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 1978
Genre Short Story Collection, Fiction
Themes Relationships: Family, Identity: Mental Health, Values/Ideas: Good & Evil
Tags Horror / Thriller / Suspense Fiction, Fantasy, Mystery / Crime Fiction, Religion / Spirituality
Publication year 2023
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Relationships: Family, Identity: Mental Health, Life/Time: The Past, Relationships: Mothers, Society: War
Tags History: World, Mental Illness, Historical Fiction, Military / War, American Civil War
Publication year 2024
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Emotions/Behavior: Fear, Emotions/Behavior: Grief, Identity: Femininity, Identity: Mental Health, Life/Time: Mortality & Death, Natural World: Animals, Natural World: Place, Relationships: Family, Values/Ideas: Safety & Danger
Tags Horror / Thriller / Suspense Fiction, Mystery / Crime Fiction
Publication year 2015
Genre Graphic Novel/Book, Fiction
Themes Relationships: Family, Identity: Sexuality, Values/Ideas: Good & Evil
Tags Fantasy, LGBTQ, Humor, Action / Adventure, Fairy Tale / Folklore
Nimona is a young adult graphic novel created by N. D. Stevenson and published in 2015 by HarperCollins. It is based on Stevenson’s webcomic, also titled Nimona, which was published in 2012 and earned Slate magazine’s 2012 Cartoonist Studio Prize for Best Web Comic of the Year. The graphic novel adaptation also received critical acclaim, earning the 2016 Eisner Award for Best Graphic Album: Reprint and becoming a 2015 National Book Award Finalist.Nimona is a... Read Nimona Summary
Publication year 2018
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Values/Ideas: Religion & Spirituality, Values/Ideas: Truth & Lies, Values/Ideas: Loyalty & Betrayal, Emotions/Behavior: Grief, Emotions/Behavior: Forgiveness, Emotions/Behavior: Guilt, Emotions/Behavior: Love, Relationships: Family, Society: Community, Emotions/Behavior: Fear
Tags Horror / Thriller / Suspense Fiction, Mystery / Crime Fiction, Religion / Spirituality, Relationships, Modern Classic Fiction
Nine Perfect Strangers is a 2018 novel by Liane Moriarty. Set in Sydney, Australia, the novel follows a group of strangers who gather at a wellness retreat to receive treatment from a mysterious health guru. The novel was adapted for a 2021 television series starring Nicole Kidman, Melissa McCarthy, and Michael Shannon.Other works by this author include Apples Never Fall, What Alice Forgot, and Here One Moment.This guide uses an eBook copy of the text... Read Nine Perfect Strangers Summary
Publication year 2010
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Life/Time: Coming of Age, Relationships: Family, Natural World: Environment
Tags Coming of Age / Bildungsroman, Relationships, Natural Disaster, African American Literature, Children's Literature, Realistic Fiction, Historical Fiction, Action / Adventure
Jewell Parker Rhodes’s Ninth Ward is a realistic middle grade novel that follows 12-year-old Lanesha, a resident of New Orleans’s Ninth Ward neighborhood, in the days surrounding Hurricane Katrina, a devastating storm that hit the Gulf Coast in 2005. Lanesha must rely on her resourcefulness, resilience, and fortitude to survive the storm and subsequent flooding of the Ninth Ward. First published in 2010 by Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, the book earned a School... Read Ninth Ward Summary
Publication year 1280
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Relationships: Family, Identity: Masculinity, Values/Ideas: Fate, Values/Ideas: Justice & Injustice
Tags Mythology, Classic Fiction, Historical Fiction
Njal’s Saga is a late medieval Icelandic family saga authored around 1280 but set around the year 1000. It combines legend and history—many of its protagonists were historical figures, and other historical sources corroborate some of the major events the saga mentions. However, the author also embellishes characters and events as he describes them in the saga.The saga recounts intermarriage, friendships, and tragic blood feuds between multiple Icelandic families who trace their ancestry back to... Read Njals Saga Summary
Publication year 2025
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Emotions/Behavior: Regret, Identity: Mental Health, Relationships: Family, Society: Class, Values/Ideas: Justice & Injustice, Values/Ideas: Truth & Lies
Publication year 1999
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Relationships: Family
Tags Mythology, Modern Classic Fiction, Historical Fiction, Canadian Literature
No Great Mischief is a 1999 bildungsroman by Canadian novelist Alistair MacLeod. The story begins with Alexander MacDonald, a successful Canadian orthodontist, driving to Toronto to visit his brother, Calum. He searches for his brother’s apartment through the city’s seedier districts and eventually finds the right place. Calum is an alcoholic, one of many people left behind by the modern world. They speak together in English and Gaelic, reminiscing about their family. As Calum becomes... Read No Great Mischief Summary
Publication year 1960
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Emotions/Behavior: Conflict, Relationships: Family, Society: Class, Society: Colonialism, Society: Community
Tags Heinemann African Writers, African Literature, Historical Fiction, Colonialism / Postcolonialism, African American Literature, History: World, Classic Fiction
No Longer At Ease (1960) is a novel by Nigerian author Chinua Achebe. The story takes place in the years prior to Nigeria’s independence from the British Empire and focuses on Obi Okonkwo. Obi is a young Nigerian man who returns home after studying English in Britain and finds a job in the civil service. He finds himself situated within the conflict between African and Western culture, raising questions about his identity and worldview. No... Read No Longer at Ease Summary
Publication year 2023
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Relationships: Family, Society: Class, Values/Ideas: Truth & Lies, Values/Ideas: Trust & Doubt
Tags Horror / Thriller / Suspense Fiction, Mystery / Crime Fiction, Psychological Fiction, Trauma / Abuse / Violence, Modern Classic Fiction
Publication year 2024
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Relationships: Siblings, Relationships: Family, Values/Ideas: Safety & Danger, Emotions/Behavior: Memory, Life/Time: The Past
Tags Horror / Thriller / Suspense Fiction, Mystery / Crime Fiction, Modern Classic Fiction
Publication year 2021
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Values/Ideas: Science & Technology, Relationships: Family, Life/Time: Mortality & Death
Tags Humor, Fantasy, Technology, American Literature, Modern Classic Fiction
Publication year 1970
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Life/Time: Coming of Age, Emotions/Behavior: Forgiveness, Life/Time: Mortality & Death, Relationships: Friendship, Society: Community, Society: Economics, Society: Class, Values/Ideas: Safety & Danger, Life/Time: Childhood & Youth, Emotions/Behavior: Shame & Pride, Emotions/Behavior: Hope, Emotions/Behavior: Guilt, Emotions/Behavior: Hate & Anger, Emotions/Behavior: Love, Emotions/Behavior: Grief, Emotions/Behavior: Determination / Perseverance, Emotions/Behavior: Conflict, Emotions/Behavior: Gratitude, Relationships: Family, Identity: Masculinity, Self Discovery
Tags Historical Fiction, Great Depression, Coming of Age / Bildungsroman, Food, Children's Literature, Education, Education, Realistic Fiction, History: World, Action / Adventure, Classic Fiction
No Promises in the Wind is a young-adult historical novel that takes place at the height of the Great Depression. The first-person narrative tells the coming-of-age story of a 15-year-old boy who leaves home with his younger brother because their family doesn’t have enough to eat. Josh and Joey Grondowski use their musical talents to survive on their own as they travel through a country of angry and impoverished people. First published in 1970, the... Read No Promises In The Wind Summary
Publication year 2014
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Emotions/Behavior: Grief, Emotions/Behavior: Loneliness, Emotions/Behavior: Memory, Emotions/Behavior: Shame & Pride, Life/Time: Mortality & Death, Relationships: Family, Society: Class, Society: Politics & Government, Values/Ideas: Art, Values/Ideas: Music
Tags Historical Fiction, Irish Literature, Domestic Fiction, Literary Fiction, Depression / Suicide
Written by Colm Tóibín, Nora Webster (2014) is a historical novel that follows the titular character, a young woman who is struggling to raise her four young children, process her grief, and reinvent her life after her husband passes away. In 2015, the novel won the Hawthornden Prize, and it has also received numerous other prestigious award nominations. Throughout his career, Colm Tóibín has alternated between fiction and non-fiction, producing works such as Brooklyn (2009), which... Read Nora Webster Summary
Publication year 2021
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Relationships: Family, Values/Ideas: Loyalty & Betrayal, Society: Politics & Government
Tags Mystery / Crime Fiction, Horror / Thriller / Suspense Fiction, Historical Fiction, Irish Literature
Publication year 2013
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Life/Time: Coming of Age, Relationships: Family, Life/Time: Mortality & Death
Tags Horror / Thriller / Suspense Fiction, Fantasy, Mystery / Crime Fiction, Science-Fiction / Dystopian Fiction, Religion / Spirituality
Publication year 1986
Genre Play, Fiction
Themes Relationships: Family
Tags Historical Fiction, Play: Historical, Play: Postcolonial, Education, Education, Drama / Tragedy, Classic Fiction
No Sugar is a four-act play written by Jack Davis. It is the story of an Aboriginal family’s struggles for dignity, equality, and justice during the Australian depression of the 1930s. It has much in common with other literary touchstones of activism, such as John Steinbeck’s novel The Grapes of Wrath, Upton Sinclair’s The Jungle, and more. Like Steinbeck’s novel, No Sugar centers on a particular family and their antagonists, both circumstantial and personal. The... Read No Sugar Summary
Publication year 1969
Genre Short Story, Fiction
Themes Identity: Gender, Relationships: Mothers, Society: Community, Relationships: Family, Values/Ideas: Power & Greed
Tags African Literature, Colonialism / Postcolonialism, Gender / Feminism, Race / Racism, African American Literature, Modern Classic Fiction
Publication year 2021
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Relationships: Family, Values/Ideas: Truth & Lies, Values/Ideas: Power & Greed
Tags Mystery / Crime Fiction, Horror / Thriller / Suspense Fiction, Psychological Fiction, Modern Classic Fiction