"When I teach historical novels to my students, I think one thing we're doing is we're debunking some of the old characterizations about the past. So I think our knowledge of history might get better, actually, and more complicated and less stereotypical when we read these terrific historical novels that are out there."
"They're the novels that look at the history of technology, of architecture, of science, things that are a little off the beaten track for conventional historical novelists. But then there are contemporary historical novels, and interesting ones, that take an oblique perspective on a well-known event. A good example of that would be "Cold Mountain," which was a best-seller. It takes a different take on the Civil War."
Rozett visits Wednesday, April 25 to present her new family memoir, When People Wrote Letters (2011).
