Category Archives: Family Drama

Deadly lizards, delinquent boys, a sinister warden and a whole lot of HOLES feature in Louis Sachar’s acclaimed YA novel

When Stanley Yelnats gets caught holding a celebrity’s stolen sneakers which have just fallen on him out of the sky, he knows that it’s because of the family curse acquired by his no-good-dirty-rotten-pig-stealing-great-great-grandfather. Stanley is sent to Camp Green Lake, … Continue reading

Posted in 10 years and up, 20th Century, 20th Century YA, Adventure, American, Coming of Age/Rites of Passage, Family Drama, Fiction, Light Fiction, Novel, YA Classic, Young Adult | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

A nuanced exploration of family dynamics, moral identity and cross-cultural perceptions: Where Angels Fear to Tread by E.M. Forster

The basic storyline of E.M. Forster’s Where Angels Fear to Tread revolves around the child of a mixed marriage and the various characters’ feelings, motives and actions regarding it. Yet this storyline is the vehicle for exploring the struggle between … Continue reading

Posted in 20th Century, 20th Century Literature, British, Classic, Family Drama, Fiction, General adult audience, Novel | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

A Country Gentleman and His Family by Margaret Oliphant

A Country Gentleman and His Family by Margaret Oliphant is surprisingly well written. Mrs Oliphant was a Victorian authoress who wrote novels to support herself and several dependents so was prolific but variable in quality. This book had skillful characterisation … Continue reading

Posted in British, Classic, Family Drama, General adult audience, Novel of Manners, Pastoral novel, Romance, Social Novel, Victorian | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Wonder by R.J. Palacio

Wonder by R.J. Palacio is the story of ten-year-old August who likes Star Wars and Halloween and who just wants to be ordinary as he starts attending a regular school for the first time. But August isn’t ordinary and an … Continue reading

Posted in 10 years and up, Coming of Age/Rites of Passage, Contemporary Children's, Family Drama, Novel, Young Adult | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment