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 2022
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Relationships: Family, Natural World: Appearance & Reality, Life/Time: The Future, Life/Time: The Past, Emotions/Behavior: Memory, Emotions/Behavior: Loneliness, Natural World: Environment, Natural World: Space & The Universe, Values/Ideas: Science & Technology, Values/Ideas: Order & Chaos, Values/Ideas: Music, Values/Ideas: Art, Society: Colonialism
Tags Science-Fiction / Dystopian Fiction, Historical Fiction, Fantasy
Publication year 2019
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Relationships: Family, Emotions/Behavior: Hate & Anger, Emotions/Behavior: Love, Identity: Gender, Identity: Race
Tags Horror / Thriller / Suspense Fiction, Mystery / Crime Fiction, Immigration / Refugee, Modern Classic Fiction
Publication year 1974
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Identity: Race, Values/Ideas: Justice & Injustice, Relationships: Family, Identity: Indigenous
Tags Gender / Feminism, Race / Racism, African Literature, Historical Fiction, Trauma / Abuse / Violence, Women's Studies (Nonfiction), African American Literature, History: World, Classic Fiction
Publication year 2015
Genre Graphic Novel/Book, Fiction
Themes Values/Ideas: Science & Technology, Emotions/Behavior: Determination / Perseverance, Emotions/Behavior: Loneliness, Life/Time: Childhood & Youth, Life/Time: Coming of Age, Natural World: Appearance & Reality, Relationships: Family, Relationships: Fathers, Relationships: Friendship, Relationships: Mothers, Self Discovery
Tags Mystery / Crime Fiction, Science-Fiction / Dystopian Fiction
Publication year 2010
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Relationships: Daughters & Sons, Relationships: Family
Tags Modern Classic Fiction, Parenting, Historical Fiction, Indian Literature, Arts / Culture
Secret Daughter (2010) is the debut novel of Canadian-Indian author Shilpi Somaya Gowda. Spanning twenty years, it follows two families who are mysteriously connected by an adopted daughter. A New York Times Bestseller, the novel has been translated into more than thirty languages and has sold more than a million copies. Godwa formed the idea for Secret Daughter while volunteering at an Indian orphanage as an undergraduate. Secret Daughter received much critical praise for its... Read Secret Daughter Summary
Publication year 1977
Genre Short Story, Fiction
Themes Emotions/Behavior: Guilt, Emotions/Behavior: Forgiveness, Relationships: Family, Life/Time: Mortality & Death
Tags WWI / World War I, Irish Literature
Publication year 2017
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Relationships: Family, Values/Ideas: Truth & Lies, Natural World: Space & The Universe
Tags Chinese Literature, Asian Literature, Realistic Fiction, Children's Literature, Modern Classic Fiction, Action / Adventure
See You in the Cosmos, a 2017 middle-grade contemporary novel by Jack Cheng, features 11-year-old Alex Petroski as its main character and narrator. Inspired by scientist Carl Sagan, Alex wants to use a hand-built rocket to send audio recordings about life on Earth to extraterrestrial creatures. Though his quest to communicate with alien life fails, Alex finds himself on a much larger journey toward self-identity and truth. The novel is a Golden Kite Award Winner... Read See You in the Cosmos Summary
Publication year 2015
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Relationships: Family, Life/Time: Coming of Age, Values/Ideas: Good & Evil
Tags Fantasy, Mystery / Crime Fiction, Horror / Thriller / Suspense Fiction, Coming of Age / Bildungsroman, Animals, Children's Literature, Historical Fiction, Action / Adventure
Serafina and the Black Cloak is a middle-grade mystery/fantasy by Robert Beatty. First published in 2015, the novel is set in 1899 at the historic Biltmore Estate near Asheville, North Carolina. The story features 12-year-old Serafina, a girl of mysterious origins and many unusual skills who lives secretly in the mansion’s basement. When some of the Biltmore guests’ children go missing, Serafina discovers that an evil intruder—the Man in the Black Cloak—is responsible. Serafina sets... Read Serafina and the Black Cloak Summary
Publication year 1956
Genre Poem, Fiction
Themes Relationships: Family, Emotions/Behavior: Grief, Life/Time: Mortality & Death, Relationships: Grandparents, Values/Ideas: Art
Tags Grief / Death
Publication year 2021
Genre Book, Nonfiction
Themes Relationships: Family, Relationships: Friendship, Relationships: Marriage, Emotions/Behavior: Conflict, Self Discovery, Identity: Language
Tags Self Help, Psychology, Health / Medicine, Relationships, Psychology, Mental Illness
Publication year 467
Genre Play, Fiction
Themes Society: War, Values/Ideas: Fate, Relationships: Family, Relationships: Siblings, Values/Ideas: Justice & Injustice, Emotions/Behavior: Hate & Anger
Tags Classic Fiction, Ancient Greece, Play: Tragedy, Classical Period, Drama / Tragedy, Fantasy
Seven Against Thebes is a tragedy composed by Aeschylus and performed for the first time at the City Dionysia festival in 467 BCE. It was the final play of a connected trilogy based on the myths of Oedipus and his family, but the first two plays—Laius and Oedipus—are now lost, as is the satyr play Sphinx that would have been performed following the trilogy. This set of plays won first prize the year it was... Read Seven Against Thebes Summary
Publication year 2021
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Relationships: Mothers, Relationships: Family, Emotions/Behavior: Memory, Emotions/Behavior: Love
Tags Romance, Relationships, Modern Classic Fiction
Publication year 1949
Genre Short Story, Fiction
Themes Relationships: Family, Emotions/Behavior: Conflict, Society: Immigration
Tags Education, Education, Japanese Literature
“Seventeen Syllables,” originally published in 1949 by the Partisan Review, is Hisaye Yamamoto’s most anthologized short story. Yamamoto was one of the first Japanese American authors to achieve critical and commercial success after World War II due to her celebrated short stories about life in Southern California and the experiences of Japanese Americans. Her stories were eventually published together in 1988, in a collection titled Seventeen Syllables and Other Stories released by Kitchen Table Press... Read Seventeen Syllables Summary
Publication year 2018
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Values/Ideas: Religion & Spirituality, Society: Immigration, Natural World: Place, Identity: Language, Relationships: Family, Values/Ideas: Safety & Danger, Relationships: Mothers, Life/Time: Mortality & Death, Emotions/Behavior: Memory, Life/Time: Childhood & Youth, Relationships: Daughters & Sons, Life/Time: The Past, Emotions/Behavior: Guilt, Emotions/Behavior: Shame & Pride, Emotions/Behavior: Grief, Relationships: Fathers, Emotions/Behavior: Nostalgia, Emotions/Behavior: Apathy, Emotions/Behavior: Loneliness, Self Discovery
Tags Satire, Science-Fiction / Dystopian Fiction, Survival Fiction, Chinese Literature, Immigration / Refugee, Modern Classic Fiction
Publication year 1989
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Emotions/Behavior: Courage, Self Discovery, Relationships: Family, Emotions/Behavior: Shame & Pride, Emotions/Behavior: Hate & Anger, Society: War, Life/Time: Coming of Age
Tags Historical Fiction, American Civil War, Coming of Age / Bildungsroman, Children's Literature, Education, Education, History: U.S., Military / War, History: World
Publication year 2015
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Relationships: Family
Tags Fantasy, Religion / Spirituality
Shadowshaper is an urban fantasy young adult novel written by Daniel José Older and originally published in 2015. The first book in the Shadowshaper Cypher series, Shadowshaper follows an Afro-Boricua teenager named Sierra who discovers she has a magical and spiritual family heritage. The book was named a New York Times Notable Book of 2015 and was shortlisted for the 2015 Kirkus Prize. This study guide refers the 2015 paperback Scholastic Inc. edition. Plot SummaryAt... Read Shadowshaper Summary
Publication year 2009
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Relationships: Siblings, Values/Ideas: Fate, Identity: Race, Relationships: Family, Emotions/Behavior: Courage
Tags Asian Literature, History: World, Chinese Literature, Arts / Culture, Historical Fiction, Immigration / Refugee, Asian Literature
Shanghai Girls (May 2009) is a New York Times bestselling historical novel by Lisa See. It is the first of a two-book series that concludes with Dreams of Joy (2011). The author’s paternal great-grandfather emigrated from China, and many of See’s books examine the Chinese immigrant experience in America. Other titles that cover similar subject matter are Snow Flower and the Secret Fan (2005), Peony in Love (2007), China Dolls (2014), The Tea Girl of... Read Shanghai Girls Summary
Publication year 2020
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Relationships: Family, Values/Ideas: Religion & Spirituality, Relationships: Siblings, Relationships: Daughters & Sons, Society: Colonialism
Tags Magical Realism, Fairy Tale / Folklore, Relationships, Modern Classic Fiction, Fantasy
Publication year 2024
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Emotions/Behavior: Determination / Perseverance, Identity: Femininity, Identity: Indigenous, Life/Time: The Past, Natural World: Environment, Relationships: Family, Society: Colonialism, Society: Politics & Government, Values/Ideas: Justice & Injustice
Tags Historical Fiction, Mystery / Crime Fiction
Publication year 1992
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Identity: Mental Health, Life/Time: Coming of Age, Relationships: Family, Values/Ideas: Power & Greed
Tags Coming of Age / Bildungsroman, Drama / Tragedy, Modern Classic Fiction, Mental Illness
She’s Come Undone is a realistic fiction novel written by Wally Lamb and originally published in 1992. Lamb demonstrates his penchant for creating detailed psychological character portraits in his debut novel, which is a coming-of-age story about a woman named Dolores Price. As the novel traces Dolores’s life from childhood through middle age in the mid-20th century, Lamb examines imbalanced power dynamics within relationships, intergenerational trauma and healing, the loss of innocence, and body image... Read She's Come Undone Summary