Literary Genres
Genre means a category, or type of literature.
All books can be divided into two categories:
fiction
• a made up story
• can tell about
things that could
happen
• is read for fun
• characters may be
like real people or
imaginary
nonfiction
• facts that can be
checked and
proven
• the author is an
expert on this
information
• it IS TRUE!
Categories of Genre
There are many genres of books. Here are
some of the common ones:
•Realistic fiction
•Folktales
•Historical fiction
•Fables
•Science fiction
•Fairy tales
•Adventure
•Tall tales
•Mystery
•Informational
•Fantasy
•Poetry
•Myths
•Biography
Realistic Fiction
• Stories are set in the real
world.
• Contains characters who
seem believable.
• The reader believes that
the story could “really
happen.”
Examples of Realistic
Fiction
•Because of Winn Dixie
•Crash
•Owl Moon
•Shiloh
•Summer of the Swans
•Babysitter Club series
Historical Fiction
• Stories set in times past.
• Blends history with
fiction.
• Historical fiction helps us
understand what life
might have been like
during a particular time
period.
Examples of Historical
Fiction
•A Boy at War
•Across Five Aprils
•Ben and Me
•The Butterfly
•Charlie Skedaddle
•Sign of the Beaver
•Titanic Crossing
•Dear America Series
Science fiction
• Stories that blend fact
and fiction with futuristic
technology
• May involve magic or
time travel.
Examples of Science Fiction
•Aliens for Breakfast
•A Wrinkle in Time
•My Best Friend is Invisible
•Star Wars
•The Time Machine
Adventure
• Setting many times in the
wild.
• Main character must
make decisions that will
determine if he or she
will survive.
• Main character usually
grows and finds strength
of character in the
situation.
• Exciting plots.
Examples of Adventure
Mystery
• Deals with a problem that
must be solved.
• Something or someone is
missing.
• Strange events keep
happening.
• A detective or main
character looks for clues
in order to solve the
mystery.
Examples of Mystery
The House of Dies Drear
Never Say Die
The Treehouse Mystery
Mystery of the Midnight Message
The Hardy Boys Series
Boxcar Children Mysteries
Fantasy
• The reader must suspend
belief.
• Many times the story
takes place in another
world.
• May involve magic or
time travel.
• Sometimes animals can
talk or have human
characteristics.
Examples of Fantasy
Myths,
Folk Tales,
Fables, Fairy Tales,
and Tall tales
Myth
A story that usually explains
something about the world
and involves gods and other
superhuman beings.
Examples of Myths
• Baucis and Philemon
• Medusa’s Head
• Quetzalcoatl
• Daedalus and Icarus
Folk Tale
• A folk tale is a story
with no known
author. Folk tales are
passed down from
one generation to
another by word of
mouth.
Examples of Folk Tales
•
•
•
•
Johnny Appleseed
Yellowhammer
Seventh Sister
How the Snake Got
Poison
• John Henry
Fable
• A fable is a very brief
story in prose or in
verse that teaches a
moral or a practical
lesson about how to
succeed in life.
Examples of Fables
• The Crow and the Jar
• The Wolf and the
House Dog
• The Fox and the Crow
• The Country Mouse
and the City Mouse
• The Maid and the
Milk Pail
Fairy tale
• A fairy tale is a type
of imaginative writing
that carries the reader
into an invented
world where the laws
of nature, as we know
them, do not operate.
Examples of Fairy Tales
• Cinderella
• Snow White and the
Seven Dwarfs
• Ella Enchanted
• Cinder Edna
Photo from:
http://www.jlmatrix.co.uk/joanna/images/enchanted1.jpg
Tall Tale
•A fictional story that
stretches the truth.
• The heroes or sheroes are
"larger than life.“
•Characters are given
exaggerated characteristics
Some classic tall tale heroes and sheroes
are Paul Bunyan, Davy Crockett, Sally
Ann Thunder Ann Whirlwind Crockett,
Pecos Bill, and Slue-Foot Sue.
Informational
• Tells facts that can be looked-up or
proven
• tells about real events
• characters have really lived
• may have maps, diagrams and illustrations
to explain the facts
• author is an expert on the subject
Examples of
Informational Writing
•Dirt Bikes
•Flying Animals
•Danger! Earthquakes
•Newspapers
•Encyclopedias
Poetry
• Poetry is verse
written to inspire
thoughts and
feelings in the
reader.
• It often uses
rhyme and
rhythm, or it can
be written in free
verse.
Examples of Poetry
•Where the Sidewalk Ends
•New Kid on the Block
•Chocolate Dreams: Poems
•Mammalabilia
•A Pizza the Size of the Sun
•Love That Dog
Biography
• The true story of a real
person’s life from the
past or present.
Examples of Biography
•Tiger Woods: An American Master
•The HomerunKings: BabeRuth and
Henry Aaron
•Clara Barton, a Red Cross Pioneer
•Sacagawea