Family Stories - Exodus Books

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"Family stories" isn't really a recognized genre, but it should be. Sure, most novels deal with families on some level, but we aren't talking about the dysfunctional ones so common in modern (and Russian) fiction. For us, family stories are those that celebrate family life through a particular family's story, whether it's a Ma and Pa taking their girls across country in a covered wagon, an Austrian count saving his wife and kids from the Nazis, or a Jewish family in New York prior to World War I.

Tolstoy's famous observation that "Happy families are all alike; every unhappy family is unhappy in its own way," is constantly disproved in these stories. Unhappy families are usually unhappy as a result of selfishness and sin, while happy ones enjoy remarkably diverse experiences that broaden each individual member and the whole family unit together. That's not to say happy families never suffer—they often suffer even more than others, but the difficulties bring them closer together and build character.

By extension, families who take heed of these real and fictional families' response to hardship will find themselves similarly bonded, thankful for each other instead of resentful, happy to sacrifice individual desires for the benefit of the group rather than demanding special favors. Other than Christ's Body, the family is the most important social group for Christians, and we prefer family stories that reflect a pursuit of godliness—the too-often-neglected Papa's Wife is an excellent example.

Some of the stories here are just for fun, though. Cheaper by the Dozen may not spur you on to piety, but it will make you laugh till your sides hurt. The Sarah, Plain and Tall books aren't churchy, but the love of Jacob Witting for his children and the woman who becomes their mother is instructive for us all. Family stories make good family reading, too, because the best ones appeal to each member. Besides, any activity that brings everyone together can never be considered a waste of time.

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	26 Fairmont Avenue by Tomie De Paola from Puffin Books for 2nd-5th grade in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE) $5.94 $3.20 (2 in stock)
	All-of-a-Kind Family by Sydney Taylor, illustrated by Helen John from Yearling Family Stories for 2nd-6th grade in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA) $6.79
	Blue Willow Puffin Newbery Library by Doris Gates from Puffin Books for 4th-7th grade 1941 Newbery Honor Book in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA) $7.64 $3.60 (1 in stock)
	Caddie Woodlawn by Carol Ryrie Brink from Simon Pulse Realistic Family Fiction for 3rd-7th grade 1936 Newbery Medal winner in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA) $7.64
	Caddie Woodlawn by Carol Ryrie Brink from Aladdin Paperbacks Realistic Family Fiction for 3rd-7th grade 1936 Newbery Medal winner in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA) $2.80 (1 in stock)
	Caddie Woodlawn's Family Formerly titled Magical Melons by Carol Ryrie Brink from Aladdin Paperbacks Realistic Family Fiction for 3rd-7th grade in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA) $7.64
	Caleb's Story by Patricia MacLachlan from HarperCollins Family Stories for 2nd-6th grade in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
	Cheaper By the Dozen by Frank Gilbreth & Ernestine Gilbreth Carey from Yearling Family Stories for 4th-9th grade in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
	Cockroach Cooties by Laurence Yep from Hyperion Books for Children for 3rd-6th grade in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA) $2.80 (1 in stock)
	Esperanza Rising by Pam Munoz Ryan from Scholastic Inc. for 4th-8th grade in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF) $6.79 $4.00 (1 in stock)
	Family Under the Bridge by Natalie Savage Carlson, illustrated by Garth Williams from HarperCollins Realistic Fiction for 3rd-6th grade 1959 Newbery Honor Book in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA) $6.79 $3.20 (2 in stock)
	Family Under the Bridge by Natalie Savage Carlson from Scholastic Inc. for 4th-6th grade in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA) $1.60 (1 in stock)
	Farmer Boy Little House Series #3 by Laura Ingalls Wilder from Scholastic Inc. Realistic Fiction/Pioneers for 3rd-6th grade in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
	Five Little Peppers and How They Grew Five Little Peppers #1 by Margaret Sidney from Aladdin Paperbacks for 3rd-6th grade in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA) $7.64
	Fledgling by Jane Langton from Scholastic Inc. for 4th-6th grade 1981 Newbery Honor Book in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN) $2.40 (1 in stock)
	From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler by E. L. Konigsburg from Aladdin Paperbacks Mystery/Suspense for 4th-7th grade 1968 Newbery Medal winner in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV) $8.49
	In Grandma's Attic In Grandma's Attic by Arleta Richardson from Cook Communications for 3rd-6th grade in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA) $4.50 (2 in stock)
	Journey to Jo'burg A South African Story by Beverley Naidoo from Scholastic Inc. for 4th-6th grade in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA) $1.60 (1 in stock)
	Little House - Softcover Boxed Set by Laura Ingalls Wilder from HarperCollins Realistic Fiction/Pioneers for 3rd-8th grade in Boxed Sets & Literature Packages (Location: FIC-BOX) $67.92
	Little Men Puffin Classics by Louisa May Alcott from Puffin Books for 4th-8th grade in Puffin Classics (Location: FIC-PUF) $7.64
	Long Way from Chicago Puffin Modern Classics by Richard Peck from Puffin Books Humorous Family Stories for 5th-9th grade in Puffin Classics (Location: FIC-PUF) $7.64
	Missing May by Cynthia Rylant from Scholastic Inc. for 5th-8th grade 1993 Newbery Medal winner in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA) $5.94
	Old-Fashioned Thanksgiving by Louisa May Alcott from Applewood Books Family Stories for 4th-8th grade in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA) $12.95
	On the Banks of Plum Creek Little House Series #4 by Laura Ingalls Wilder from HarperCollins Realistic Fiction/Pioneers for 3rd-6th grade 1938 Newbery Honor Book in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF) $8.49
	Phoenix and the Carpet Puffin Classics Nesbit Trilogy Book 2 by E. Nesbit, illustrated by H. R. Millar (uncredited) from Puffin Books Fantasy for 4th-8th grade in Puffin Classics (Location: FIC-PUF) $5.94
	Phoenix and the Carpet by E. Nesbit, illustrated by H. R. Millar (uncredited) from Wordsworth Classics Fantasy for 4th-8th grade in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
	Pippi Longstocking by Astrid Lindgren from Puffin Books for 2nd-5th grade in Puffin Classics (Location: FIC-PUF) $7.64
	Railway Children Puffin Classics by E. Nesbit, illustrated by C. E. Brock from Puffin Books Family Stories for 4th-8th grade in Puffin Classics (Location: FIC-PUF) $7.64
	Sarah, Plain and Tall Includes an afterword to you from Patricia MacLachlan by Patricia MacLachlan from Scholastic Inc. Family Stories for 2nd-6th grade 1986 Newbery Medal winner in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA) $3.00 (1 in stock)
	Sarah, Plain and Tall by Patricia MacLachlan 30th Anniversary from HarperCollins Family Stories for 2nd-6th grade 1986 Newbery Medal winner in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA) $6.79 $3.20 (4 in stock)
	Skylark by Patricia MacLachlan from HarperCollins Family Stories for 2nd-6th grade in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
	Story of the Treasure Seekers Puffin Classics by E. Nesbit, illustrated by Cecil Leslie from Puffin Books Family Stories for 4th-8th grade in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA) $7.64
	Sunshine Country A Story of Family Love and Home by Kristiny Royovej from Christian Focus Publications for 4th-6th grade in Morality Tales (Location: FIC-WH05) $3.60 (1 in stock)
	Swiss Family Robinson Puffin Classics by Johann Wyss from Puffin Books Realistic Stories/Adventure for 4th-8th grade in Puffin Classics (Location: FIC-PUF) $9.34
	Trolley Car Family by Eleanor Clymer, illustrated by Ursula Koering 1975 Printing from Scholastic Book Services for 3rd-6th grade in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
	Ways to Make Sunshine by Renee Watson from Scholastic Inc. for 2nd-5th grade in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA) $2.80 (1 in stock)

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