Timewaster's Guide Archive
Departments => Books => Topic started by: hubay on October 04, 2010, 12:03:58 AM
-
I'm trying to write a short story set during WWII and I realized that I don't have a lot of knowledge about the time period – or rather, I know my history but I don't know the everyday bits and pieces that would make the setting believable. So I'm wondering if there are any good WWII fantasy books out there that might help.
To narrow it down – and I hope I'm not being too specific– I don't want anything too epic in scope, I'm more interested in a foot soldier than a general. If at all possible, I'm wondering if there's anything analogous to Naomi Novik's Temeraire series. Or, in terms of the sort of scope magic is given throughout the world, Orson Scott Card's Alvin Maker books.
For that matter, I probably wouldn't mind a few non-fantasy WWII books as well; I'm sure there's quite a bit more of those out there.
-
I just finished reading Slaughter-House Five by Kurt Vonnegut. Science fiction, but set in World War II. I'm not sure it will have the detail you're looking for, but *shrug* it might, and it's short?
Honestly you might be better off trying to find some non-fiction books about the time period. I'm sure you can find stuff out there that does deal with the minutaie of day-to-day life, though I haven't the faintest clue where you'd start looking.
I mean, I always find it useful to see how the time period/whatever you're researching is reflected in writing, but I'm a bit leery about getting my facts from fiction. =)
-
My husband reads a lot of non-fiction. He says, "Everyday stuff, and battle stuff for soldiers during WWII would be Guy Sajer's The Forgotten Soldier."
-
Apparently Connie Willis' BLACKOUT fits this bill. But yeah, some non-fiction is prolly your best bet.
-
Alright, good points. I'll look into Blackout though, just for fun.
In that case I'll check out Sajer and see if the librarians have any good recommendations, but do any of you guys know other good WWII non-fiction? I'm mostly interested in the common soldiers, as I mentioned before, but also snipers.
Thanks!
-
I have not read Blackout yet, but Connie Willis wrote a book where a historian goes back in time to the middle ages during the black death. It was outstanding. She seems to do alot of "send historian back in time to x period and tell the story through futuristic historian".
This is the kind of book I never would pick up with out reviews. The Doomsday Book is great. Willis seems to spend many years working on a novel and does a ton of research for her books.
-
My husband had more suggestions of non-fiction:
Citizen Soldiers by Stephen Ambrose
The Second World War by John Keegan
And for fiction, Jeff Shaara has a trilogy that starts with The Rising Tide.