Happy November, book friends! Spooky season has come to a close, and I’m trying not to be too sad about the inevitable arrival of winter. But at least the cold season means lots of time to spend snuggled up with a blanket, my pup, and a good book.

With a new month comes a new theme for Top 5 Tuesdays, as well! Top 5 Tuesday is a weekly meme created by Bionic Bookworm, now hosted by Meeghan Reads. If you’re interested in participating, check out their blog to get the details and the prompts for each week.

This week’s prompt is Top 5 Books Set in the Past. This is an interesting one for me, as I’ve really leaned into contemporary reads in my adult life. As a kid, I loved reading historical fiction, but I’ve somewhat drifted away from it for whatever reason. So, let’s take a look at the books set in the past, from my past, shall we?

American Girl: Felicity by Valerie Tripp

One of my life goals as a kid was to have red hair, so naturally my American Girl of choice was Felicity. I loved reading about her life in colonial America so much that my family decided to deviate from our usual vacation haunts and visit colonial Williamsburg instead.

Dear America Series by Various

I loved these books when I was younger. You could always spot them on the library shelves and I loved perusing to find ones I hadn’t read yet. They made me feel smart because I could enjoy a good story and learn about the past at the same time.

1-800-Where R You Series by Meg Cabot

These aren’t quite historical, but they were written and set in the early 2000s (we’re talking 2001 here) and I remember them feeling a bit retro even when I read them (repeatedly) as a kid. They’re by Meg Cabot, but I read them early enough that they were still published under one of her pen names, Jenny Carroll. I was so surprised when I realized it was the same writer. I could only find one image of the old covers like the ones I got at the library–they’ve been republished under Cabot’s name.

The Ghost Belonged to Me by Richard Peck

I remember next to nothing about this book, but I know there were ghosts and that it was set in the past. I had a brief phase where Richard Peck was my favorite author, and this is the book that sparked that phase.

The Royal Diaries Series by Various

In my mind, these were the sister books to the Dear America series. However, these were the diaries of princesses from all different times and places. I loved them for the same reasons I loved the Dear America books.

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That’s it for me this week! As I was writing this, I did think of a few more recent books set in the past that I’ve read, but I’d love some recommendations. What are your favorite books from the past?