Guest Post by Kip Wilson –
The verse novel is just what the name sounds like: it’s a novel written in the form of poetry.
Verse novels have long been popular among teens and tweens, often winning important awards and critical acclaim. Well-known examples include The Crossover by Kwame Alexander, which won the 2015 Newbury award, and The Poet X by Elizabeth Acevedo, which won the Printz award. These novels are both fantastic examples of contemporary, realistic fiction, but historical fiction is likewise a quite common genre among children’s and YA verse novels.
Still, I found myself asking, where are all the adult verse novels? Especially the historical ones, given how popular historical fiction is in general in the adult market. The good news is, they do exist! Sarah Tregay maintains a comprehensive list of verse novels in each age category, including adult, some of which are historical (marked as such in Sarah’s list).
But I selfishly would like to see more of these books in what feels like an untapped market to me. Please, historical fiction writers in the adult market, tap into it! If you love beautifully strung together words and phrases and want to stand out in a crowd, try verse for your next historical fiction project. For more motivation, remember that those kids who grew up devouring Newbury award winning historical verse novels Out of the Dust by Karen Hesse and Inside Out and Back Again by Thanhha Lai are now adults looking for their next great read.
Obviously the best advice for any writer aiming to try something new is to read already-published examples.
A few of my favorite adult and crossover YA historical verse novels to add to your reading list include:
Rima’s Rebellion by Margarita Engle is based on documented history of women fighting for suffrage rights in Cuba. Through Rima’s eyes, this history springs to life in beautiful verse that sings.
Call Me Athena by Colby Cedar Smith covers a young woman’s coming of age in Detroit in the 1930s, interspersed with the voices of her parents at the close of World War I, in a lovely representation of 20th century immigration.
The Long Take by Robin Robertson takes the reader on a journey with a young Canadian veteran passing through several American cities after a tour of duty in World War II France.
A couple more titles that will be published this year that I’ve been lucky enough to read in early drafts include:
Song of Freedom, Song of Dreams by Shari Green transports readers to the peaceful protests in Leipzig, Germany in 1989 that contribute to the opening of borders throughout East German in a powerful story told in gorgeous, musical poetry.
When the Mapou Sings by Nadine Pinede partly inspired by Zora Neale Hurston’s fieldwork in 1930s Haiti follows a young woman who challenges the authorities of her village and exposes corruption.
Please take a look at these fabulous books and consider giving verse a try for your next historical novel!
Kip Wilson is the author of critically-acclaimed verse novels White Rose (2019, Versify), The Most Dazzling Girl in Berlin (2022, Versify), and One Last Shot (2023, Versify), all of which feature young women during the first half of the twentieth century. Kip holds a Ph.D. in German Literature and works in a high school library. Find her on her website and Instagram.
