Safety & Danger

This collection, spanning books like Nadine Gordimer's Jump and Other Stories and Lois Lowry's Number the Stars, gathers fiction and nonfiction examining how our human craving for safety is compromised, questioned, and challenged by an unpredictable and sometimes dangerous world.

Oath and Honor

by Liz Cheney

Publication year 2023

Genre Autobiography / Memoir, Nonfiction

Themes Safety & Danger, Truth & Lies, Nation, Politics & Government, Loyalty & Betrayal

Tags Politics & Government, US History, Trauma & Abuse, World History, Biography

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Odder

by Katherine Applegate

Publication year 2022

Genre Novel/Book in Verse, Fiction

Themes Emotions/Behavior: Courage, Conflict, Animals, Environment, Appearance & Reality, Place, Beauty, Safety & Danger

Tags Animals, Science & Nature, Realistic Fiction, Action & Adventure, Children`s Literature

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Oil and Marble

by Stephanie Storey

Publication year 2016

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Art, Conflict, Fear, Guilt, Hate & Anger, Hope, Joy, Love, Memory, Sexual Identity, Death, Appearance & Reality, Place, Family, Fathers, Teamwork, Self Discovery, Social Class, Community, Politics & Government, War, Beauty, Fate, Order & Chaos, Power & Greed, Safety & Danger, Science & Technology

Tags Life-Inspired Fiction, Historical Fiction, Arts & Culture, Renaissance

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One by One

by Freida McFadden

Publication year 2020

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Appearance & Reality, Marriage, Loyalty & Betrayal, Safety & Danger, Trust & Doubt, Truth & Lies

Tags Horror & Suspense, Mystery & Crime Fiction

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Only If You're Lucky

by Stacy Willingham

Publication year 2024

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Conflict, Fear, Grief, Guilt, Memory, Revenge, Femininity, Coming of Age, Death, Friendship, Self Discovery, Community, Loyalty & Betrayal, Safety & Danger, Trust & Doubt, Truth & Lies

Tags Horror & Suspense, Mystery & Crime Fiction, Modern Classic Fiction

... Read Only If You're Lucky Summary

Orphan Island

by Laurel Snyder

Publication year 2017

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Community, Family, Coming of Age, Self Discovery, Childhood & Youth, Emotions/Behavior: Courage, Safety & Danger, Order & Chaos, Loyalty & Betrayal, Plants, Animals, Food

Tags Fantasy, Magical Realism, Coming of Age, Children`s Literature, Animals, Food, Relationships

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Out of My Heart

by Sharon M. Draper

Publication year 2021

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Emotions/Behavior: Courage, Perseverance, Fear, Joy, Loneliness, Memory, Disability, Coming of Age, Childhood & Youth, Music, Trust & Doubt, Safety & Danger, Art, Animals, Appearance & Reality

Tags Realistic Fiction, Disability, Coming of Age, Children`s Literature, Modern Classic Fiction

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Out of the Dust

by Karen Hesse

Publication year 1997

Genre Novel/Book in Verse, Fiction

Themes Death, Social Class, Place, Climate, Coming of Age, Safety & Danger, Disability, Siblings, Community, Forgiveness, Shame & Pride, Daughters & Sons, Economics, Music, Guilt, Mothers, Art, Loneliness, Hope, Childhood & Youth, Animals, Fathers, Grief, Food, Education

Tags Historical Fiction, Children`s Literature, Coming of Age, Agriculture, US History, Great Depression, Education, Education, World History, Classic Fiction

Karen Hesse’s Out of the Dust is a historical middle-grade novel in verse first published in 1997. Through 110 first-person free verse poems, the narrative tells the story of two years in the life of Billie Jo Kelby, young daughter of a struggling farming family in the Oklahoma Panhandle in the mid-1930s. After a tragic accident results in the death of Billie Jo’s mother and baby brother, she and her father must find a way... Read Out of the Dust Summary

Out of the Easy

by Ruta Sepetys

Publication year 2013

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Social Class, Friendship, Sexual Identity, Community, Safety & Danger, Daughters & Sons, Literature, Mothers, Family, Shame & Pride, Nature Versus Nurture, Fathers, Gender Identity, Appearance & Reality, Truth & Lies, Perseverance, Loneliness, Guilt, Hope

Tags Historical Fiction, Mystery & Crime Fiction, Realistic Fiction, Southern Literature, Trauma & Abuse, World History, Romance

Out of the Easy, written by Ruta Sepetys and published in 2013, is a young adult historical fiction novel. Sepetys is an award-winning Lithuanian American writer of young adult historical fiction. Her honors include the Carnegie Medal, awarded to one work of children’s or young adult literature per year. Her novels are international best sellers and are widely translated. Out of the Easy is about Josie, a teenage girl living in the French Quarter of... Read Out of the Easy Summary

Paradise on Fire

by Jewell Parker Rhodes

Publication year 2021

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Environment, Perseverance, Grief, Childhood & Youth, Friendship, Self Discovery, Safety & Danger

Tags Children`s Literature, Modern Classic Fiction, Realistic Fiction, Action & Adventure, Survival Fiction, Coming of Age

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Penpal

by Dathan Auerbach

Publication year 2012

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Fear, Guilt, Hope, Love, Memory, Childhood & Youth, Daughters & Sons, Family, Mothers, Community, Fate, Good & Evil, Justice, Safety & Danger, Trust & Doubt, Truth & Lies

Tags Mystery & Crime Fiction, Horror & Suspense

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Pieces of Her

by Karin Slaughter

Publication year 2018

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Mothers, Self Discovery, Safety & Danger, Justice, Good & Evil, Trust & Doubt, Truth & Lies

Tags Horror & Suspense, Mystery & Crime Fiction, Psychological Fiction, Trauma & Abuse, Modern Classic Fiction

... Read Pieces of Her Summary