Warden's Daughter by Jerry Spinelli

Reading books together as a family is a great way to bond with each other and have fun. Instead of having a family movie night, have a night together where you share a new story and read together. The Warden’s Daughter is a book that your entire family can enjoy together but is more age-appropriate for upper elementary.

Growing up at a prison would make for a strange childhood, but Cammie O’Reilly spends her time around the prison, and has even gotten to know some of the female inmates personally. When she was just a baby, there was an accident that resulted in the death of Cammie's mother. This story shows Cammie transform into a preteen with only having a father for guidance. Cammie does have some adult female influences in her life through the inmates and, one in particular looks after her on a daily basis. She tries to get attached and form a motherly bond with her nanny, but it does not turn out the way she desires. A girl needs a mother figure in her life and Cammie has tried desperately to fill that void, sometimes ending in disastrous outcomes.

This story has humor, heartbreak, and mystery. I grew to love Cammie early in the book and was intrigued by her story of growing up in a prison. You get to meet some of the inmates and they are all lively, likable characters that you want to learn more about. This coming-of-age novel was well-written and a story that I could not put down until the last word. Cammie provides narration that will keep the reader wanting to learn more about the Hancock County Prison and meet every inmate.  I recommend this book to fans of Jerry Spinelli’s other works, and for families who enjoy reading chapter books together. This book, and the audiobook, are available in the children’s department.

-Lauren

The Darkhouse by Barbara Radecki

I always pictured living on an island to be a sun-filled paradise and a peaceful existence but for teenager Gemma, it is a solitary existence. Never having left the Canadian island she lives on, Gemma has been sheltered and isolated her whole life and is naïve to the real world. Her sheltered existence is beautifully explained and some parts seem wonderful and some just lonely. She spends her days with older residents of the island while her father, Jonah, either works on his experiments at home or is at his job as the ferry captain.

The only family she has around is a cold-hearted father who does not speak that much to her and keeps her from ever venturing outside of the island. All that she has ever heard or known about her mother is that she left Jonah and Gemma and that she is crazy and she cannot find out any details of where her mother is. Her father only explains that she was once beautiful but he does not like recalling Gemma’s mother because it makes him sick and angry. Where is her mother? Why does she stay away? What is her father hiding?

One day, a mysterious stranger, Marlie, arrives on the island and gets acquainted with Gemma. Little does she know, this strange woman is about to completely change everything in Gemma’s life. Marlie’s arrival brings events that ultimately reveal Jonah’s secrets and his past. When Gemma finds out the truth, she decides to venture out on her own and figure out all the details of her mother and what she wants in her life, which leads to an exciting and unexpected ending. This story keeps you in suspense and eager for a resolution.

For fans of psychological thrillers, drama, and mystery, check out The Darkhouse from the teen room!

-Lauren

Fun Home: a family tragicomic by Alison Bechdel

Fun Home is a graphic novel memoir centered around Bechdel’s father and their sometimes close, sometimes strained relationship. Bechdel’s father, Bruce, was a passionate restorer of their Victorian home, a high school English teacher, a part-time funeral home director, and a man who tried to hide his true self from friends and family. His relationship with his wife and children was often strained, and when he commits suicide he and Alison are barely on speaking terms. While the subject is often bleak, Bechdel has a knack for finding both humor and beauty in difficult times.

Before picking up Fun Home, I had not read a graphic novel since middle school. While I enjoy a number of comic strips, I never understood the idea of an entire book told in comic form. Now I cannot imagine this story being told any other way. The imagery and languages work together to immerse the reader so deeply into Bechdel’s life that it’s impossible not to feel the complicated mix of emotions she herself felt for her father: adoration, disgust, trust, betrayal, love, and heartbreak. Woven throughout are comparisons of her family members to characters from literature especially Daedalus, the ancient Greek inventor, and his son Icarus, the boy who flew too close to the sun. In Fun Home, Alison and Bruce take turns as parent and child to one another, at times pushing each other to great heights, and at others falling into the depths. And much like the tales of Greek mythology, Fun Home is a tale that sticks with you long after the story has been told.

Fun Home has won a number of awards including the Eisner Award for Best Reality-Based Work, Lambda Literary Awards for Biography / Autobiography, and the Stonewall Book Awards: Israel Fishman Nonfiction Award. In 2013, it was adapted for the stage winning the 2015 Tony Award for Best Musical, Best Original Score, and others.  

- Portia Kapraun