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.

Publication year 2024

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Grief, Guilt, Hate & Anger, Hope, Love, Regret, Revenge, Death, Animals, Appearance & Reality, Family, Social Class, Community, War, Loyalty & Betrayal

Tags Fantasy, Horror & Suspense

Empire of the Damned (2024) is a fantasy novel by Jay Kristoff, an internationally bestselling Australian author known for popular fantasy and science fiction series such as the Nevernight Chronicle trilogy and The Illuminae Files. The novel is the second installment in the Empire of the Vampire series, the first installment of which was published in 2021. Empire of the Damned, the second novel in the series, continues the saga of Gabriel de León, a... Read Empire of the Damned Summary

Publication year 2025

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Perseverance, Love, Gender Identity, Coming of Age, Family, Siblings, Self Discovery

Tags Fantasy, Romance, Horror & Suspense, Gothic Literature

Publication year 1957

Genre Play, Fiction

Themes Loneliness, Family, Death, Future, Regret

Tags Tragedy, Comedy & Satire, Irish Literature, Absurdism, World History, Dramatic Literature, French Literature, Classic Fiction

Endgame is a one-act, absurdist play by Samuel Beckett, first performed in 1957. The post-apocalyptic play portrays the farcical, tragic existence of four character who are caught in an unfulfilling routine. Beckett regarded the play as one of his greatest achievements. It has been adapted as an opera and as a short film.This guide uses the 2009 Faber and Faber edition.Plot SummaryThe curtain rises on a nearly bare stage: a room in Hamm’s home, bathed... Read Endgame Summary

Publication year 2023

Genre Biography, Nonfiction

Themes Power & Greed, Conflict, Nostalgia, Future, The Past, Family, Social Class, Loyalty & Betrayal, Truth & Lies

Tags European History, Politics & Government, Sociology, British Literature, Modern Classic Fiction, World History, Biography

Publication year 1979

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Love, Mental Health, Family

Tags Romance, Coming of Age, Love & Sexuality, Psychology, American Literature, Modern Classic Fiction, Dramatic Literature, Psychology, Classic Fiction

Endless Love by Scott Spencer, first published in 1979, is a psychological drama that delves into teenage love’s obsessive and destructive nature. Spencer, an American novelist known for exploring intense human emotions and relationships, crafts a story centered around David Axelrod, a young man whose all-consuming love for Jade Butterfield leads to tragic and life-altering events. The novel examines themes such as The Destructive Nature of Love, Dysfunctional Family Dynamics, and The Construct of Mental... Read Endless Love Summary

Publication year 2026

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Aging, Death, Family, Mothers, Politics & Government

Tags Contemporary Literature, Humor

Enormous Wings (2026) is a work of contemporary fiction by the New York Times bestselling author Laurie Frankel. The novel centers on 77-year-old Pepper Mills, whose life is upended when her children move her into a Texas retirement community after a minor car accident. Just as she begins to build a new life and finds romance with a fellow resident, Pepper receives an astonishing diagnosis: She is pregnant. The impossible news transforms her into an... Read Enormous Wings Summary

Publication year 2005

Genre Biography, Nonfiction

Themes Family, Mothers, Immigration

Tags Politics & Government, Social Justice, US History, Immigration & Refugeeism, Education, Education, World History, Biography

Enrique’s Journey: The Story of a Boy’s Dangerous Odyssey to Reunite with His Mother is a best-selling nonfiction book by Sonia Nazario, an American journalist best known for her work on social justice. Originally published in 2006, the book is based on Nazario’s Pulitzer Prize-winning “Enrique’s Journey” series, which was written in six parts and published in The Los Angeles Times.The book, which has been published in eight languages and adapted for young adults in... Read Enrique's Journey Summary

Publication year 2000

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Family, Immigration, Coming of Age

Tags Historical Fiction, Children`s Literature, Education, Education, Realistic Fiction, World History, Arts & Culture, Poverty, Social Class

Pam Muñoz Ryan is the award-winning author of over 40 books for new readers, middle-grade students, and young adults. Esperanza Rising (2000) is one of her most popular works and was honored with the 2001 Southern California Judy Lopez Award and the 2001 Arizona Young Adult Book Award. It also became a 2001 Los Angeles Times Book Prize Finalist. Other titles by the same author include Riding Freedom (1998), Becoming Naomi Léon (2004), Paint the... Read Esperanza Rising Summary

Publication year 2013

Genre Autobiography / Memoir, Nonfiction

Themes Family, Siblings, Mothers, Self Discovery, Social Class, Community, Politics & Government

Tags Biography, Trauma & Abuse, Inspirational, Poverty

Etched in Sand: A True Story of Five Siblings Who Survived an Unspeakable Childhood on Long Island is a memoir written by Regina Calcaterra and originally published in 2013. Calcaterra wrote the memoir to call attention to the Failures of the Child Welfare System and emphasize the importance of Ending the Cycle of Abuse and Finding Purpose in Suffering. Etched in Sand focuses on Calcaterra and her siblings’ childhood in Long Island, New York and... Read Etched In Sand Summary

Publication year 2021

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Love, Hate & Anger, Family, Friendship, War, Race, Loyalty & Betrayal, Fear, Food, Literature

Tags Historical Fiction, Romance, World War II, Military & War, Italian Literature, World History

Publication year 2023

Genre Book, Nonfiction

Themes Femininity, Gender Identity, Masculinity, The Past, Nature Versus Nurture, Family

Tags Science & Nature, Gender & Feminism, Women`s Studies, Health, Anthropology, Anthropology, World History

Publication year 1904

Genre Short Story, Fiction

Themes Memory, Grief, Love, Family, Colonialism

Tags Irish Literature, Modernism, Gender & Feminism, Education, Education, World History, Classic Fiction

“Eveline” is the fourth short story in James Joyce’s Dubliners collection, completed in 1907 and published in London in 1914. This story, like the others in Dubliners, reveals Joyce’s view of Ireland, then a British colony, as existing in a state of paralysis. Alongside this broader theme, “Eveline” also explores topics like duty versus freedom, English imperialism, and individual autonomy. Nearly a story of a young woman escaping the confines of her abusive and lonely... Read Eveline Summary

Publication year 2016

Genre Autobiography / Memoir, Nonfiction

Themes Family

Tags Korean Literature, Asian Literature, Children`s Literature, World History, Action & Adventure, Biography

Every Falling Star: The True Story of How I Survived and Escaped North Korea is a 2016 memoir by Sungju Lee and Susan McClelland. This first-person narrative nonfiction work recounts author Sungju Lee’s childhood in North Korea, surviving on the streets as a young boy after he was abandoned by his parents, as well as his harrowing escape at age 16. He is now a consultant and advocate for the reunification of the Korean Peninsula... Read Every Falling Star Summary