Genres & Subgenres

Classifying What You Read

Genres and SubgenresTexts can be separated into groups

called genres and subgenres.

Bananais a

Foodis a

Fruit

Harry Potter Book

is Fiction

is Fantasy

Text Genre Subgenre

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

InformationalWriting

Biography Autobiography

PersuasiveWriting

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.

1The Lion and the MouseRetold 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 BridesBy 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

5Escape 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

8Eclipse

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

9Perseus: 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!