Are you seeking fiction books that focus on Christian characters and themes? The Harris County Public Library carries an excellent collection of Inspirational fiction for readers who are interested in these themes. The Harris County Public Library’s collection also entails a variety of subgenres within the Inspirational fiction genre.
Would you like to know what some of the popular subgenres are in inspirational fiction? Here is a synopsis and examples of the popular subgenres of inspirational fiction.
Christian Historical Fiction
Christian Historical Fiction mostly covers pre-Vietnam historical time periods such as Medieval, Colonial America, Regency England, and World Wars I and II. The differences between Christian Historical Fiction and standard historical fiction are that the characters have biblical faith, which is tested with life tribulations and circumstances that a particular time period or historical event brings. Lynn Austin, who writes both biblical and historical fiction, has written a stand-alone Christian historical novel entitled While We’re Far Apart. about a young lady who falls in love with a widower who decides to enlist in the war. While she cares for his children, she holds on to the hope that he will propose to her after the war.
Christian Westerns
Christian Western fiction settings usually take place in the American Wild West during the nineteenth century. The stories involve the pioneer characters’ biblical faith being tested by the harsh frontier. They have to endure conflicts with outlaws, traveling in wagons across vast distances in brutal weather, and other hardships of prairie life. Author Janette Oke has written a twelve-part series entitled Women of the West. These books are stand-alone novels that focus on one central female character living in the West, and their personal struggles that frontier life brings. One of the great things about this series is that you don't need to read them in order.
Amish Fiction
The Amish Fiction subgenre involves characters of the Anabaptist Protestant Group that believe in separating themselves from the world. This religion forbids its members from using modern conveniences such as cars or any equipment that depends on electricity. The Amish live in farming communities. The states that have the largest Amish Communities are Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana, Iowa, and Illinois. They speak a Pennsylvania Dutch dialect, and so readers will encounter some of the words that are part of the Pennsylvania Dutch Language. Author Beverly Lewis is one of the pioneers of Amish fiction. Ms. Lewis’s maternal grandmother was a Mennonite, so this familial connection familiarized her with the Amish culture. Ms. Lewis’s best-known 3-part series is the Heritage of Lancaster County, and the three books are The Shunning, The Confession, and The Reckoning. This series tells the story of a young Amish woman by the name of Katie Lapp who discovers that her Amish parents are not her biological parents. Katie is faced with some hard decisions after this shocking discovery of her lineage.
Biblical Fiction
Biblical Fiction comprises retellings of Bible stories. These authors often add fictional characters that are involved in the lives of the actual biblical personages. They sometimes create a story of the biblical personage’s childhood and later life when the Scriptures do not cover the early or later life of the personage. Other times, they give a life story to some of the minor biblical personages, when the Scripture only gives a brief account. The author Jill Eileen Smith has written a three-part series entitled Wives of King David. This series focuses on the three well-known wives of King David, and the series’ titles are Michal, Abigail, and Bathsheba. Ms. Smith has created life stories for each of these women, and their married life to King David.
Contemporary Christian Fiction
Contemporary Christian Fiction takes place in the 21st century. The characters face familiar trials and tribulations that are a part of modern life. Some of the issues that contemporary inspirational authors approach with tasteful candor are abortion, domestic abuse, human trafficking, divorce, and illicit affairs. These contemporary characters also face uncontrollable modern circumstances, such as traditional businesses being endangered during the digital age. Inspirational author Karen Kingsbury’s book The Bridge is about a struggling bookstore that is having to compete with the digital book age. Ms. Kingsbury has also written the five-part Redemption Series, and the titles in this series are Redemption, Remember, Return, Rejoice, and Reunion. The Redemption series has been adapted into a nighttime soap opera called The Baxters on the Hallmark Channel.
Apocalyptic Fiction
A close relative of inspirational contemporary fiction is Apocalyptic Inspirational fiction. This subgenre’s stories center on biblical prophesies of the “End Times.” These stories deal with potential dangers of the coming times, but do not have the dismal messages of well-known classics of apocalytic fiction, like Brave New World by Aldous Huxley and 1984 by George Orwell. Good ultimately triumphs over evil in this subgenre, and the stories end on a hopeful note. Tim LaHaye and Jerry Jenkins are pioneers of Christian apocalyptic fiction. Their Left Behind Series takes place in the post-rapture period when believers are now in heaven.The remaining people are experiencing the horrible chaos of what is now “Hell on Earth.” These "left behind" people have no idea what happened to their loved ones who are in Heaven, but a small group of born-again Christians have realized what has happened to these departed people. They “form the Tribulation Force to defeat the Anti-Christ, save lost souls, and prepare for the Tribulation.”
These five subgenres may be the most popular Inspirational subgenres, but this list is not exhaustive. Let us know what your favorite subgenres of Christian fiction are, and share inspirational fiction books and series you love in the comment section
Want to Find More, But Don't Know Where to Start?
Librarians are always happy to help you find books that suit your tastes and beliefs. Just ask the next time you visit the library! Not able to visit your branch? Try Book Hunters, HCPL's FREE service that matches readers with books they love. Specially trained Book Hunters create custom, curated reading lists for you based on the information you provide about what you like (and don't like) to read.
Add a comment to: Exploring Christian Fiction Subgenres from Amish Country to the Wild West