Loyalty & Betrayal

The texts in this thematic collection organized around the idea of Loyalty & Betrayal range from Dennis Lehane's Mystic River to Lynn Nottage's Pulitzer Prize-winning play Sweat. But each book explores the idea in its own way, revealing the intricate ways we may maintain loyalty at all costs — or test the bonds of family and friend relationships through deep betrayal.

Water for Elephants

by Sara Gruen

Publication year 2006

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Memory, Love, Perseverance, Loneliness, Hope, Aging, Disability, Animals, Social Class, Friendship, Fathers, Power & Greed, Safety & Danger, Loyalty & Betrayal

Tags Historical Fiction, Romance, Great Depression, Mental Illness, Trauma & Abuse, Modern Classic Fiction, World History

Water for Elephants, a New York Times bestseller and author Sara Gruen’s third novel, was published in 2006 by Algonquin. The novel was adapted into a full-length film in 2011 starring Reese Witherspoon and Robert Pattison.Gruen often features animals in her novels, and Water for Elephants is no exception, as she follows two lovers in a forbidden relationship set against the backdrop of a circus and its eclectic mix of characters and exotic animals. The... Read Water for Elephants Summary

Water Moon

by Samantha Sotto Yambao

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Fear, Hope, Joy, Love, Memory, Regret, Sexual Identity, Childhood & Youth, Coming of Age, Future, The Past, Family, Fathers, Friendship, Mothers, Self Discovery, Community, Fate, Good & Evil, Loyalty & Betrayal, Order & Chaos, Safety & Danger, Trust & Doubt

Tags Fantasy, Romance

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Welcome to Dead House

by R. L. Stine

Publication year 1992

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Fear, Mental Health, Childhood & Youth, Coming of Age, Death, Appearance & Reality, Good & Evil, Loyalty & Betrayal, Truth & Lies, Self Discovery

Tags Horror & Suspense, Fantasy, Children`s Literature, Mystery & Crime Fiction, Religion & Spirituality

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We Who Wrestle with God

by Jordan B. Peterson

Publication year 2024

Genre Book, Nonfiction

Themes Gender Identity, Justice, Religion & Spirituality, Perseverance, Shame & Pride, Masculinity, Coming of Age, Death, The Past, Self Discovery, Fate, Good & Evil, Loyalty & Betrayal, Order & Chaos

Tags Psychology, Philosophy, Self-Improvement, Religion & Spirituality

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We Wish to Inform You That Tomorrow We Will Be Killed with Our Families

by Philip Gourevitch

Publication year 1998

Genre Book, Nonfiction

Themes Loyalty & Betrayal, Colonialism, Social Class, Hate & Anger, Fear, Politics & Government

Tags History: African , Journalism, Military & War, Politics & Government, Trauma & Abuse, World History, Biography

We Wish to Inform You That Tomorrow We Will Be Killed with Our Families: Stories from Rwanda (1998) describes the Hutu majority’s slaughter of at least 800,000 Tutsis in 100 days in 1994—with author and journalist Philip Gourevitch documenting the meticulous planning behind the genocide. Gourevitch chastises the international community, especially the United States and France, for failing to stop the genocide in accordance with obligations under the Genocide Convention. Visiting Rwanda one year after... Read We Wish to Inform You That Tomorrow We Will Be Killed with Our Families Summary

What Comes After

by JoAnne Tompkins

Publication year 2021

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Conflict, Forgiveness, Grief, Guilt, Hope, Loneliness, Coming of Age, Midlife, Death, Future, The Past, Animals, Appearance & Reality, Nature Versus Nurture, Family, Friendship, Mothers, Self Discovery, Community, Fate, Good & Evil, Loyalty & Betrayal, Order & Chaos, Power & Greed, Religion & Spirituality, Trust & Doubt, Truth & Lies

Tags Mystery & Crime Fiction, Horror & Suspense, Psychological Fiction

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When You Reach Me

by Rebecca Stead

Publication year 2009

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Future, Appearance & Reality, Loyalty & Betrayal

Tags Science Fiction, Mystery & Crime Fiction, Bullying, Parenting, Race & Racism, Relationships, American Literature, Children`s Literature, Historical Fiction, Fantasy

When You Reach Me (2009) is a middle-grade novel by Rebecca Stead. It won the Newbery Medal and the Boston Globe-Horn Book Award for fiction and has been included in numerous best book lists for young adult readers. Stead's Liar and Spy won the 2013 Guardian Children's Fiction Award. She is also the author of Goodbye Stranger (2015) and The List of Things That Will Not Change (2020), and co-authored The Lost Library (2023) with... Read When You Reach Me Summary

Where the Library Hides

by Isabel Ibañez

Publication year 2024

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Future, The Past, Place, Family, Self Discovery, Colonialism, Economics, Globalization, Politics & Government, Fate, Justice, Loyalty & Betrayal, Power & Greed, Safety & Danger, Trust & Doubt, Truth & Lies

Tags Fantasy, Romance, Mystery & Crime Fiction, World History

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Whisper Network

by Chandler Baker

Publication year 2019

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Loyalty & Betrayal, Teamwork, Social Class, Gender Identity, Power & Greed, Safety & Danger, Masculinity, Femininity

Tags Mystery & Crime Fiction, Gender & Feminism, Business & Economics, Bullying, Trauma & Abuse, Horror & Suspense, Modern Classic Fiction

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