“In family life, love is the oil that eases friction, the cement that binds closer together, and the music that brings harmony.” – Friedrich Nietzsche
Each family bond contains the invisible threads of emotional connection, common values, common goals, and shared responsibilities that make a family, a family. The books in this collection describe family bonds in many forms. Each story illustrates how individual family members influence the wellbeing of the others in many ways. Welcome to the family!
Below you’ll find books, conversation launchers and activities that are appropriate for High Schoolers around the concept of “Family Bonds”.
GREAT BOOKS & CONVOS
The How & the Why
By Cynthia Hand
Why We LOVE This Book
S is a 16 year old girl, living in a group home for teenage pregnant girls. We learn how and why she is there from the letters she writes to her unborn child, whom she refers to as X.
Cassandra McMurtrey, known by her family and friends as Cass, just turned 18. Although she has an incredibly strong bond with her parents who raised her, she still wonders about her birth mother, especially on her birthdays. On this particular birthday, maybe because she is now an “adult” or maybe because the mother who raised her is possibly dying, she decides she wants to discover more about who her birth mother was and is. Cass goes online and requests her official birth certificate. This is the first step in her journey to find her birth mother; perhaps this quest will lead to some self-discovery as well.
Conversation Launchers
Once Upon a Quinceañera
By Monica Gomez-Hira
Why We LOVE This Book
Carmen is not looking forward to her summer job as a party princess for little kids, but quitting is not an option. She needs the internship to graduate high school and wants to make sure she sees it through. Carmen’s estranged younger cousin, Ariana, has a quinceañera rapidly approaching, so some family member have to interact more often than they have in years past. Carmen stumbles upon various obstacles with her family, but realizes the beauty and importance of family in the end.
Conversation Launchers
Fade into the Bright
By Jessica Koosed Etting & Alyssa Embree Schwartz
Why We LOVE This Book
Abby planned her future and was ready to embark on her next chapter in life, until she had to make a decision that would change her life. She and her sister received a letter from their father, who abandoned the family three years prior, that informed them of a hereditary disease that they have a 50-50 shot at escaping. After finding the truth, Abby needs to flee and decompress, leaving her mother and sister to with other family. As she spends the summer on Catalina Island, she lets go and forgives, while learning how to navigate her life.
Conversation Launchers
Keep the Conversation Going!
ADDITIONAL ACTIVITIES
MORE GREAT READS
Barely Missing Everything
Matt Mendez
The Inheritance of Orquídea Divina
Zoraida Cordova
Educated
Tara Westover
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Resources for OTHER AGE GROUPS
Below you’ll find books and activities that are appropriate for various ages around the concept of “Family Bonds.”
SEARCH BY GRADE LEVEL…
PRE-K – KINDERGARTEN
PRE-K – KINDERGARTEN
1ST – 2ND GRADE
3RD – 5TH GRADE
MIDDLE SCHOOL
HIGH SCHOOL
FOR FULL ACCESS TO ADDITIONAL READINGS, RESOURCES & ACTIVITIES, CHECK OUT OUR FAMILY BOOK CLUB subscription BOXES…
– Mandy G, NEW BOOK JOY Founder