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.

Bee Season

by Myla Goldberg

Publication year 2000

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Family, Religion & Spirituality, Coming of Age, Loneliness, Mental Health, Order & Chaos

Tags Jewish Literature

Myla Goldberg’s debut novel, Bee Season (2000), is a work of literary fiction that chronicles the intellectual and spiritual awakening of an ordinary girl and the subsequent unraveling of her family. Eleven-year-old Eliza Naumann, long overlooked by her parents and teachers, discovers a previously unrecognized ability. Her unexpected success in a series of spelling bees draws the intense attention of her father, Saul, a scholar of Jewish mysticism who comes to interpret her gift as... Read Bee Season Summary

Before We Were Free

by Julia Alvarez

Publication year 2002

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Family

Tags American Literature, Children`s Literature, Education, Education, World History, Historical Fiction, Arts & Culture

When Julia Alvarez’s Before We Were Free (2002) begins, the life of Anita de la Torre, an 11-year-old girl in the Dominican Republic, is about to change forever. The novel investigates themes of family, government corruption, superstition, and the power of the written word, all set against the backdrop of the months before and after the assassination of a brutal dictator, Rafael Trujillo. This study guide uses the 2007 Laurel Leaf Reprint Edition.Plot SummaryDuring the... Read Before We Were Free Summary

Before We Were Yours

by Lisa Wingate

Publication year 2017

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Memory, Family

Tags Historical Fiction, Modern Classic Fiction, World History, Parenting

A 2017 New York Times bestseller, Lisa Wingate’s Before We Were Yours is a work of historical fiction told in polyvocal form with two alternating principal voices narrating a story of complex family history. From chapter to chapter, the book goes back and forth between present-day South Carolina (in settings of Southern power and prestige) and Tennessee in the late 1930s and early 1940s (in settings of squalor and abuse). In attempting to map out... Read Before We Were Yours Summary

Behind a Mask

by Louisa May Alcott

Publication year 1866

Genre Novella, Fiction

Themes Perseverance, Revenge, Femininity, The Past, Family, Social Class, Economics, Equality, Trust & Doubt, Truth & Lies, Wins & Losses

Tags Gender & Feminism, Gothic Literature, Classic Fiction, Horror & Suspense, Social Class, Victorian Era

Behind a Mask: or, a Woman’s Power is a sensation novella by American author Louisa May Alcott. It was originally published in 1866 in the magazine The Flag of Our Union under the pseudonym A. M. Barnard. The story is set in Victorian England and follows Jean Muir, a governess who presents herself as a meek, 19-year-old orphan to the wealthy Coventry family. Jean, who’s actually a 30-year-old divorced and disreputable actress, uses her cunning... Read Behind a Mask Summary

Being Henry David

by Cal Armistead

Publication year 2013

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Fear, Forgiveness, Loneliness, Regret, Mental Health, Coming of Age, Environment, Place, Family, Friendship, Self Discovery, Literature, Music, Truth & Lies

Tags Mystery & Crime Fiction, Realistic Fiction, Modern Classic Fiction, Romance, Action & Adventure

... Read Being Henry David Summary

Belonging

by Nora Krug

Publication year 2018

Genre Graphic Memoir , Nonfiction

Themes Family, Guilt, Conflict, Emotions/Behavior: Courage, Perseverance, Fear, Forgiveness, Gratitude, Grief, Hate & Anger, Hope, Loneliness, Memory, Shame & Pride, Mental Health, Race, Death, The Past, Place, Self Discovery, Community, Politics & Government, War, Good & Evil, Justice, Loyalty & Betrayal, Order & Chaos, Power & Greed, Safety & Danger, Truth & Lies

Tags European History, Holocaust, World War II

... Read Belonging Summary

Better Nate Than Ever

by Tim Federle

Publication year 2013

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Family, Music, Perseverance, Self Discovery

Tags Realistic Fiction, Humor, LGBTQ+, Music, Children`s Literature, Modern Classic Fiction

Content Warning: Better Nate Than Ever contains sensitive material, such as bullying and LGBTQ-related slurs.Better Nate Than Ever (2013) is the first book in a trilogy about Broadway hopeful Nate Foster; the next two titles in the series are Five, Six, Seven, Nate! (2014) and Nate Expectations (2018). The novel is intended for middle grade and young adult readers but may also appeal to adult fans of theater-related fiction. Author Tim Federle and the fictional... Read Better Nate Than Ever Summary

Betty

by Tiffany McDaniel

Publication year 2020

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Indigenous Identity, Family, Grief, Hope, Hate & Anger, Gender Identity, Mental Health, Race, Coming of Age, Environment, Mothers, Siblings, Good & Evil, Justice

Tags Historical Fiction, Coming of Age, Trauma & Abuse

... Read Betty Summary

Bewilderment

by Richard Powers

Publication year 2021

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Love, Grief, Environment, Family

Tags Science Fiction, Symbolic Narrative, Climate Change, Grief & Death, Mental Illness, Science & Nature, American Literature, Modern Classic Fiction

... Read Bewilderment Summary

Beyond Magenta

by Susan Kuklin

Publication year 2014

Genre Biography, Nonfiction

Themes Gender Identity, Sexual Identity, Community, Childhood & Youth, Family, Masculinity, Femininity, Self Discovery

Tags LGBTQ+, Coming of Age, Gender & Feminism, Biography

... Read Beyond Magenta Summary

Beyond That, the Sea

by Laura Spence-Ash

Publication year 2023

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Family, Love, Truth & Lies, Conflict, Nostalgia, Self Discovery, Mothers, Daughters & Sons, Siblings, Friendship, Memory, Childhood & Youth, Coming of Age, Hope

Tags Historical Fiction, Coming of Age, Romance, World War II, Social Class, Education, Finance, Love & Sexuality, Relationships, Military & War, Grief & Death, World History, Parenting

... Read Beyond That, the Sea Summary