Genres & Subgenres Classifying What You Read

Genres and Subgenres Texts can be separated into groups called genres and subgenres. Banana is a Food is a Fruit Harry Potter Book is Fiction is Fantasy TextGenreSubgenre

Genres Fiction: creative or imaginative writing. Nonfiction: writing that is true or factual. Folklore: stories once passed down orally. *Usually will say “retold by” or “adapted by” Dramas: plays or scripts. Poetry: writing concerned with the beauty of language. We will focus on the first three.

Fiction Subgenres Fiction Realistic Fiction Science Fiction Historical Fiction Fantasy

Realistic Fiction: stories that could be true, but aren’t. Science Fiction: has aliens, advanced technology, or is set in the future. Historical Fiction: a made up story set around a real event or person from history. Fantasy: has monsters, magic, or super powers.

Nonfiction Subgenres Nonfiction Informational Writing BiographyAutobiography Persuasive Writing

Informational Writing: provides facts or information. Autobiography: one’s life story written by oneself. Auto = Self Bio = Life Graphy= Writing Biography: one’s life story written by someone else. Persuasive Writing: meant to influence the reader.

Folklore Subgenres Folklore Fable Tall Tale Myth Fairy Tale Legend

Fable: short story with talking animals & a moral. Moral: lesson of the story (clearly stated). Myth: has gods & goddesses; may account for the creation of something. Tall Tale: Funny story set in the Wild West; main character’s size or skill exaggerated. Fairy Tale: has magic and/or talking animals. Legend: a story that might be true, but is exaggerated. Usually says “Retold by” or “Adapted by”

Fairytales & Fantasies Both have monsters, magic, or talking animals. What’s the difference? Fairytales are part of the oral tradition. Usually it will say “retold by” or “adapted by.” Fairytales often start “Once Upon a Time.”

Tips for Identifying 1.Find the main genre first 2.Look for details that reveal subgenre

Directions: Make 2 columns on your paper. Label the left one ‘GENRE’ and the right one ‘Subgenre.’ Number 1-10 down the left of the page, skipping one line between each.

1 The Lion and the Mouse Retold by Jerry Pinkney A Lion was sleeping when a Mouse woke him up. The Lion was about to eat him when the Mouse said, “Free me and I shall never forget it: who knows? I may help you some day." The Lion laughed so much at the idea of the Mouse being able to help him, that he let him go. Some time later the Lion was caught in a hunter’s trap. The little Mouse happened to pass by and, seeing the trapped Lion, he gnawed through the ropes and freed him. Little friends can be a big help.

ANSWER GENRE: Folklore SUBGENRE: Fable

2 War Brides By Helen Bryan 1939: as Britain prepares for war with Germany in World War II, the lives of five young women are about to collide in the sleepy Sussex village. Together they will face hardship and danger, forming bonds of friendship that will inspire a desperate plan, and fifty years later, an act of revenge...

ANSWER GENRE: Fiction SUBGENRE: Historical fiction

3 The Adventures of Robin Hood Adapted by Howard Pyle In this work, Pyle sorts through the many stories concerning Robin Hood, who may have been a real person, and made them suitable for children. Robin Hood's dashing acts of wealth redistribution (from the rich to the poor) have captured the imagination and fascination of millions of delighted readers through the ages.

ANSWER GENRE: Folklore SUBGENRE: Legend

4 The Best Book of Sharks by Claire Llewellyn This beautiful book offers insight into the deep-sea lives of one of nature’s deadliest killing machines. Learn where sharks live, what they feed on, how they bear their young.

ANSWER GENRE: Nonfiction SUBGENRE: informational

5 Escape From Earth (OASIS) by Ivis Bo Davis LEAVE EARTH OR DIE– the electromagnetic field around the Earth is fading away. Soon the planet will burn, and everything and everyone on the planet will die. Deep Space Vessel Trisznov is the first human interstellar colony ship, and she is nearly ready to launch in search of a new habitable planet to colonize among the stars...

ANSWER GENRE: Fiction SUBGENRE: Science fiction

6 In My Time: A Personal & Political Memoir by President Obama

ANSWER GENRE: Nonfiction SUBGENRE: Autobiography

7 Pecos Bill by Steven Kellogg and Laura Robb After falling off his parents’ wagon as a baby, Pecos Bill is raised by coyotes. He then becomes the toughest cowboy in the Wild West by wrestling giant bulls and outrunning a demon horse.

ANSWER GENRE: Folklore SUBGENRE: Tall tale

8 Eclipse by Stephenie Meyer The story of Bella Swan and her vampire love, Edward Cullen. The novel explores Bella's choice between her love for Edward and her friendship with werewolf Jacob Black, along with her dilemma of leaving mortality behind in a terrorized atmosphere, a result of mysterious vampire attacks in Seattle.

ANSWER GENRE: Fiction SUBGENRE: Fantasy

9 Perseus: The Hunt for Medusa's Head Adapted by Paul D. Storrie Could a monster whose very look turns men to stone be too perilous even for the son of Zeus? King Polydectes wants to get rid of young Perseus. So he tricks the young hero into performing an impossible task: slaying the snake-haired monster Medusa. But as the son of Zeus, king of the gods, Perseus has many powerful allies. Will Perseus' strength and courage allow him to do the impossible?

ANSWER GENRE: Folklore SUBGENRE: Myth

10 A People's History of the United States by Howard Zinn Zinn tells the untold history of the United States by focusing on the unrepresented minority groups: women, Native Americans, and African Americans. He covers the Bill of Rights to Clinton’s presidency and everything in between.

ANSWER GENRE: Nonfiction SUBGENRE: Informational

The End!