The National Book League was a precursor to the current Booktrust, and was set up in 1924 by the Society of Bookmen in order to promote reading, particularly among the young. To that end, the NBL issued Reader's Guides on a variety of subjects, each written by an author with expertise in that field and containing an annotated bibliography of recommended titles on the subject. Alfred Duggan, himself a popular author of historical fiction, wrote this guide to historical fiction in 1957. The guide contains an introduction by Duggan on the development of historical fiction since the 18th century and a bibliography of the most accurate historical novels published between 1923 and 1956.