Fiction brings history alive - in 1918 England, in an American family with a son in Vietnam, in frontier North Dakota, and in a house of ill repute on Holladay street in Denver.

Kipling's Choice by Geert Spillbeen,

Rudyard Kipling was unable to serve in the British Navy because of his poor eyesight; although his only son John had the same difficulty and was judged unfit for both the British Army and Navy, his influential father wrangled John an opportunity as an officer in the Irish Guards at age 17 so he would not miss the conflict that was being called the "Great Picnic." The elder Kipling uses his considerable influence and writing talent to whip up enthusiasm for enlistment in the war but is devastated when poor John dies in his first battle, six weeks after his 18th birthday. The story is told in a series of graceful flashbacks by the dying John that alternate between his pain and misery and his memories of a privileged upbringing totally pointing him toward the "glories" of war. World War I isn't studied much in school, so steer those interested in history toward this memorable account. Rudyard Kipling's couplet, written when he finally gets his own complicity in his son's death should be much better known today. "If any question why we died, tell them, because our fathers lied."

Letters from Wolfie by Patti Sherlock

Older brother Danny has gone off to fight, and in a rush of patriotism, middle schooler Mark decides to send off his German shepherd, Wolfie, for training in the canine troops. Mark is sure that Wolfie will protect Danny and bring him back home, not thinking through how unlikely it is that they would be stationed in the same place. Once Danny gets in-country, he writes Mark to say that the mortality rate for support dogs is high; the Viet Cong have a bounty on them but by then it's too late, Wolfie is already in basic training. Mark writes letters trying to get Wolfie back, and begins to correspond with Wolfie's handler, who sends regular letter describing Wolfie's life in Vietnam, which culminates in Wolfie's death under fire. Subplots include a girlfriend whose brother has gone to Canada to evade the draft, mom going back to work so that Mark won't have to enter the service to pay for college, Danny coming home wounded and bitter, and Mark's demonstration aimed at changing the "no return" policy for military dogs. Excellent historical fiction.

Last Child by Michael Spooner

To be biracial and struggling with two distinct cultures seems like a modern problem, but it's the poignant centerpiece of this novel set in 1837. Is the main character Rosalie, daughter of the Scotch trader Angus at Fort Clark, or Last Child, the youngest in her Mandan family? She offends the Mandans by boasting about her ability to read the talking papers and do accounts for her father, but is not truly accepted by the white community either. When smallpox comes upriver with a shipment of trade goods, Angus wants to quarantine the infected items, but he's over-ruled by both the avaricious whites who won't be denied their profits, and the local tribal folks who also want to trade and don't believe Angus when he tries to warn them about infection. The devastating epidemic that results pulls Rosalie/Last Child deeper into both sides of her cultural heritage. Memorable characters and thought-provoking issues.

Last Dance on Holladay Street by Elisa Carbonne

The author fills a needed niche by writing intriguing historical fiction focusing on the experiences of non-white characters. Eva is thirteen and has only know farming life when her loving adopted parents die and she seeks the mother who gave her up in 1878 Denver. Memories of the Civil War are fresh and before her death, Mama Kate, a former slave, warns Eva not to ever let anyone enslave her. Eva gets a taste of the dangers of the big city when an over-friendly white man tries to pick her up at the train station; she's saved by a watchful African-American man who works there. He helps her find the address she has for her mother and offers to help if things don't work out. They don't - Eva is surprised to find she has a white mother and sister working on Holladay street in a house of prostitution. Eva was sent away initially because she's evidence that her mother took work "on the side." Well written, plenty of twists and turns.

Chris Gustafson is the library teacher at Whitman Middle School. Do you have a question for Chris? Email her at cgustafson@seatleschools.org.