What are Fiction Stories?
Fictional stories have a current, strong appeal with those who are looking to make sense of the world and their place in it. While both folktales and fiction stem from imagination, fiction can be utilized to story-tell real experiences/situations and give the readers messages that tie to personal growth. Fiction resonates with people of all ages, emphasizing universal and timeless themes.
Fiction stories help readers and listeners make much better sense of the world
The morals and themes presented in the tales told above and many others are helpful for the audience to navigate their lives and their places in the world.
Fiction stories help readers and listeners make much better sense of the world
The morals and themes presented in the tales told above and many others are helpful for the audience to navigate their lives and their places in the world.
3 Types of Fiction Stories
- Short Stories
- Novel
- Novella
History
- There are many first recorded versions of fiction in different parts of the world
- In the 1170s, a Frenchman wrote the fiction story of King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table. This story was incredibly popular in France and was especially loved by the French aristocracy.
- The world's first fiction novel is recorded to be The Tale of Genji, written in 11th Century Japan by Murasaki Shikibu.
5 Fiction Stories Recommendations
Alice's Adventure's in Wonderland
- Written by: Lewis Carroll in 1865
- Story:
- While learning from her sister, Alice finds a white rabbit who is claiming to be late for a meeting. She decides to follow the rabbit down a rabbit hole where she finds herself in a magical world called Wonderland. There she finds peculiar individuals who fail to help her find the rabbit who she has now lost. Along the way, she finds herself at a Mad Tea Party hosted by the Mad Hatter who helps her to the Queen of Hearts. Here she finds the rabbit and is accidentally accused of eating the queen’s tarts. After many unpleasant and pleasant encounters, Alice finally tries to run away from the malicious Queen and all the other crazy folk in Wonderland, which is when she finally wakes up and realizes that this was all a dream.
- The original book written by Lewis Carroll has many political and social nuances subtly thrown in the novel but the main point Lewis brings is the loss of innocence.
- At the beginning of the story, Alice’s sister is telling her to stop daydreaming and start living in the real world and after her crazy, imaginative dream, Alice tells her sister that she’s ready to grow up but will never lose her sense of adventure- staying true to herself.
The Wonderful Wizard of Oz
- Written by: L. Frank Baum in 1900
- Story:
- Dorothy Gale lives in Kansas with her aunt and uncle and a dog names Toto. One day, she and Toto get caught in a cyclone that takes them to the magical world of Oz. The Good Witch of the North arrives and gives Dorothy magical silver shoes that once belonged to the Wicked Witch that will help her get back home. The Good Witch tells Dorothy that the only way she can return home is to follow the yellow brick road to the Emerald City where the great and powerful Wizard of Oz will help her. On her way, Dorothy frees a Scarecrow from the pole on which he is hanging, applies oil to the rusted joints of a Tin Woodman, and meets a Cowardly Lion.
- The three of them accompany Dorothy on her journey for they also want something for the Wizard. After several adventures, the group arrives in Emerald City where the Wizard agrees to help them all if they kill the Wicked Witch of the West. The Witch hears this plot and successfully tricks Dorothy out of one of her silver shoes after which Dorothy dumps a bucket of water which melts the witch. The group makes their way back to the Wizard but realizes that the Wizard is a fraud who uses circus tricks to conceal his real nature. Upon returning home, Dorothy and Toto realize that their time in Oz serves as an experience they will learn from and that trusting your intentions is essential to growth in character.
- Moral of the story: Obtain your heart’s desire
- The company all had individual things they desired and despite all the obstacles that were put in their path, they all eventually got what they wanted.
The Hobbit
- Written by: J.R.R. Tolkein in 1937
- Story:
- Gandalf, the wizard, tricks Bilbo Baggins, a hobbit who lives in the Shire into hosting a party for Thorin Oakenshield and his band of dwarves. The dwarves convince Bilbo to be their thief in their journey to reclaim their homeland of the Misty Mountains which was taken by Smaug the dragon. Thorin and Bilbo don’t believe in Bilbo’s worth as a burglar but nevertheless everyone takes him into the company. The group travels into the wild, where Gandalf saves the company from trolls and goblins. While in the goblin cave, Bilbo gets separated and his worth is finally tested when he encounters Gollum and finds a mysterious ring which allows him to escape the cave. Once at the base of the mountain, Bilbo goes in to fulfill his role of the burglar and encounters a sleeping Smaug. Bilbo attempts to steal a great cup but is then attacked by the dragon. Before leaving, Bilbo finds a gap in Smaug's armour.
- Smaug, believing that the people of Laketown were behind this thievery, sets out to destroy the town, but isn’t aware that Bard, the defender of the town is aware of the impending attack. Bard's arrow finds the hollow spot and kills the dragon. And so, the dwarves take possession of the mountain, Bilbo finds the Arkenstone, an heirloom of Thorin's family, and hides it away. The Wood-elves and Lake-men then besiege the mountain and request for all their jewels which the dragon had taken away from them. Thorin refuses and, having summoned his kin from the Iron Hills, reinforces his position. Bilbo tries to ransom the Arkenstone to head off a war, but Thorin is only enraged at the betrayal. He banishes Bilbo and then a battle ensues during which Thorin dies. While Bilbo accepts only a small portion of his share of the treasure, having no want or need for more, but still returns home a very wealthy hobbit roughly a year and a month after he first left.
- This story gets continued into the Lord of the Rings which tells the story of the ring that Bilbo finds and of his nephew who is tasked to destroy it.
- A major theme of the novel is to find one’s courage.
- Hobbits by nature aren’t adventurous folk so the journey for Bilbo was finding his courage. In the end of the novel and in the Lord the Rings, Bilbo’s courage that came from this one adventure is shown greatly and he even passes it on to Frodo, his nephew.
A Wrinkle in Time
- Written by: Madeleine L’Engle in 1962
- Story:
- Thirteen-year-old Meg Murry is a troublesome girl whose family sees her as capable of doing great things. Her family includes her scientist mother Katherine, missing scientist father Alexander, twin brothers, and five-year-old brother Charles Wallace Murry, a child genius prodigy. One night during a storm, Meg finds Charles Wallace talking to their new eccentric neighbor Mrs. Whatsit and their mom during which Mrs. Whatsit casually mentions the existence of a tesseract. This causes Katherine to almost faint and the next day Meg discovers that a tesseract is a scientific concept her father was working on before his mysterious disappearance. At dinner, Mrs. Whatsit and her two other companions, Mrs Who and Mrs. Which comes into the house and tells them that they need their help to find Meg’s father. The three ladies reveal themselves to be supernatural beings who transport the trio through the universe by means of tesseract, a fifth-dimensional phenomenon explained as folding the fabric of space and time. The Mrs. Ws reveal to the children that the universe is under attack from an evil being who appears as a large dark cloud called The Black Thing (a personification of evil). Here they discover a telepathic red-eyed man who claims to know their father's whereabouts. Charles Wallace eventually gets hypnotized in order to find their father who is being held prisoner because he would not succumb to the group mind.
- The planet is controlled by an evil disembodied brain with powerful abilities, which the inhabitants of Camazotz call "IT". Charles Wallace takes them to the place where IT is held. Alexander then tessers Meg and Calvin out of there but is unable to save Charles Wallace because of his brainwashing. Meg also overcomes her anger at her father for leaving Charles Wallace on Camazotz, realizing that parents can't fix everything, and sometimes children can solve problems themselves.Then the three witches arrive and show Meg that love and forgiveness can save Charles Wallace and the planet and so she proceeds to do just that. After he is saved, everyone is returned home and the Murry’s are all reunited.
- The themes that are presented in the story are to value your loved ones despite their flaws and also the value of being unique. Every character in the novel is vastly different from one another but it is their individuality that is able to conquer the darkness.
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
- Written by: Roald Dahl in 1964
- Story:
- Eleven-year-old Charlie Bucket is part of a poor family consisting of his parents and four grandparents. His grandparents tell him the story of the eccentric chocolatier Willy Wonka and all the wonderful sweets and chocolates he makes in his factory which has now been shut down. The next day, the newspaper announces that Wonka is re-opening the factory and has invited five lucky children to come on a tour, if they find a Golden Ticket inside a Wonka Bar. The first four golden tickets are found by four ill-mannered children and the last one is found by Charlie himself. When the tour begins, Wonka takes the five children and their parents inside the factory, which is a wonderful place that has imaginative creations that would usually defy logic.During the tour, the four "bad" children prove their horrible-ness and eventually get ejected from the tour in comical, mysterious, and painful ways. Because Charlie is the last one there, Wonka congratulates him for "winning" the factory.
- He then proceeds to explain that the tour was a test to see who could carry on his legacy and Charlie was the only child whose inherent goodness allowed him to pass the morality test. The end of the story follows Wonka inviting Charlie and his whole family to live with him in the factory.
- Moral of the story: Inherent good behavior can indeed lead to good fortune
- Despite Charlie’s poor beginnings, he stays true to his good nature and doesn’t get greedy unlike the rest of the children which leads him to get the best outcome
Resources for Educators

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