when the cultural elements are weaved into the context of the story. The history and sociology books chronicle these cultural aspects in a dry academic manner. The context provided in the story makes you appreciate the small nuances of culture.

My worldview has changed completely.

Earlier I saw Iran through the lens of its political masters, its Islamic radicalism and its geopolitics. Now I see Iran as a country of Iranians like Roya and Bahman.

Now I can’t have enough of reading this kind of fiction set in history.