Family

The Neighbor’s Son

What if you awakened one day and realized your parents were part of unspeakable evil? Do you turn away from them and therefore yourself? The unique coming of age story of Liesel and her preoccupation with finding her neighbor’s son is extremely eventful and takes the reader from postwar Germany to England, Africa and the United States. It explores interconnectedness between victim and perpetrator and touches on universal themes of family, forgiveness, guilt and justice. This candid account of a family’s history combined with a flawed protagonist’s sexual history will strike deep emotional responses in a thoughtful reader.

The Web

Jenny loves Violet-Anne, her great-grandmother, and her wonderful house, but Violet is getting old now…A beautifully written and illustrated story for young children about aging and loss, and the joy of living whether young or old.

Enemy Territory

Thirteen-year-old Rabia, along with her mother and younger brother, flees Afghanistan and the brutal Taliban for Pakistan. Some months later, they take part in a program that is relocating refugee widows and orphans to America. However, their flight falls on the fateful morning of 9/11. After the terrorist attack on the World Trade Center in New York City, their plane is diverted to Gander, Newfoundland. Also on the plane is a boy named Colin, who struggles with his prejudices against Rabia and her family after they are all stuck in Gander. The people in the small community open their hearts and their homes to the stranded passengers, and their kindness might be the bridge to bring Rabia and Colin’s families together.

Home Of The Brave

Kek comes from Africa where he lived with his mother, father, and brother. But only he and his mother have survived. Now she’s missing, and Kek has been sent to a new home. In America, he sees snow for the first time, and feels its sting. He wonders if the people in this new place will be like the winter—cold and unkind. But slowly he makes friends: a girl in foster care, an old woman with a rundown farm, and a sweet, sad cow that reminds Kek of home. As he waits for word of his mother’s fate, Kek weathers the tough Minnesota winter by finding warmth in his new friendships, strength in his memories, and belief in his new country.

This book has been included in WOW’s Language and Learning: Children’s and Young Adult Fiction Booklist. For our current list, visit our Booklist page under Resources in the green navigation bar.

Omer’s Favorite Place

Omer likes playing outside in the garden, in the kitchen, in the sitting room or in his bedroom – in fact he likes playing all around the house. But there are always other things going on in these places and he’s often interrupted by his brothers and sisters, or his mum and dad. However, there’s one special place Omer can go and play – somewhere where no one else goes. And this is Omer’s favorite place of all . . .

Maggie’s Chopsticks

Maggie comes from a family of unique individuals, all with their own opinions and style, each one of them willing to give advice on how the child should hold her new chopsticks. Maggie listens to all of them in turn, weighing her options. Grandmother suggests using chopsticks in a rather forthright way, while Sister suggests a more graceful approach. As Maggie begins to worry that she may never find her own style, her father suggests that she be herself. Because of his encouragement, she is able to find just what works for her. Maggie comes from a traditional Chinese family, and she clearly wants to make them proud. Woo writes in a way that transforms a story about holding utensils into a poetic journey. Not only is Maggie learning the mechanics of chopsticks, but she is also learning to be herself. Language such as “click-clack-clicketing” and, as she circles her chopsticks above her fish tank, “the fish flee/from the wooden fingers/reaching through their sky of blue” makes children want to turn the page and find out what else Maggie will experience. In Malenfant’s vibrant illustrations, deep reds and shimmering oranges leap from the pages. All children are fascinated with holding utensils, whether a fork, a spoon, or chopsticks, and are anxious to please adults while staking out their own individuality, making this a great choice for kids of all ethnic backgrounds.

Nurse Clementine

This is a gentle and delightful tale charmingly told and illustrated by an award-winning picture book creator. For her birthday, Clementine Brown is given a nurse’s outfit. All she needs now are some patients! When her dad stubs his toe and her mum has a headache, Clementine is on hand – she even bandages the dog! But when there’s a real emergency and her little brother Tommy gets stuck up a tree, “Nurse Clementine” comes into her own.

Shadows Cast By Stars

To escape a government that needs antigens in aboriginal blood to stop a plague, sixteen-year-old Cassandra and her family flee to the Island, where she not only gets help in communicating with the spirit world, she learns she has been chosen to be their voice and instrument.