Six historical fiction titles based on true stories

Katie Moench is a librarian, runner, and lover of baked goods. A school librarian in the Upper Midwest, Moench lives with her husband and dog and spends her free time drinking coffee, trying new recipes, and adding to her TBR list.

At Book Riot she tagged six historical fiction titles based on real people and events, including:

The Moor’s Account by Laila Lalami

The Moor’s Account is a novel that imagines the life of Estebanico, an enslaved man who is briefly mentioned in historical accounts of the Narváez expedition as one of four survivors of the ill-fated trip to explore and conquer Spanish Florida. Lalami builds on Estebanico’s story, narrating the expedition through his eyes. Mustafa ibn Muhammad ibn Abdussalam al-Zamori, known to his Spanish master Andrés de Dorantes as Estebanico, is brought from Morocco to Cuba and then to what is now Tampa Bay in a quest for gold. As the party journeys inland, they encounter disease, wildlife, and dwindling supplies. A year after setting out, only the four survivors remain. Lalami’s book is structured as a travelogue and was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize in 2015.

Read about another novel on the list.

The Moor’s Account is among Stacey Abrams's recommended reading and Adam Johnson's six powerful books about characters in impossible situations.

--Marshal Zeringue