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Washington Post

5 works of historical fiction to read this summer

Dorothy's Auntie Em, a traumatized Civil War veteran and a shy artist with a secret are some of the wonderful characters in this summer's noteworthy historical novels. These creative tales reimagine historical and literary moments, adding new dimensions, pondering, 'What if?' Who was Auntie Em before her unforgettable appearance in L. Frank Baum's 'The Wonderful Wizard of Oz'? Gaynor envisions the iconic character's adolescence and married life in this creative novel. Here Auntie Em, a.k.a. Emily Kelley, is a child of Irish immigrants in Chicago who later, as the married Emily Gale, struggles alongside her husband, Henry, after the 1929 crash. As Emily strives to build a home for the newly orphaned Dorothy, intensifying tornadoes threaten the parched, climate-ravaged Kansas plains, where the locals must employ all their resilience to survive. (Berkley) Who was Auntie Em before her unforgettable appearance in L. Frank Baum's 'The Wonderful Wizard of Oz'? Gaynor envisions the iconic character's adolescence and married life in this creative novel. Here Auntie Em, a.k.a. Emily Kelley, is a child of Irish immigrants in Chicago who later, as the married Emily Gale, struggles alongside her husband, Henry, after the 1929 crash. As Emily strives to build a home for the newly orphaned Dorothy, intensifying tornadoes threaten the parched, climate-ravaged Kansas plains, where the locals must employ all their resilience to survive. (Berkley) Frederick Heigold, a clocksmith who was rendered mute fighting in the Civil War, leaves his New York state home and strikes out for San Francisco, where he's been invited to mend the city's Union Depot clock. Newly widowed, Frederick is determined to reach his destination, despite encountering numerous obstacles on his cross-country trip. But when he arrives, further troubles await him as the San Andreas Fault threatens to unleash its deadliest earthquake. 'Eden's Clock,' the final stand-alone novel in Lock's American Novels series, considers the place of individualism in the face of natural disaster. (Bellevue Literary Press, July 1) Frederick Heigold, a clocksmith who was rendered mute fighting in the Civil War, leaves his New York state home and strikes out for San Francisco, where he's been invited to mend the city's Union Depot clock. Newly widowed, Frederick is determined to reach his destination, despite encountering numerous obstacles on his cross-country trip. But when he arrives, further troubles await him as the San Andreas Fault threatens to unleash its deadliest earthquake. 'Eden's Clock,' the final stand-alone novel in Lock's American Novels series, considers the place of individualism in the face of natural disaster. (Bellevue Literary Press, July 1) Grace's uncle and aunt provide a home for her in their stately Oxfordshire house — but that's as far as their charity extends. As Grace grows up, she learns to hide herself from everyone in her family except her cousin Charles, with whom she shares a love of art. Grace hides other secrets, too: her skill as an art copyist and her love of women. When Charles goes missing at sea, Grace loses her only ally, until a man appears years later, claiming to be him. As the 19th century ticks toward the 20th, Grace must decide whether he is indeed her cousin changed by life or a particularly accomplished copy of the young man she once knew. (W.W. Norton, July 1) Grace's uncle and aunt provide a home for her in their stately Oxfordshire house — but that's as far as their charity extends. As Grace grows up, she learns to hide herself from everyone in her family except her cousin Charles, with whom she shares a love of art. Grace hides other secrets, too: her skill as an art copyist and her love of women. When Charles goes missing at sea, Grace loses her only ally, until a man appears years later, claiming to be him. As the 19th century ticks toward the 20th, Grace must decide whether he is indeed her cousin changed by life or a particularly accomplished copy of the young man she once knew. (W.W. Norton, July 1) In this debut novel by biographer Clark, Harvard student Anna is torn between her interest in a German architecture student named Christoph and the lingering doubt that there is more to his family history than he reveals. Interspersed through this 1990s love story are interludes set in 1945 that uncover the experiences of Anna's and Christoph's grandfathers in the last months of World War II. Collective guilt and family secrets are knitted throughout this compelling investigation of the war and its enduring impact. (Pantheon) In this debut novel by biographer Clark, Harvard student Anna is torn between her interest in a German architecture student named Christoph and the lingering doubt that there is more to his family history than he reveals. Interspersed through this 1990s love story are interludes set in 1945 that uncover the experiences of Anna's and Christoph's grandfathers in the last months of World War II. Collective guilt and family secrets are knitted throughout this compelling investigation of the war and its enduring impact. (Pantheon) Set in mid-1950s California, the latest historical novel by Clayton considers different forms of love: romantic, friendly and familial. When young actress Isabella Giori — on the cusp of Hollywood fame, having just auditioned for Alfred Hitchcock's next film — is sent off in disgrace to her film studio's secluded cottage in Carmel, she forms a life-changing friendship with neighboring screenwriter Léon Chazan. Sixty years later, Gemma Chazan, in Carmel to sell her grandfather's cottage, finds in his safe an unprocessed roll of camera film and two mysterious screenplays that leave her questioning how well she knew her grandfather and his past. (Harper, July 1) Kat Trigarszky writes historical fiction under the pen name Katharine Rogers. Set in mid-1950s California, the latest historical novel by Clayton considers different forms of love: romantic, friendly and familial. When young actress Isabella Giori — on the cusp of Hollywood fame, having just auditioned for Alfred Hitchcock's next film — is sent off in disgrace to her film studio's secluded cottage in Carmel, she forms a life-changing friendship with neighboring screenwriter Léon Chazan. Sixty years later, Gemma Chazan, in Carmel to sell her grandfather's cottage, finds in his safe an unprocessed roll of camera film and two mysterious screenplays that leave her questioning how well she knew her grandfather and his past. (Harper, July 1) Kat Trigarszky writes historical fiction under the pen name Katharine Rogers.