Ok, i made a list over my top 20 historical novels through the ages. I’m sure i missed some but before i started i made a few groundrules. Each author can only have one entry and thats it. No exceptions. And i mean historical novels, that means they have to been written some distance in years from the setting the author should not base it mostly on things he had himself experienced. There goes, for example, All Quiet on the Western Front, The Naked and the Dead and Suite Francoise out of the competition. Remarque and Mailer took part in respectively WW1 and WW2 and their books is heavily based on their experiences. Irene Nemirofsky lived in oocupied Paris even if her book wasn’t published, posthumously, until later. They are all great novels but not a Historical novel since they actually lived it. I also disqualified all novels that have somekind of timetravel thing to them. Having one of the main characters actually know something of the future and act because of it makes it, in my opinion, not a historical novel. There fell, for example, Outlander and 11/22/63. Both are great novels but not in this cathegory. I have also tried to spread it out so that many decades of authors are represented and also geographically.
So.. Now you can start to groan. I can already hear my american friends groan over,for example, Roots or Gone with the Wind. Thats OK, groan away. This is just my opinion. I will be happy to hear yours. When regarded as the best 20 during a time of over 200 years it will be tight. Ranked in no special order by the way. And since i havent used books only memory i’m sure i have forgotten something. Oh, Some of these books are part of a series and then i have taken the best in that series,IMO, of course.
20 best historical novels
I, Claudius - Robert Graves (1934)
The Far Pavilions - M.M. Kaye (1978)
All The Light We Can Not See - Anthony Doerr (2014)
Wolf Hall - Hilary Mantel (2009)
The Pillars Of The Earth - Ken Follett (1989)
Shogun - James Clavell (1975)
Lonesome Dove - Larry McMurtry (1985)
North And South - John Jakes (1982)
Winds of War - Herman Wouk (1971)
The Egyptian - Mika Waltari (Finnish) (1945)
The Three Musketeers - Alexandre Dumas (1844)
War And Peace - Leo Tolstoj (1865)
The Days Of His Grace - Eyvind Johnson (Swedish) (1960)
The Source - James Michener (1965)
Kristin Lavransdatter - Sigrid Undset (1920) (norwegian)
Musashi - Eiji Yoshikawa (1935)
The Bookthief - Markus Zusak (2005) (australian)
The Name Of The Rose - Umberto Eco (1980) (Italian)
Imperium - Robert Harris (2006)
The Long Ships - Frans G. Bengtsson (Swedish) (1941)
So.. Now you can start to groan. I can already hear my american friends groan over,for example, Roots or Gone with the Wind. Thats OK, groan away. This is just my opinion. I will be happy to hear yours. When regarded as the best 20 during a time of over 200 years it will be tight. Ranked in no special order by the way. And since i havent used books only memory i’m sure i have forgotten something. Oh, Some of these books are part of a series and then i have taken the best in that series,IMO, of course.
20 best historical novels
I, Claudius - Robert Graves (1934)
The Far Pavilions - M.M. Kaye (1978)
All The Light We Can Not See - Anthony Doerr (2014)
Wolf Hall - Hilary Mantel (2009)
The Pillars Of The Earth - Ken Follett (1989)
Shogun - James Clavell (1975)
Lonesome Dove - Larry McMurtry (1985)
North And South - John Jakes (1982)
Winds of War - Herman Wouk (1971)
The Egyptian - Mika Waltari (Finnish) (1945)
The Three Musketeers - Alexandre Dumas (1844)
War And Peace - Leo Tolstoj (1865)
The Days Of His Grace - Eyvind Johnson (Swedish) (1960)
The Source - James Michener (1965)
Kristin Lavransdatter - Sigrid Undset (1920) (norwegian)
Musashi - Eiji Yoshikawa (1935)
The Bookthief - Markus Zusak (2005) (australian)
The Name Of The Rose - Umberto Eco (1980) (Italian)
Imperium - Robert Harris (2006)
The Long Ships - Frans G. Bengtsson (Swedish) (1941)
