Fictional Non-Fiction

There appears to be a growing trend in writing of authors blatantly intermingling fact and fiction. Of course, practically every story ever written holds some grain of truth even when it is touted as fiction. The question then becomes whether the author is responsible for revealing the amount of truth in his supposedly "true" fiction work.

Michael Crichton at first sets out to present his tale of Ibn Fadlan and his journey among the Northmen as a completely true account. The book begins with a lengthy introduction of the Ibn Fadlan manuscript. This discussion leaves the reader feeling certain the text they are about to read is factual and not fictionalized. Crichton continues his ploy throughout the book by adding footnotes to explain various Arabic and Viking customs and sayings. By all appearances. Crichton has conducted an immense amount of research in order to produce the most...