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.

A Place to Stand

by Jimmy Santiago Baca

Publication year 2001

Genre Autobiography / Memoir, Nonfiction

Themes Shame & Pride, Family

Tags Coming of Age, Incarceration, Education, Race & Racism, Education, Social Justice, Biography

Jimmy Santiago Baca, born in 1952, is an American poet and author of A Place to Stand. Poems by Baca include “Immigrants in Our Own Land” (1979) and “Who Understands Me but Me” (1979). This memoir begins with Baca’s early years at home with his drunken, abusive father and his unhappy mother. Baca loves his father, who is continually in and out of jail, but Baca’s mother abandons her three children to marry a man... Read A Place to Stand Summary

A Pocket Full of Rye

by Agatha Christie

Publication year 1953

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Gender Identity, Family, Power & Greed

Tags Mystery & Crime Fiction, Horror & Suspense, British Literature, Classic Fiction

A Pocket Full of Rye is a 1953 detective novel by Agatha Christie featuring the recurring character of the elderly and discerning spinster Miss Marple. Christie wrote dozens of detective novels and short stories during her lifetime, and her play The Mousetrap ran continuously from 1952 until the COVID-19 pandemic began in March 2020, setting a record for the longest running play in the world.Miss Marple is featured in multiple volumes of short stories and... Read A Pocket Full of Rye Summary

Apollo

by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

Publication year 2015

Genre Short Story, Fiction

Themes Family, Aging, Sexual Identity, Social Class, Love

Tags African Literature, Education, Education, African American Literature, Modern Classic Fiction, LGBTQ+

... Read Apollo Summary

Apple

by Eric Gansworth

Publication year 2020

Genre Memoir in Verse, Nonfiction

Themes Family, Coming of Age, Colonialism, Community, Indigenous Identity

Tags Race & Racism, Social Justice, LGBTQ+, Biography

... Read Apple Summary

A Prayer for My Daughter

by William Butler Yeats

Publication year 1919

Genre Poem, Fiction

Themes Love, Family, Fathers, Beauty, Childhood & Youth, Nostalgia

Tags Lyric Poem, Parenting, Mythology

“A Prayer for my Daughter” by William Butler (W.B.) Yeats was originally published in his collection Michael Robartes and the Dancer in 1921. This book also includes one of Yeats’s most famous poems—“The Second Coming”—and was Yeats’s eighth collection of lyrical poems. “A Prayer for my daughter” was written in 1919, a year that marked the beginning of the Irish War of Independence. The war lasted until 1921 and heavily influenced Yeats. The poem’s location... Read A Prayer for My Daughter Summary

April Morning

by Howard Fast

Publication year 1961

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Coming of Age, Family, Religion & Spirituality

Tags Historical Fiction, Coming of Age, Military & War, US History, Religion & Spirituality, Relationships, American Revolution, Education, Education, World History, Classic Fiction

April Morning is a historical fiction work by Howard Fast, a prolific author whose writings spanned the bulk of the 20th century. Published in 1961, midway through Fast’s career, the novel is one of many he wrote on the Revolutionary War and the birth of America. Originally intended for a general audience, it came to be regarded as a young adult novel as many middle and high school English programs included it in their curriculum... Read April Morning Summary

Arcadia

by Lauren Groff

Publication year 2012

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Community, Apathy, Emotions/Behavior: Courage, Perseverance, Forgiveness, Gratitude, Childhood & Youth, Coming of Age, Midlife, Appearance & Reality, Environment, Nature Versus Nurture, Family, Self Discovery, Power & Greed, Safety & Danger

Tags Historical Fiction, Coming of Age, Modern Classic Fiction, World History

... Read Arcadia Summary

A Rip in Heaven

by Jeanine Cummins

Publication year 2004

Genre Autobiography / Memoir, Nonfiction

Themes Childhood & Youth, Family

Tags Crime & Law, Horror & Suspense, Mystery & Crime Fiction, American Literature, Biography

A Rip in Heaven: A Memoir of Murder and Its Aftermath (2004) is a true-crime story and memoir by Jeanine Cummins. The book recounts the violent rape and murder of two young women, Julie and Robin Kerry, the author’s cousins, and focuses on the aftermath for their families. Tom Cummins, their cousin who is present during the crimes, is thrown off a bridge into the Mississippi River with the two women but survives. Innocent, he... Read A Rip in Heaven Summary

A River in Darkness

by Masaji Ishikawa, Transl. Martin Brown, Transl. Risa Kobayashi

Publication year 2000

Genre Autobiography / Memoir, Nonfiction

Themes Family, Conflict, Emotions/Behavior: Courage, Perseverance, Grief, Guilt, Loneliness, Regret, Shame & Pride, Masculinity, Mental Health, Race, Childhood & Youth, Fathers, Social Class, Colonialism, Immigration, Politics & Government, Safety & Danger

Tags World History, Japanese Literature, Biography, Asian History, Politics & Government, Inspirational

... Read A River in Darkness Summary

Artemis Fowl

by Eoin Colfer

Publication year 2001

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Love, Perseverance, Wins & Losses, Safety & Danger, Power & Greed, Justice, Trust & Doubt, Teamwork, Environment, Coming of Age, Family

Tags Science Fiction, Fantasy, Action & Adventure, Mythology, Children`s Literature

Artemis Fowl (2001) is the first of 11 fantasy novels in the Fowl Adventures series. It was written by Eoin Colfer, an Irish writer, and details the titular character’s attempt to restore his family’s fortune by kidnapping an elf named Holly Short. Taking place in Colfer’s home country of Ireland, the novel is also his first foray into the fantasy genre. The novel explores themes of community, environmentalism, and the line between magic and science.In... Read Artemis Fowl Summary

A Ruin of Roses

by K.F. Breene

Publication year 2021

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Love, Safety & Danger, Guilt, Hope, Gender Identity, Appearance & Reality, Plants, Family, Self Discovery, Social Class, Community, Justice, Power & Greed

Tags Romance, Fantasy, Action & Adventure, Humor

... Read A Ruin of Roses Summary