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 2002

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Relationships: Family, Life/Time: Coming of Age, Relationships: Fathers, Relationships: Friendship, Relationships: Grandparents, Relationships: Mothers, Relationships: Siblings, Self Discovery, Society: Community, Society: Education, Values/Ideas: Art, Values/Ideas: Order & Chaos

Tags Realistic Fiction, Humor, Children's Literature, Education, Education, Modern Classic Fiction

Surviving the Applewhites is a children’s novel written by American author Stephanie S. Tolan and was first published in 2002.The narrative follows Jake Semple, a troubled teenager forced to move in with the unconventional and eccentric Applewhite family following an incident at school. Jake struggles to fit in at first but gradually sheds his past transgressions and undergoes a transformative journey toward self-discovery and redemption. The novel touches on Personal Growth and Transformation, Individuality Versus... Read Surviving the Applewhites Summary


Publication year 1930

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Emotions/Behavior: Courage, Emotions/Behavior: Determination / Perseverance, Emotions/Behavior: Nostalgia, Identity: Gender, Life/Time: Childhood & Youth, Life/Time: Coming of Age, Natural World: Environment, Relationships: Family, Relationships: Friendship, Relationships: Siblings, Relationships: Teams, Society: Class, Society: Colonialism, Values/Ideas: Justice & Injustice, Values/Ideas: Safety & Danger


Publication year 2024

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Identity: Race, Relationships: Family, Values/Ideas: Truth & Lies

Tags Historical Fiction, Coming of Age / Bildungsroman


Publication year 2022

Genre Graphic Novel/Book, Fiction

Themes Relationships: Family, Relationships: Friendship, Emotions/Behavior: Determination / Perseverance

Tags Sports, Realistic Fiction, African American Literature, Children's Literature, Modern Classic Fiction


Publication year 2013

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Emotions/Behavior: Forgiveness, Identity: Race, Relationships: Family, Society: Community, Emotions/Behavior: Guilt

Tags Mystery / Crime Fiction, Horror / Thriller / Suspense Fiction, Crime / Legal, Race / Racism

Sycamore Row (2013) by John Grisham is the sequel to his debut novel and best-selling legal thriller, A Time to Kill (1989). Grisham, a practicing lawyer prior to his career as a novelist, popularized the legal thriller with his prolific work in the genre, frequently highlighting social justice and legal ethics issues. Though marketed as a legal thriller, Grisham himself makes a clear distinction between his legal thrillers and his Ford County novels—aka the Jake... Read Sycamore Row Summary


Publication year 2011

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Society: Education, Identity: Race, Relationships: Friendship, Emotions/Behavior: Courage, Emotions/Behavior: Determination / Perseverance, Emotions/Behavior: Fear, Relationships: Family, Relationships: Fathers, Relationships: Mothers, Relationships: Siblings, Society: Class, Society: Community, Values/Ideas: Equality, Values/Ideas: Justice & Injustice

Tags Historical Fiction, Social Justice, WWII / World War II, Children's Literature, Military / War, History: World, Arts / Culture


Publication year 2021

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Society: Community, Relationships: Friendship, Identity: Race, Life/Time: Coming of Age, Society: Class, Values/Ideas: Equality, Values/Ideas: Justice & Injustice, Relationships: Family

Tags Realistic Fiction, Social Justice, Children's Literature, Modern Classic Fiction


Publication year 1972

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Relationships: Family

Tags Children's Literature, Realistic Fiction, Humor, Education, Education, Classic Fiction

Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing, an episodic children’s book by Judy Blume, is a first-person narrative recounted by nine-year-old protagonist Peter Hatcher. A work of realistic fiction, this book is divided into 10 chapters and directed at young readers from the third- to fifth-grade levels. Originally published by Dutton Children’s Books in 1972, Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing is the first of five books in a series. The book received a number of... Read Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing Summary


Publication year 2023

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Relationships: Friendship, Emotions/Behavior: Grief, Emotions/Behavior: Guilt, Emotions/Behavior: Love, Identity: Mental Health, Relationships: Family

Tags Romance


Publication year 1981

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Emotions/Behavior: Love, Identity: Gender, Identity: Race, Relationships: Family, Relationships: Marriage, Society: Class, Society: Colonialism, Values/Ideas: Loyalty & Betrayal

Tags Race / Racism, Class, African American Literature, American Literature, Modern Classic Fiction, Classic Fiction


Publication year 1664

Genre Play, Fiction

Themes Values/Ideas: Trust & Doubt, Values/Ideas: Religion & Spirituality, Relationships: Family

Tags Play: Comedy / Satire, Relationships, Arts / Culture, French Literature, Education, Education, Humor, Classic Fiction

Tartuffe, also known as The Imposter or The Hypocrite, is a Neoclassical comedy written by French playwright, actor, writer, and director Molière, born as Jean-Baptiste Poquelin. It was first produced in 1664 in France. While King Louis XIV and the public enjoyed the play, religious groups, including the Catholic Church and members of the upper class, condemned it for its display of a seemingly religious character who preys on those around on him for his... Read Tartuffe Summary


Publication year 1912

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Natural World: Nurture v. Nature, Natural World: Animals, Identity: Race, Relationships: Family, Emotions/Behavior: Love, Society: Colonialism, Society: Education

Tags Action / Adventure, Classic Fiction, Historical Fiction, Race / Racism, Science-Fiction / Dystopian Fiction, Fantasy

Tarzan of the Apes is an adventure fiction book written by Edgar Rice Burroughs in 1912 and initially published serially in the pulp magazine The All-Story before being printed as a novel in 1914. Burroughs was an American from Chicago who had a variety of careers before building a name for himself as a writer of pulp fiction. His first story, entitled Under the Moons of Mars (1911), became the first book in the science... Read Tarzan of the Apes Summary


Publication year 2021

Genre Autobiography / Memoir, Nonfiction

Themes Relationships: Family, Values/Ideas: Fame, Values/Ideas: Beauty, Emotions/Behavior: Memory, Emotions/Behavior: Love

Tags Food, History: European, Arts / Culture


Publication year 2021

Genre Autobiography / Memoir, Nonfiction

Themes Identity: Mental Health, Relationships: Family, Relationships: Mothers, Society: Colonialism

Tags Food, Colonialism / Postcolonialism, Trauma / Abuse / Violence, Military / War, History: World, Mental Illness, Biography


Publication year 2007

Genre Autobiography / Memoir, Nonfiction

Themes Life/Time: Coming of Age, Society: War, Identity: Gender, Life/Time: Childhood & Youth, Identity: Language, Values/Ideas: Literature, Relationships: Family

Tags History: Middle Eastern, Military / War, Education, Education, History: World, Arts / Culture, Biography

In her memoir, Tasting the Sky: A Palestinian Childhood (2007), Palestinian-American author and poet Ibtisam Barakat describes her early childhood in Palestine during the Six-Day War of 1967 and the life-changing effects that follow this pivotal event. Combining richly descriptive prose and free-verse poetry, Ibtisam shares often painful memories of childhood losses, from her home and sense of security to her childhood innocence. Writing from a child’s perspective, Ibtisam transcends politics to poignantly highlight how... Read Tasting the Sky Summary


Publication year 1953

Genre Short Story, Fiction

Themes Relationships: Family, Society: Education, Values/Ideas: Religion & Spirituality, Values/Ideas: Truth & Lies

Tags American Literature, Historical Fiction, Classic Fiction


Publication year 1983

Genre Short Story, Fiction

Themes Relationships: Family

Tags Parenting, Relationships

Originally published in Seventeen Magazine in 1983, “Teenage Wasteland” is a short story by Pulitzer Prize-winning author Anne Tyler, known for her realistic portrayal of the lives of ordinary people. This guide is based on the short story as it appears in the 2020 Vintage Shorts Kindle edition.It is some time in the early 1970s when Mr. Lanham, the principal of a private school, brings homemaker Daisy Coble in to tell her that her son... Read Teenage Wasteland Summary


Publication year 2012

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Emotions/Behavior: Grief, Relationships: Friendship, Emotions/Behavior: Conflict, Emotions/Behavior: Forgiveness, Relationships: Family, Relationships: Siblings, Values/Ideas: Art, Values/Ideas: Truth & Lies

Tags Realistic Fiction, Modern Classic Fiction, Historical Fiction, Coming of Age / Bildungsroman, LGBTQ

Tell the Wolves I’m Home is the 2012 debut novel of author Carol Rifka Brunt. In it, 14-year-old narrator June Elbus wrestles with her grief over the death of her uncle Finn Weiss, who died of AIDS. Set in 1987 New York at the height of the AIDS crisis, the novel confronts the stigmas surrounding the disease through June’s parents and sister, who blame Finn’s long-term partner, Toby Aldshaw, for transmitting AIDS to Finn. As... Read Tell the Wolves I'm Home Summary


Publication year 2013

Genre Short Story Collection, Fiction

Themes Society: Class, Values/Ideas: Science & Technology, Values/Ideas: Justice & Injustice, Values/Ideas: Good & Evil, Society: Community, Relationships: Family, Life/Time: Mortality & Death, Identity: Masculinity, Values/Ideas: Power & Greed

Tags Satire, Science-Fiction / Dystopian Fiction, Relationships, American Literature, Modern Classic Fiction, History: World

Tenth of December: Stories (2013) is American author George Saunders’s fourth short story collection. Saunders is widely regarded as one of the modern masters of the short story form, and this collection features stories written between 1995 and 2012, some of which were previously published in various literary outlets. The book was a bestseller and was widely praised on release, winning both the Story Prize and the Folio Prize. This guide refers to the 2013... Read Tenth of December Summary


Publication year 2016

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Life/Time: Childhood & Youth, Relationships: Family

Tags Action / Adventure, Children's Literature, Horror / Thriller / Suspense Fiction, Realistic Fiction

Watt Key’s 2016 children’s adventure novel, Terror at Bottle Creek, follows a group of children as they attempt to survive a hurricane that strikes the swamps and rivers of Alabama. This study guide uses the first edition published by Farrar Straus Giroux Books for Young Readers in 2016. Plot SummaryCort is 13 years old and lives with his father on a riverboat in Alabama, along with his cherished dog, Catfish. His father works as a... Read Terror at Bottle Creek Summary