Family

Leo Tolstoy famously begins the novel Anna Karenina with the sentence: "All happy families are alike; each unhappy family is unhappy in its own way." In this thematic collection, we have gathered noteworthy texts that navigate the joyous and sorrowful emotional terrain of the family unit.

The Titan's Curse

by Rick Riordan

Publication year 2007

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Family, Hate & Anger, Appearance & Reality

Tags Fantasy, Action & Adventure, Mythology, Ancient Greece, Relationships, Arts & Culture, Military & War, American Literature, Children`s Literature

The Titan’s Curse (2007) is the third installment in Rick Riordan’s Percy Jackson & the Olympians series, following The Lightning Thief (2005) and The Sea of Monsters (2006) and preceding The Battle of the Labyrinth (2008) and The Last Olympian (2009). The series centers around the adventures of Percy Jackson, a boy who is the son of the Greek god of the sea Poseidon and a mortal woman named Sally Jackson. Percy learns that he... Read The Titan's Curse Summary

The Truth About Forever

by Sarah Dessen

Publication year 2004

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Conflict, Emotions/Behavior: Courage, Perseverance, Fear, Grief, Guilt, Loneliness, Love, Memory, Shame & Pride, Regret, Nostalgia, Appearance & Reality, Loyalty & Betrayal, Order & Chaos, Safety & Danger, Trust & Doubt, Truth & Lies, Death, Coming of Age, Daughters & Sons, Family, Mothers, Fathers, Self Discovery

Tags Modern Classic Fiction, Realistic Fiction, Romance, Grief & Death

The Truth About Forever (2004) is a young adult contemporary romance by Sarah Dessen. The novel follows Macy Queen, a teen girl struggling to heal from the tragic death of her father, only to find that the answers lie not in chasing perfection and control but embracing the unpredictable and chaotic joys of life. The Truth About Forever is Sarah Dessen’s sixth published novel and won the 2004 Romantic Times Reviewers’ Choice Award for Urban... Read The Truth About Forever Summary

The Truth as Told by Mason Buttle

by Leslie Connor

Publication year 2018

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Grief, Death, Family

Tags Mystery & Crime Fiction, Children`s Literature, Grief & Death, Realistic Fiction

The Truth as Told by Mason Buttle (2018) by Leslie Connor is a middle-grade novel following Mason Buttle, a 12-year-old boy with learning disabilities who is grieving the recent loss of his best friend, Benny. Mason found Benny dead in his family orchard, and the police suspect there is more to the story than Mason will reveal. Mason soon makes a new friend, Calvin Chumsky; when Calvin goes missing too, Mason wonders if his bad... Read The Truth as Told by Mason Buttle Summary

The Tryout

by Christina Soontornvat, Illustr. Joanna Cacao

Publication year 2022

Genre Graphic Memoir , Nonfiction

Themes Friendship, Emotions/Behavior: Courage, Teamwork, Perseverance, Memory, Nostalgia, Race, Childhood & Youth, Coming of Age, Self Discovery, Religion & Spirituality, Wins & Losses, Family

Tags Children`s Literature, Sports, Race & Racism, Bullying, Realistic Fiction, Biography

... Read The Tryout Summary

The Twelve Tribes of Hattie

by Ayana Mathis

Publication year 2012

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Mothers, Family

Tags Historical Fiction, World History

Ayana Mathis’s 2012 novel The Twelve Tribes of Hattie follows the lives of the Shepherds, a black family struggling to succeed in Philadelphia between 1925 and 1980. At the center of the family is their inscrutable matriarch, Hattie, who remains an enigma to her children even as they grow into adulthood. With only two exceptions, each of the book’s chapters delves into the mind of one of Hattie’s children (and one granddaughter) over a span... Read The Twelve Tribes of Hattie Summary

The Unlikely Hero of Room 13B

by Teresa Toten

Publication year 2013

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Mental Health, Family, Coming of Age

Tags Realistic Fiction, Mental Illness, Modern Classic Fiction, Romance

Published in 2013, The Unlikely Hero of Room 13B by Teresa Toten is a young adult fiction novel that closely examines obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) and mental health issues in teens and high schoolers. Filled with moments of deep emotion, harsh realities, and unexpected humor, The Unlikely Hero of Room 13B is about how we all navigate the chaos and stress of our world. Toten won the Governor General Literary Award in Canada for this novel... Read The Unlikely Hero of Room 13B Summary

The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry

by Rachel Joyce

Publication year 2012

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Grief, Forgiveness, Family

Tags Symbolic Narrative, Magical Realism, British Literature, Modern Classic Fiction, Travel Literature

The international bestseller The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry (2012) is the first novel by author Rachel Joyce and the first in a trilogy, followed by The Love Song of Miss Queenie Hennessy (2014) and Maureen Fry and the Angel of the North (2022). The novel was shortlisted for the Commonwealth Prize and longlisted for the Man Booker Prize. Young also wrote the screenplay for the novel’s film adaptation, which stars Jim Broadbent as Harold... Read The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry Summary