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 2021
Genre Graphic Novel/Book, Fiction
Themes Emotions/Behavior: Joy, Emotions/Behavior: Love, Relationships: Friendship, Relationships: Fathers, Relationships: Family
Tags Humor, Fantasy, Action / Adventure, Children's Literature, Animals
Publication year 2023
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Relationships: Friendship, Natural World: Animals, Relationships: Family, Values/Ideas: Power & Greed
Tags Fantasy, Children's Literature, Action / Adventure, Animals
Publication year 2013
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Relationships: Friendship, Life/Time: Coming of Age, Relationships: Family, Emotions/Behavior: Nostalgia, Life/Time: Childhood & Youth
Tags Fantasy, Horror / Thriller / Suspense Fiction, Coming of Age / Bildungsroman, Children's Literature, Mystery / Crime Fiction, Action / Adventure, Religion / Spirituality
Doll Bones (2013) is a middle grade novel written by Holly Black and illustrated by Eliza Wheeler. It blends gothic, horror, and fantasy elements. The novel follows three friends, Zach, Poppy, and Alice, as their make-believe games take a turn for the supernatural, sending them on an eerie quest to return a haunted doll to a gravesite before it wreaks havoc on their lives. The novel explores the challenges of growing up and the strain... Read Doll Bones Summary
Publication year 2019
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Identity: Femininity, Life/Time: Coming of Age, Relationships: Family
Tags Historical Fiction, Coming of Age / Bildungsroman, Modern Classic Fiction, History: World
Publication year 2023
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Emotions/Behavior: Determination / Perseverance, Emotions/Behavior: Love, Life/Time: The Past, Relationships: Family, Relationships: Fathers, Relationships: Siblings, Self Discovery, Society: Community
Tags Romance, Sports, New Adult, Western
Publication year 2021
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Emotions/Behavior: Love, Identity: Gender, Relationships: Family, Self Discovery
Tags History: World, Historical Fiction, Romance, Humor, Coming of Age / Bildungsroman, Gender / Feminism, Relationships
Publication year 2001
Genre Autobiography / Memoir, Nonfiction
Themes Emotions/Behavior: Memory, Emotions/Behavior: Shame & Pride, Identity: Race, Life/Time: Childhood & Youth, Natural World: Place, Relationships: Family, Society: Colonialism, Society: War, Identity: Indigenous
Don’t Let’s Go to the Dogs Tonight (2002) is a memoir by Alexandra Fuller. Fuller recounts her childhood during the tumultuous years of the Rhodesian Bush War and life in post-independence Southern Africa. The author details her family‘s tragedies against the backdrop of political upheaval and social change as they settle on a series of struggling farms in Zimbabwe (then known as Rhodesia), Malawi, and Zambia. The memoir was a New York Times Notable Book for... Read Don't Let's Go to the Dogs Tonight Summary
Publication year 2021
Genre Book, Nonfiction
Themes Identity: Mental Health, Self Discovery, Emotions/Behavior: Guilt, Emotions/Behavior: Forgiveness, Emotions/Behavior: Shame & Pride, Emotions/Behavior: Gratitude, Relationships: Family, Society: Community, Emotions/Behavior: Apathy, Society: Nation, Values/Ideas: Science & Technology, Values/Ideas: Truth & Lies
Tags Health / Medicine, Psychology, Science / Nature, Self Help, Addiction / Substance Abuse, Depression / Suicide, Mental Illness, Leadership/Organization/Management, Psychology
Publication year 2014
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Relationships: Family, Life/Time: Childhood & Youth, Natural World: Appearance & Reality, Relationships: Siblings, Self Discovery
Tags Children's Literature, Realistic Fiction, Humor, Fantasy
Publication year 2016
Genre Graphic Novel/Book, Fiction
Themes Values/Ideas: Truth & Lies, Values/Ideas: Fame, Relationships: Siblings, Relationships: Friendship, Relationships: Family
Tags Humor, Children's Literature, Realistic Fiction
Publication year 2002
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Emotions/Behavior: Conflict, Relationships: Family, Relationships: Friendship
Tags Realistic Fiction
Publication year 2002
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Relationships: Family, Relationships: Siblings, Self Discovery
Tags Humor, Realistic Fiction, Children's Literature, Modern Classic Fiction
Double Fudge (2002) is the fifth and final book in the popular children’s series by bestselling American author Judy Blume. The Fudge series begins with Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing and includes Superfudge, Fudge-a-Mania, and Otherwise Known as Sheila the Great. The Fudge series was published across three decades and follows the lives of the Hatcher family, and most of the novels feature Peter Hatcher and his younger brother Fudge, who is always getting... Read Double Fudge Summary
Publication year 1976
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Emotions/Behavior: Loneliness, Emotions/Behavior: Shame & Pride, Identity: Femininity, Life/Time: Coming of Age, Natural World: Animals, Natural World: Environment, Relationships: Family, Society: Community, Values/Ideas: Music, Values/Ideas: Safety & Danger
Tags Fantasy, Science-Fiction / Dystopian Fiction, Action / Adventure
Publication year 1975
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Society: Community, Relationships: Family, Relationships: Fathers, Life/Time: Coming of Age, Identity: Race
Tags Historical Fiction, Children's Literature, Coming of Age / Bildungsroman, Asian Literature, Education, Education, History: World, Chinese Literature
Originally published in 1975, Dragonwings is a children’s historical novel by Chinese American author Laurence Yep. The story was inspired by the life of Fung Joe Guey (Feng Ru), a Chinese immigrant who came to the United States in the early 1900s and earned acclaim for his work as a pioneer airplane designer and aviator. The book is part of Yep’s Golden Mountain Chronicles, a series of 10 novels that explore the long history of... Read Dragonwings Summary
Publication year 1992
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Relationships: Family, Society: Politics & Government, Emotions/Behavior: Nostalgia, Emotions/Behavior: Regret, Identity: Race, Relationships: Mothers, Society: Immigration
Tags Historical Fiction, Latin American Literature, Magical Realism, Education, Education, Modern Classic Fiction, History: World
Dreaming in Cuban is Cuban American author Cristina García’s first novel. It was a finalist for the National Book Award in 1992 and garnered positive reviews from readers and critics alike. A multi-generational family saga that shifts back and forth between the experiences and eras of multiple narrators, Dreaming in Cuban explores themes of immigration and exile, family dynamics, political ideology, religion, and the impact of the Cuban Revolution on Cubans and Cuban Americans. The... Read Dreaming in Cuban Summary
Publication year 2000
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Emotions/Behavior: Conflict, Emotions/Behavior: Fear, Emotions/Behavior: Loneliness, Emotions/Behavior: Apathy, Emotions/Behavior: Love, Emotions/Behavior: Memory, Emotions/Behavior: Hope, Emotions/Behavior: Hate & Anger, Emotions/Behavior: Shame & Pride, Emotions/Behavior: Courage, Life/Time: Coming of Age, Life/Time: The Past, Relationships: Daughters & Sons, Relationships: Family, Relationships: Mothers, Relationships: Siblings, Relationships: Friendship, Relationships: Fathers, Natural World: Appearance & Reality, Self Discovery, Values/Ideas: Beauty, Values/Ideas: Art, Values/Ideas: Loyalty & Betrayal, Values/Ideas: Safety & Danger, Values/Ideas: Trust & Doubt, Values/Ideas: Truth & Lies
Tags Realistic Fiction, Romance, Trauma / Abuse / Violence, Relationships, Modern Classic Fiction
In Dreamland, a young adult novel by Sarah Dessen, a teenage girl named Caitlin O’Koren reacts to the disappearance of her sister by breaking away from the path that was set out for her. The novel is broken into three parts that focus on the core of the conflicts in each section. Part I, “Cass,” traces the O’Koren family after Cass, the eldest of two daughters, runs away instead of attending Yale. Part II, entitled... Read Dreamland Summary
Publication year 2022
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Emotions/Behavior: Love, Values/Ideas: Music, Identity: Mental Health, Relationships: Family, Relationships: Siblings
Tags Romance, Realistic Fiction, Mental Illness, Modern Classic Fiction, Music
Publication year 2020
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Relationships: Friendship, Values/Ideas: Equality, Relationships: Family, Identity: Femininity, Emotions/Behavior: Courage
Tags Realistic Fiction, Gender / Feminism, Social Justice, Children's Literature, Education, Education, Modern Classic Fiction
Publication year 2023
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Emotions/Behavior: Courage, Emotions/Behavior: Determination / Perseverance, Emotions/Behavior: Grief, Relationships: Family
Tags Horror / Thriller / Suspense Fiction, Psychological Fiction, Mystery / Crime Fiction, Modern Classic Fiction, Action / Adventure
Publication year 2004
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Relationships: Family
Tags Realistic Fiction, Children's Literature, Education, Education, Modern Classic Fiction, Music, Humor
Drums, Girls, and Dangerous Pie (2014) is a young adult novel by American author Jordan Sonnenblick. Sonnenblick is a well-known young adult author whose novels include After Ever After, Falling Over Sideways, Notes From the Midnight Driver, and Zen and the Art of Faking It. The story follows Steven Alper, a 13-year-old drummer whose life is turned upside down when his five-year-old brother, Jeffrey, is diagnosed with leukemia. As Steven navigates the trials of early... Read Drums, Girls, and Dangerous Pie Summary