Family Stories

"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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195 Items found Print
Active Filters: 6th grade (Ages 11-12), In-Stock Books & Materials
After the Rain
by Norma Fox Mazer
from HarperTeen
for 6th-8th grade
1988 Newbery Honor Book
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$4.00 (1 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)
$7.99
All-of-a-Kind Family
All-of-a-Kind Family Series #1
by Sydney Taylor, illustrated by Helen John
from Follett
Family Stories for 2nd-6th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$16.00 (1 in stock)
All-of-a-Kind Family
All-of-a-Kind Family Series #1
by Sydney Taylor, illustrated by Helen John
from Follett
Family Stories for 2nd-6th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$12.00 (1 in stock)
All-of-a-Kind Family Downtown
All-of-a-Kind Family Series #2
by Sydney Taylor, illustrated by Beth & Joe Krush
from Lizzie Skurnick Books
Family Stories for 2nd-6th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$12.95
All-of-a-Kind Family Uptown
All-of-a-Kind Family Series #4
by Sydney Taylor, illustrated by Mary Stevens
from Lizzie Skurnick Books
Family Stories for 2nd-6th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$12.95
All-of-a-Kind Family Uptown
All-of-a-Kind Family Series #4
by Sydney Taylor; illustrated by Mary Stevens
from Follett Publishing Co.
Family Stories for 2nd-6th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$34.00 (1 in stock)
Anna All Year Round
by Mary Downing Hahn
from Clarion Books
for 4th-6th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Bastable Adventures Set
by E. Nesbit, illustrated by Cecil Leslie
from Living Book Press
Family Stories for 4th-8th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$39.56
Beezus and Ramona
Ramona Collection Book 1
by Beverly Cleary
Reissue from HarperTrophy
for 3rd-6th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$6.39
Belles On Their Toes
by Frank Gilbreth & Ernestine Gilbreth Carey
from HarperCollins
Family Stories for 4th-9th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$12.99
Birds' Christmas Carol
by Kate Douglas Wiggin
from Yearling
for 4th-7th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$2.00 (1 in stock)
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)
$7.99
Busybody Nora
from William Morrow & Company
for 3rd-6th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
By the Shores of Silver Lake
Little House Series #5
by Laura Ingalls Wilder
from HarperCollins
Realistic Fiction/Pioneers for 3rd-6th grade
1940 Newbery Honor Book
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$18.99 $8.00 (2 in stock)
Caddie Woodlawn
by Carol Ryrie Brink
from Simon and Schuster
Realistic Family Fiction for 3rd-7th grade
1936 Newbery Medal winner
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$19.99
Caleb's Story
by Patricia MacLachlan
from HarperCollins
Family Stories for 2nd-6th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$6.99 $4.00 (1 in stock)
Canadian Summer
Mitchells Series #2
by Hilda Van Stockum
from Bethlehem Books
Family Stories for 4th-8th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$16.95
Candymakers
by Wendy Mass
from Little, Brown & Company
for 3rd-6th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$9.99
Cartoonist
by Betsy Cromer Byars, illustrated by Richard Cuffari
from Viking Press
for 3rd-6th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Cathie Stuart
by Nora Tully MacAlvay
1958 2nd Printing from Viking Press
for 3rd-6th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$12.00 (1 in stock)
Cheaper By the Dozen
by Frank Gilbreth & Ernestine Gilbreth Carey
from HarperCollins
Family Stories for 4th-9th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$16.99
Christmas Doll
by Elvira Woodruff
from Scholastic Inc.
for 4th-6th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$1.50 (1 in stock)
Day No Pigs Would Die
by Robert Newton Peck
from Random House
Realistic Stories for 6th-9th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$7.99
Day No Pigs Would Die
by Robert Newton Peck
1994 Printing from Random House
Realistic Stories for 6th-9th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
Dicey's Song
by Cynthia Voigt
from Atheneum
for 6th-10th grade
1983 Newbery Medal winner
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$12.99
Dobry
by Monica Shannon; illustrated by Atanas Katchamakoff
15th printing 1967 from Viking Press
for 4th-8th grade
1935 Newbery Medal winner
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$20.00 (2 in stock)
Double Fudge
by Judy Blume
from Puffin Books
for 4th-7th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$4.50 (1 in stock)
Dream Days
by Kenneth Grahame, illustrated by Maxfield Parrish
from SeaWolf Press
for 3rd-6th grade
in Seawolf Illustrated Classics (Location: FIC-SW)
$6.95
Echo Mountain
by Lauren Wolk
from Dutton Children's Books
for 3rd-6th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$8.99
Education of Little Tree
by Forrest Carter
from University of New Mexico Press
for 5th-8th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$3.00 (2 in stock)
Edward Eager's Tales of Magic
by Edward M. Eager
from Harcourt
for 3rd-6th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
Elephant in the Garden
by Michael Morpurgo
from Feiwel & Friends
for 5th-8th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$8.99
Ella of All-of-a-Kind Family
All-of-a-Kind Family Series #5
by Sydney Taylor, illustrated by Gail Owens
from Lizzie Skurnick Books
Family Stories for 6th-9th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$12.95 $9.00 (1 in stock)
Esperanza Rising
by Pam Munoz Ryan
from Scholastic Inc.
for 4th-8th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$7.99
Evolution of Calpurnia Tate
by Jacqueline Kelly
from Henry Holt and Company
for 4th-7th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$9.00 (1 in stock)
Family Under the Bridge
by Natalie Savage Carlson
from Harper & Row
for 4th-6th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$12.00 (1 in stock)
Farmer Boy
Little House Series #3
by Laura Ingalls Wilder
from HarperCollins
Realistic Fiction/Pioneers for 3rd-6th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$8.99
Farmer Boy
Little House Series #3
by Laura Ingalls Wilder
from HarperCollins
Realistic Fiction/Pioneers for 3rd-6th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$19.99
Farmer Boy
Little House Series #3
by Laura Ingalls Wilder
from HarperCollins
Realistic Fiction/Pioneers for 3rd-6th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$9.99
Figgs & Phantoms
by Ellen Raskin
from Puffin Books
for 3rd-6th grade
1975 Newbery Honor Book
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$7.99
First Farm in the Valley
by Anne Pellowski
from Bethlehem Books
for 3rd-6th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$9.50
First Four Years (Pictorial Cover)
by Laura Ingalls Wilder; illustrated by Garth Williams
from Harper & Row
for 3rd-8th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$8.00 (1 in stock)
Five Little Peppers Abroad
Five Little Peppers #3
by Margaret Sidney
from Living Book Press
Family Stories for 3rd-6th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$10.99
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)
$8.99
Five Little Peppers and How They Grew
by Margaret Sidney
from Yearling
for 4th-6th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
Five Little Peppers and How They Grew
Five Little Peppers #1
by Margaret Sidney
from Living Book Press
for 3rd-6th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$11.99
Five Little Peppers and How They Grew
by Margaret Sidney, illustrated by Anna Marie Magagna
1962, Second Printing from Macmillan
for 4th-8th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$14.00 (1 in stock)
Five Little Peppers Grown Up
Five Little Peppers #4
by Margaret Sidney
from Living Book Press
Family Stories for 3rd-6th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$11.99
Five Little Peppers Midway
Five Little Peppers #2
by Margaret Sidney
from Living Book Press
Family Stories for 3rd-6th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$9.99
Fledgling
by Jane Langton
from Scholastic Inc.
for 4th-6th grade
1981 Newbery Honor Book
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
Francie on the Run
Bantry Bay Series
by Hilda Van Stockum
from Bethlehem Books
Realistic Fiction for 5th-8th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$16.95
Friendly Gables
Mitchells Series #3
by Hilda Van Stockum
from Bethlehem Books
Family Stories for 4th-8th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$16.95
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)
$8.99
From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler
by E.L. Konigsburg
37th printing from Atheneum
for 4th-6th grade
1968 Newbery Medal Winner
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$7.50 (2 in stock)
From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler
by E. L. Konigsburg
35th Anniversary Edition from Atheneum
Mystery/Suspense for 4th-7th grade
1968 Newbery Medal winner
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$9.00 (1 in stock)
Getting Near to Baby
by Audrey Couloumbis
from Puffin Books
for 4th-8th grade
2000 Newbery Honor Book
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$7.99
Getting Near to Baby
by Audrey Couloumbis
from Scholastic Inc.
for 4th-8th grade
2000 Newbery Honor Book
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
Ginger Pye
by Eleanor Estes
from Harcourt, Brace & World
for 4th-6th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Girl Named Disaster
by Nancy Farmer
First Printing Dec.2011 from Scholastic Inc.
for 4th-6th grade
Newbery Honor Book
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$7.99 $5.00 (1 in stock)
Gold Cadillac
by Mildred D. Taylor
Reprint from Puffin Books
for 3rd-6th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$7.99 $4.50 (1 in stock)
Golden Age
by Kenneth Grahame
from Dover Publications
for 6th-9th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$8.95
Golden Age
by Kenneth Grahame
from Wordsworth Classics
for 6th-9th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Golden Age
by Kenneth Grahame, illustrated by Maxfield Parrish
from SeaWolf Press
for 6th-9th grade
in Seawolf Illustrated Classics (Location: FIC-SW)
$7.95
Golden Age
by Kenneth Grahame, illustrated by Maxfield Parrish
from Ten Speed Press
for 6th-9th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$8.00 (1 in stock)
Good Old Archibald
by Ethelyn M. Parkinson
from Bethlehem Books
for 3rd-7th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$14.95
Grandfather's Dance
by Patricia MacLachlan
from HarperCollins
Realistic Fiction for 3rd-6th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$6.99
Half Magic Quartet
by Edward M. Eager
from Harcourt
for 3rd-6th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
Happy Times in Noisy Village
by Astrid Lindgren
from Bethlehem Books
Family Stories for 3rd-6th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$12.95
Heidi
Rainbow Classics
by Johanna Spyri, translated by Marian Edwards and illustrated by Leonard Weisgard
1st Printing from World Publishing Company
for 3rd-8th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$12.00 (1 in stock)
Heidi
Windermere Readers #3
by Johanna Spyri, translated by Philip Schuyler Allen and illustrated by Maginel Wright Enright
1954 Edition from Rand McNally
for 3rd-8th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$9.00 (1 in stock)
Heidi Grows Up
by Charles Tritten
from Golden Press
for 4th-8th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$7.50 (1 in stock)
Heidi Grows Up
by Johanna Spyri, Charles Tritten
from Dell Publishing
for 4th-8th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$2.50 (1 in stock)
Hold Fast
by Blue Balliett
Reprint from Scholastic Press
for 4th-6th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$7.99
In Grandma's Attic
by Arleta Richardson
from David C. Cook
for 3rd-6th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$6.99
Jar of Dreams
by Yoshiko Uchida
2nd edition from Aladdin Paperbacks
for 5th-9th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$6.99
Journey to Jo'burg
by Beverley Naidoo
from Scholastic Inc.
for 4th-6th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$2.00 (1 in stock)
Judy's Journey
by Lois Lenski
from Open Road Publishing
for 4th-6th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$15.99
Kira-Kira
by Cynthia Kadohata
from Atheneum
for 6th-9th grade
2005 Newbery Medal Winner
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$8.99
Lily's Crossing
by Patricia Reilly Giff
from Yearling
for 4th-6th grade
1997 Newbery Honor Book
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$7.99
Little House - Full Color Trade Paper Set
by Laura Ingalls Wilder
from HarperCollins
for 3rd-8th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$75.11
Little House - Hardcover Set
by Laura Ingalls Wilder
from HarperCollins
for 3rd-8th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$139.11
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)
$79.91
Little House in the Big Woods
Little House Series #1
by Laura Ingalls Wilder
from HarperCollins
Realistic Fiction/Pioneers for 3rd-6th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$8.99 $5.00 (2 in stock)
Little House in the Big Woods
Little House Series #1
by Laura Ingalls Wilder
from HarperCollins
Realistic Fiction/Pioneers for 3rd-6th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$18.99
Little House on the Prairie
Little House Series #2
by Laura Ingalls Wilder
from HarperCollins
Realistic Fiction/Pioneers for 3rd-6th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$8.99
Little House on the Prairie
Little House Series #2
by Laura Ingalls Wilder
from HarperCollins
Realistic Fiction/Pioneers for 3rd-6th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$17.99
Little Lord Fauntleroy
Junior Deluxe Editions
by Frances Hodgson Burnett, illustrated by Peter Spier
from Nelson Doubleday, Inc.
for 4th-8th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
Little Men
Puffin Classics
by Louisa May Alcott
from Puffin Books
for 4th-8th grade
in Puffin Classics (Location: FIC-PUF)
$8.99
Little Men
by Louisa May Alcott, Illustrated by Reginald B. Birch
150th Anniversary from SeaWolf Press
for 4th-8th grade
in Seawolf Illustrated Classics (Location: FIC-SW)
$9.95
Little Town on the Prairie
Little House Series #7
by Laura Ingalls Wilder
from HarperCollins
Realistic Fiction/Pioneers for 3rd-8th grade
1942 Newbery Honor Book
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$8.99
Little Town on the Prairie
Little House Series #7
by Laura Ingalls Wilder
from HarperCollins
Realistic Fiction/Pioneers for 3rd-8th grade
1942 Newbery Honor Book
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$19.99
Little Town on the Prairie
Little House Series #7
by Laura Ingalls Wilder
from HarperCollins
Realistic Fiction/Pioneers for 3rd-8th grade
1942 Newbery Honor Book
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$9.99
Little Town on the Prairie - Audio CD
Little House Series #7
by Laura Ingalls Wilder
from HarperCollins
Realistic Fiction/Pioneers for 3rd-8th grade
1942 Newbery Honor Book
in Audio Books & Dramas (Location: CD-AUDIO)
$25.99
Little White Farm House in Iowa
Precious Memories Book 1: The First 10 Years
by Carol Brands
from Inheritance Publications
for 4th-9th grade
in Inheritance Fiction (Location: FIC-WH03)
$9.00
Little Yellow Farm House in Iowa
Precious Memories Book 2: Years 11-17
by Carol Brands
from Inheritance Publications
for 4th-9th grade
in Inheritance Fiction (Location: FIC-WH03)
$9.00
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)
$8.99
Long Way from Chicago
by Richard Peck
from Puffin Books
Humorous Family Stories for 4th-9th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$8.99
Long Winter
Little House Series #6
by Laura Ingalls Wilder
from HarperCollins
Realistic Fiction/Pioneers for 3rd-8th grade
1941 Newbery Honor Book
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$9.99
Long Winter
Little House Series #6
by Laura Ingalls Wilder
from HarperCollins
Realistic Fiction/Pioneers for 3rd-8th grade
1941 Newbery Honor Book
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$19.99 $9.50 (1 in stock)
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