--- See the section:
“Divorce: Young Children’s …”
were some works can apply here.
Abercrombie, Barbara.
Cat-man's daughter. New York, NY: Harper & Row, 1981.
154p. Thirteen-year-old Kate is
kidnapped by her grandmother in an attempt to make her divorced parents
consider Kate's welfare instead of their own.
Adler, Carole S. The silver coach. New York, NY: Coward, McCann & Geoghegan, 1979. 122p. Neither 12-year-old
Chris nor her 6-year-old sister look forward to spending the summer with their
unknown grandmother in a remote woodland cabin, but the summer holds many
surprises for them, not the least of which is a gradual acceptance of their
parents' divorce.
Adler, Carole S. Tuna fish Thanksgiving. New York, NY: Clarion Books, 1992.
165p. Thirteen-year-old Gilda's
parents are getting a divorce, and she seems to be the only one interested in
keeping the family together and looking out for her younger brother and sister.
Aiken, Irene. Daddy, come home. Illustrated by Luciana Peters. Wheaton, IL: Victor Books, 1977. 100p. Twelve-year-old Robyn struggles to find
God's strength to live with the possibility that her father might not come home
again to their family.
Alexander, Anne. To live a lie. Illustrated by Velma Ilsley.
New York, NY: Atheneum,
1975. 165p. Hurt by her parent's divorce and living with her father, Jennifer
changes her name and tells people her mother is dead.
Angell, Judie. What's best for you. New York, NY: Collier Books;
Toronto: Collier Macmillan
Canada; New York, NY: Maxwell Macmillan International Pub. Group,
1990. 187p. Three children try to adjust to a new life after their parents
divorce.
Angell, Judie. Yours truly. New York, NY: Orchard
Books, 1993. A novel. 184p.
Upset and angry that her mother has separated from her drug addict
father and may divorce him, Nicki spends her early teen years dropping in and
out of school and trying to find a life for herself.
Barnwell, Robinson. Shadow on the water. New York, NY: D. McKay Co., 1967.
216p. Thirteen-year-old Cammie,
the middle child, spends a fitful summer plagued by anxieties and family problems intensified by the knowledge that
her parents are on the verge of divorce.
Bauer, Marion Dane. A question of trust. New York, NY: Scholastic, 1994.
130p. After his mother leaves
the family, Brad involves his younger brother in a plan to get her to come home
and deals with his feelings of rejection by taking care of a newborn kitten.
Bawden, Nina. The runaway summer. Philadelphia, PA: Lippincott, 1969. 185p. Harmondsworth,
England: Puffin Books, 1972. 174p.
Already upset by her parents divorce, an eleven-year-old girl finds
matters just get worse when she helps hide a boy who immigrated to England
illegally.
Berger, Fredericka. Nuisance. New York, NY: W. Morrow, 1983. 229p. With the help of
some new friends, a teen-ager begins to change her self-image, that of a
nuisance to her divorced parents and stepfather.
Berson, Barbara. What's going to happen to me?. New York, NY: Scribner, 1976.
184p. A novel. When his parents separate, a teenage boy
shares the family duties reluctantly because he feels that his parents should
take care of him.
Betancourt, Jeanne. The rainbow kid. New York, NY: Avon Books, 1983.
108p. When ten-year-old Aviva
comes home from camp to find her parents have separated, she is afraid that instead
of being a two-family child, she'll be a two-bedroom, no-family child.
Birdseye, Tom. Tucker.
New York, NY: Holiday House,
1990. 112p. Eleven-year-old Tucker likes his life with his divorced father,
until the nine-year-old sister he has not seen in years moves back in with them
and claims that their mother wants them to become one family again.
Blume, Judy. It's not the end of the world. Scarsdale, NY: Bradbury Press, 1972.
169p. When her parents divorce,
a sixth grader struggles to understand that sometimes people are unable to live
together.
Bradbury, Bianca. The blue year. New York, NY: I.
Washburn, 1967. 165p. When her parents, each of whom has always
seemed perfect, get a divorce, Jill, in hopes of reuniting her family, learns
to face reality, to see the importance of communication to love, and to accept
the faults of normal people.
Bray, Marian Flandrick.
Summer by the sea. Elgin, IL:
Chariot Books, 1988. 151p. Sent by her father to spend the summer on
the California coast with her mother and stepfather, a reluctant Emily, with
her horse Khan, meets an unusual young man, rescues a creature from the sea,
and affirms her Christian beliefs.
Christian fiction with divorce.
Brooks, Jerome. Uncle Mike's boy. New York, NY: Harper & Row, 1973.
226p.
Buehler, Stephanie Jona.
There's no surf in Cleveland. New York, NY: Clarion Books, 1993.
136p. Having moved with his
mother to Los Angeles after his parents' divorce, ten-year-old Philip finds
that he hates California and does everything in his power to get back to his
relatives in Ohio.
Burns, Peggy. Nothing ever stays the same. Oxford, England; Batavia, IL: Lion Pub.,
1989, 1987. 128p. The divorce of her parents means a whole new
life for Sandie with a mother she has hardly seen since childhood.
Carlson, Dale Bick. Triple boy. New York, NY: Atheneum,
1977. 172p. Guilt over his brother's death and trauma over his parents'
divorce have created two additional personalities in Paul. His friend, a psychiatry resident, tries to
help him.
Carlson, Melody. Cherished wish. Minneapolis: Bethany House Publishers, 1998.
158p. Fourteen-year-old Allison
finds herself the center of a custody battle between her glamorous, but
neglectful, movie star mother and her long-absent artist father who wants her
to live with him in a small Oregon town.
Caseley, Judith. Losing Louisa. New York, NY: Farrar,
Straus and Giroux, 1999. 235p. Sixteen-year-old Lacey worries about the
effect of her parents' divorce on her family, especially her mother, and about
her older sister's sexual activity, which may have made her pregnant.
Christie, Amanda. 7th Heaven:
nobody's perfect. New York,
NY: Random House, c1997. 126p.
Christopher, Matt. The comeback challenge. Illustrated by Karen Meyer. Boston:
Little, Brown and Co., 1996.
151p. Mark, center for his
middle school's soccer team the Scorpions, must cope with his parents' divorce
and a teammate who holds a grudge against him.
Christopher, Matt. The fox steals home. Illustrated by Larry Johnson. Boston:
Little, Brown, 1978. 178p. Already troubled by his parent's divorce,
Bobby Canfield is further distressed when he learns that his father, who has
coached him in running bases, intends to move away.
Cleary, Beverly, & Amalia Martín-Gamero. Querido
señor Henshaw. Ilustrado por Paul
O. Zelinsky. New York, NY: Beech Tree
Paperback Books, 1997. 166p. In his letters to his favorite author,
ten-year-old Leigh reveals his problems in coping with his parents' divorce, being
the new boy in school, and generally finding his own place in the world.
Cleary, Beverly. Dear Mr.
Henshaw. Illustrated by Paul
O. Zelinsky. Santa Barbara, CA: ABC-Clio, 1987, 1983. 141p.
In his letters to his favorite author, ten-year-old Leigh reveals his
problems in coping with his parents' divorce, being the new boy in school, and
generally finding his own place in the world.
Cleary, Beverly. Strider. Illustrated by Paul O. Zelinsky.
New York, NY: Morrow Junior
Books, 1991. 179p. In a series of diary entries, Leigh tells
how he comes to terms with his parents' divorce, acquires joint custody of an
abandoned dog, and joins the track team at school.
Clements, Andrew. The Landry News. New York, NY: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, 1999. A fifth-grader starts a newspaper with an
editorial that prompts her burnt-out classroom teacher to really begin teaching
again, but he is later threatened with disciplinary action as a result.
Clewes, Dorothy. Missing from home. New York, NY: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1975.
150p. Two English children
living in France devise a scheme to bring their separated parents back
together.
Cole, Babette. The un-wedding. New York, NY: Knopf: Distributed by
Random House, 1997. As their parents
disagree more and more about everything, Demetrius and Paula Ogglebutt decide
that everyone would be happier if they "un-marry."
Conrad, Pam. Holding me here. New York, NY: Harper & Row, 1986. 184p. 1997.
Fourteen-year-old Robin tries to patch up the broken home of a battered
wife and in the process discovers how deeply she's been hurt by the divorce of
her own parents.
Cookson, Catherine. Lanky Jones. New York, NY: Lothrop,
Lee & Shepard, 1980. 158p. A 15-year-old boy and his divorced father
become stranded and are offered refuge by a kind family in their farm house
where they hear screams in the night, meet a threatening character, and
eventually encounter vicious sheep thieves.
Cooney, Caroline B. Tune in anytime. New York, NY: Delacorte Press, 1999.
When Sophie's father suddenly decides to divorce Sophie's mother and
marry her sister Marley's college roommate, Sophie feels like she is trapped in
an endless soap opera.
Corcoran, Barbara. Hey, that's my soul you're stomping on. New York, NY: Atheneum, 1978.
122p. While her parents discuss
possible divorce, sixteen-year-old Rachel spends the summer with her
grandparents and realizes everyone has problems, many more serious than hers.
Crawford, Charles P.
Split time. New York, NY: Harper & Row, 1987.
185p. Devastated by his parents'
separation and lonely after a move to a new home, fifteen-year-old Evan becomes
disastrously involved with a beautiful young woman whom he does not know is
emotionally disturbed.
Cruise, Robin. The top-secret journal of Fiona Claire
Jardin. San Diego, CA: Harcourt Brace, 1998. 153p.
At the suggestion of her therapist, ten-year-old Fiona begins to keep a
journal in which she records her fears, feelings, and gradual adjustment in the
year after her parents get a divorce.
Danziger, Paula. Amber Brown goes fourth. Illustrated by Tony Ross. New York, NY: Putnam's Sons, 1995.
101p. Entering fourth grade,
Amber faces some changes in her life as her best friend moves away and her
parents divorce.
Danziger, Paula. Amber Brown is feeling blue. Illustrated by Tony Ross. New York, NY: Putnam's, 1998. 130p. Nine-year-old Amber Brown faces further
complications because of her parents' divorce when her father plans to move
back from Paris and she must decide which parent she will be with on
Thanksgiving.
Danziger, Paula. Amber Brown sees red. Illustrated by Tony Ross. New York, NY: Putnam's, 1997. 116p. The year that she is in the fourth grade is
a difficult one for Amber, as she tries to deal with escalating telephone
fights between her divorced parents and her father's impending return to take
joint custody of her.
Danziger, Paula. Amber Brown wants extra credit. Illustrated by Tony Ross. New York, NY: G.P. Putnam's Sons,
1996. 120p. Unhappy over her parents' divorce and her mother's boyfriend Max,
nine-year-old Amber finds her schoolwork suffering.
Danziger, Paula. Forever
Amber Brown. Illustrated by Tony
Ross. New York, NY: Putnam's, 1996.
Danziger, Paula. I, Amber Brown. Illustrated by Tony Ross. New York, NY: Putnam's Sons, 1999.
Because her divorced parents share joint custody of her, nine-year-old
Amber suffers from lack of self-esteem and feels that she is a piece of
jointly-owned property.
Danziger, Paula. It's an aardvark-eat-turtle world. Boston, MA:
G. K. Hall, 1989, 1985.
155p. At fourteen, Rosie, her
mother, her best friend, and her best friend's father form a new family unit
and find it takes a lot of work to make a family in a world of changing
relationships.
Danziger, Paula. The divorce express. New York, NY: Delacorte Press, 1982.
148p. Boston, MA: G. K. Hall, 1982. 168p. Large print. Resentful of her parents' divorce, a young
girl tries to accommodate herself to their new lives and also find a place for
herself.
Danziger, Paula. You can't eat your chicken pox, Amber Brown. Illustrated by Tony Ross. New York, NY: Putnam's, 1995. 100p. At the end of third grade, Amber is excited
about her trip with her aunt to London and Paris, where she will see her father
again, but her plans change when she comes down with chicken pox.
Davitz, Lois Jean, & Joel R. Davitz.
20 tough questions teenagers ask
and 20 tough answers. New York,
NY: Paulist Press, 1998. 128p.
Including questions on divorce.
Dewey, Jennifer. Navajo summer. Honesdale, PA: Boyds
Mills Press, 1998. 143p. Upset at her parents' impending divorce,
twelve-year-old Jamie runs away from home to live with a Navajo family that she
befriended on earlier trips to the desert country with her father.
Dexter, Pat Egan. Arrow in the wind. Nashville:
T. Nelson, 1978. 160p.
As a result of his parents' separation and divorce, sixth-grader Benton
Arrow grows more independent and forms a friendship with the school bully.
Dickmeyer, Lowell A., & Martha Humphreys. A. J.
goes to Germany. Illustrated by Joe
Boddy. Minneapolis, MN: Dillon Press, 1983. 110p.
After his parents' divorce, A. J. travels to Germany with his soccer team
where he faces several disappointments, both with his father and his team.
Dix, Dorothyi.
Illustrated by James A. Swinnerton.
Fables of the elite. New York, NY: R.F. Fenno & Company, 1902.
261p. Animals dealing with
social problems, including: The bearess
whose indifference charmed, The donkey who learned to kick, The hen who
understood the game, The bearess who wanted a career, The elephantess who tried
to be cute, The bear who was happy though married, The lion who knew it all,
The donkey who admired his own perspicacity, The bears who solved the divorce
problem, The bear who found nothing in economy. The sketches originally appeared in the columns of The New York Journal.
Donnelly, Elfie. Tina into two won't go. Translated from the German by Anthea
Bell. New York, NY: Four Winds Press, 1983. 118p.
Eleven-year-old Tina, miserable about her parents' divorce, is surprised
and delighted when her father, whom she sees infrequently, takes her to
Teneriffe for Christmas, but her mother reports the incident to the police.
Duffey, Betsy. Coaster. New York, NY: Viking,
1994. 114p. While secretly building a roller coaster in the woods, twelve-year-old
Hart tries to come to terms with his parents' divorce and his mother's new
relationship with a television weatherman.
Dumond, Michael. Dad is leaving home. New York, NY: Rosen Pub. Group, 1987.
75p. A teenage brother and
sister take turns telling their own sides of the conflict in their family when
impending divorce forces them to take sides and work out their feelings for
their parents and each other.
Dunlop, Eileen. Castle Gryffe. (1st published title:
Websters' leap). London:
England; New York, NY: USA:
Viking, 1995. 173p. Eleven-year-old Jill, estranged from her older
brother since their parents' divorce, finds their relationship renewed when she
shares a strange adventure with him back in sixteenth-century Scotland.
Dunlop, Eileen. Websters' leap. New York, NY: Holiday House, 1995.
168p. Eleven-year-old Jill,
estranged from her older brother since their parents' divorce, finds their
relationship renewed when she shares a strange adventure with him back in
sixteenth-century Scotland.
Ellis, Ella Thorp. Swimming with the whales. New York, NY: H. Holt, 1995. 194p.
When it is proposed that he attend school in the United States, a
fourteen-year-old boy struggles with his parents' dissolving marriage and his
desire to remain near the whales that annually migrate to the waters near his
Patagonian home.
Ellis, Joyce K. The big split. Revised. Chicago: Moody Press, 1983 (1st 1979).
158p. Rod's newfound faith in
God helps heal the wounds of his parents' divorce.
Feiffer, Judy. Lovecrazy. New York, NY: Avon Books,
1983. 141p. Daughters of divorced parents try manipulating everyone's love
life for the better.
Ferris, Jean. Relative strangers. New York, NY: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 1993.
229p. Seventeen-year-old
Berkeley, who has never lived with her father, accepts his offer to accompany
him to Europe as a graduation present and finds herself struggling to accept
him as he really is and not as the ideal father she's always wanted.
Field, Mary Blitzer. All about divorce. Illustrated by Alex Forbes; foreword by Lawrence E. Shapiro.
King of Prussia, PA: Center for
Applied Psychology, c1992. 105p. Juvenile literature about children of
divorced parents.
Fine, Anne. Alias Madame Doubtfire. Boston:
Joy Street Books, 1988.
199p. Miranda's three children
thoroughly enjoy their huge, overdressed baby sitter/cleaning woman who is
actually their father in disguise, and they dread the day when their mother
discovers Madame Doubtfire is really her ex-husband.
Fine, Anne. Step by wicked step. Boston:
Little, Brown, 1996. 138p. Five schoolmates share the stories of their
parents' estrangements, divorces, and remarriages and the effects these events
have had on their lives.
Fisher, Lois I. Rachel Vellars, how could you? New York, NY: Dodd, Mead, 1984.
157p. Eleven-year-old Cory
changes schools when she goes to live with her father after her parents'
divorce, and has some adjustments to make in choosing and holding friendships.
Fisher, Lois I. Radio Robert. New York, NY: Dodd, Mead,
1985. 128p. When a sixth-grader begins regularly appearing on his divorced
father's radio show, his ad libs about his life affect his relationship with a
number of his friends.
Fitzhugh, Louise. Sport.
New York, NY: Delacorte Press,
1979. 218p. Eleven-year-old Sport lives happily with his absent-minded
father. His ruthless and wealthy mother
suddenly wants his custody.
Fleming, Alice Mulcahey.
Welcome to Grossville. New York, NY: Scribner, 1985.
104p. The summer after his
parents divorce and he has to move to a less affluent neighborhood, eleven-year-old
Michael copes with learning the true meaning of friendship and finding new
values in his rapidly changing life.
Franklin, Kristine L.
Lone wolf. Cambridge, MA: Candlewick Press, 1997.
220p. When a large family moves
into the house near where he and his father live in the woods, Perry's
friendship with the oldest girl helps him come to terms with his sister's death
and his parents' divorce.
Gardner, Richard A. The boys and girls book about divorce, with
an introduction for parents. Foreword
by Louise Bates Ames. Illustrated by
Alfred Lowenheim. New York, NY: Science House, 1970. 159p. (1983, 159p.; New York, NY: Putnam, 1978, 236p.)
Giff, Patricia Reilly.
Rat teeth. Illustrated by Leslie Morrill. New York, NY: Delacorte Press, 1984.
130p. Fifth-grader Cliffie feels
that nothing has been right in his life since his parents got their divorce and
his front teeth began growing out over his lower lip.
Gilbert, Robert N., & Mike Robins. Welcome
to our world: realities of high school
students. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press, 1998. 180p.
Many diverse aspects of high school life, including being a student
during the divorce of parents.
Gleitzman, Morris. Puppy fat. San Diego: Harcourt
Brace, 1995. 182p. Keith worries about his separated parents
and wants to improve their appearance so they will find new partners, but he
realizes that he cannot change them into different people.
Gold, Don. Letters to Tracy from Don Gold.
New York, NY: McKay, 1972. 142p. The author shares his thoughts on love, travel, sex, education,
sports, marriage, divorce, chocolate, and other matters with his
seventeen-year-old daughter.
Goldman, Katie. In the wings. New York, NY: Dial Press,
1982. 166p. Playing one of the leading roles in her school's production of
"The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie" helps Jessie forget about the
increasing rift between her parents.
Greene, Constance C.
Ask anybody. New York, NY: Viking Press, 1983.
150p. The daughter of divorced
parents befriends an eccentric new girl who is full of unexpected surprises.
Gregory, Diana. The fog burns off by 11 o'clock. Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley, 1981.
155p. Thirteen-year-old Dede
Applegate comes to terms with growing up and her parents' divorce during a
summer vacation spent with her father and his new girlfriend in California.
Grimbol, William R. Why should I care?: honest answers to the questions that trouble
teens. Minneapolis: Augsburg Pub. House, 1988. 143p.
A Christian point of view for teenagers on divorce, peer pressure,
suicide, unreliable or abusive parents, and death.
Haas, Dan. You can call me Worm. Boston:
Houghton Mifflin Co., 1997.
167p. Hoping to help their
troubled father, who has been sitting on his roof for several days, Worm and
his older brother set out from their mother's house on a trek across suburban
Virginia.
Hallstead, William F.
Tundra. New York, NY: Crown Publishers, 1984.
121p. Separated from his
fifteen-year-old owner, who already has problems with her divorced mother, a
Siberian Husky experiences life-threatening hardships, including being hit by a
car, shot at, and dognapped.
Hamilton, Dorothy. Amanda Fair. Illustrated by James Converse.
Scottdale, PA: Herald Press,
1981. 115p. Amanda suspects her divorced father is favoring her 14-year-old
sister when Connie begins turning up with expensive sweaters, a new watch, and
other items.
Hamilton, Dorothy. Mindy.
Illustrated by Edwin B. Wallace.
Scottdale, PA: Herald Press,
1973. 111p. Mindy strives to understand her position in her parents' lives
after their divorce and to adjust to the loneliness of a new way of life.
Hamm, Diane Johnston.
Second family. New York, NY: Scribner; Toronto: Maxwell Macmillan Canada; New York, NY: Maxwell Macmillan International, 1992. 118p. Mr. Torkleson, a
lonely senior citizen, shares his Seattle home with a recently divorced mother
and her son Rodney, who is having problems adjusting to the move from Los
Angeles.
Harris, Mark Jonathan.
With a wave of the wand. New York, NY: Lothrop, Lee & Shepard Books, 1980. 191p.
Almost-twelve-year-old Marlee tries to adjust to her parents' separation
and even tries magic to get them back together.
Harrison, Michael. It's my life. New York, NY: Holiday House,
1998. Martin is frightened when he is
kidnapped by a man who turns out to be his mother's boyfriend, but when the
plan to get money from Martin's father goes awry and things get even more
confusing, Martin finds an ally in the kidnapper's daughter.
Hart, Alison. Andie out of control. New York, NY: Random House, 1994.
124p. Fiction on boarding
schools, horses & divorce.
Hawkins, Laura. Valentine to a flying mouse. Boston:
Houghton Mifflin, 1993.
165p. During preparations for
the fourth grade Valentine party, Tammy meets the wheelchair-bound owner of the
local bookstore who helps her learn to cope with her parents' separation and to
believe in herself.
Haynes, Betsy. The Against Taffy Sinclair Club. Nashville:
T. Nelson, 1976. 125p. Embarrassing moments at school and home
(with divorce) show a young girl that everyone has faults, some that others
can't accept.
Hest, Amy. Where in the world is the perfect family? New York, NY: Clarion Books, 1989.
96p. Complications in
twelve-year-old Cornie's life, among them divorced parents and a new baby
half-sister, help Cornie and her best friend Megan find a theme for the school
photojournalism project.
Hewett, Lorri. Lives of our own. New York, NY: Dutton Children's Books, 1998.
214p. After her wealthy parents
divorce, Shawna returns with her father to the small Georgia town where he grew
up, and there she experiences new attitudes toward race relations, learns
something shocking about her father's past, and discovers a suprising link with
one of the "popular" white girls at school.
High, Linda Oatman. The summer of the great divide. New York, NY: Holiday House, 1996.
177p. Thirteen-year-old Wheezie
spends the summer on a farm where she deals with her learning-disabled cousin,
her uncle's death in Vietnam, and her parents' impending divorce.
Hines, Anna Grossnickle.
Boys are yucko! Illustrated by Patricia Henderson
Lincoln. New York, NY: Dutton, 1989. 167p. While hoping that
her divorced father will come from California to help celebrate her tenth
birthday with her mother and brother, Cassie reluctantly agrees to boy-crazy
Stacy's suggestion to have an additional party that includes boys and dancing.
Hobbs, Valerie. Charlie's run. New York, NY: Frances
Foster Books, 2000. Hoping to stop his
parents' impending separation and keep them from getting a divorce,
eleven-year-old Charlie runs away from their house in the California
countryside and finds a ride to the coast.
Holyoke, Nancy. Help!:
a girl's absolutely indispensable guide to divorce and stepfamilies. Illustrated by Scott Nash. Middleton, WI: Pleasant Company Publications, 1999. Answers letters from girls dealing with various aspects of
divorce, remarriage, and stepfamilies.
Homer, Larona C. Julie and the marigold boy. Moorestown, NJ: Middle Atlantic Press, 1997.
A boy and girl from different social backgrounds spend a summer vacation
together on an island off the New Jersey shore, dealing with issues such as
divorce and the challenge of getting along despite their differences.
Hunt, Gary, & Angela Hunt. Mom & Dad don't live
together anymore. San Bernardino,
CA: Here's Life Publishers, 1989. 127p.
Hurwitz, Johanna. DeDe takes charge!. Illustrated by Diane de Groat. New York, NY: Morrow, 1984. 121p. A year after her father has left home for
good, fifth-grader DeDe helps her mother cope with the realities of life after
divorce.
Irwin, Hadley. Bring to a boil and separate. New York, NY: Atheneum, 1980.
123p. Katie Warner's world
begins falling apart during her 13th summer when her parents, both
veterinarians, decide to divorce.
Jackson, Michael, & Jessica Jackson.
"Your father's not coming
home any more." New York,
NY: Richard Marek Publishers,
1981. 320p. Interviews with teenagers where they discuss how they coped with
their parents' divorces.
Johnson, Eric W. How to live through junior high school: a practical discussion of the middle and
junior high school years for parents, students, and teachers. Philadelphia: Lippincott, 1975.
286p. Discusses such teen-age
problems as grades, cliques, parents, divorce, motivation, anger, allowances,
chores, reading, lack of confidence, and many more.
Johnson, Eric W. People, love, sex, and families: answers to questions that preteens ask. Illustrations by David Wool. New York, NY: Walker, 1985. 122p. Answers 200 questions posed by preteens
about love, sex, reproduction, contraception, divorce, rape, child abuse, and
other topics.
Johnson, Linda Carlson.
Everything you need to know about
your parents' divorce. New York,
NY: Rosen Pub. Group, 1989. 64p.
1999. A guide for teenagers to
view divorce as the beginning of a different kind of family life, to understand
what happens to parents in their lives, and to understand the feelings of
everyone involved. Includes index.
Jones, Adrienne. Whistle down a dark lane: a novel. New York, NY: Harper
& Row, 1982. 274p. The summer of 1921 is a turning point for
Margery as the slow disintegration of her parents' marriage forces her mother,
older sister, and Margery to learn to manage on their own.
Jones, Cordelia. A cat called Camouflage. New York, NY: S. G. Phillips, 1971.
160p. A cat named Camouflage
helps Ruth face her parents' divorce and life in a new town.
Jones, Diana Wynne. Fire and hemlock. New York, NY: Greenwillow Books, 1985.
341p. At nineteen, Polly has two
sets of sometimes overlapping, sometimes conflicting memories, the real-life
ones of school days and her parents' divorce, and the heroic adventure ones
that began the day she accidentally gate-crashed a funeral and met the cellist
Thomas Lynn.
Jukes, Mavis. Getting even. New York, NY: Knopf,
1988. 163p. Finding herself the victim of an obnoxious classmate, ten-year-old
Maggie receives conflicting advice from her crazy friend Iris and both of her
parents, who are still at war two years after their divorce.
Kästner, Erich (1899-1974).
Lisa and Lottie. Illustrated by Victoria de Larrea; Translated by Cyrus Books. New York, NY: Avon Books, 1982 (1st printing 1969). 136p.
When they meet for the first time at summer camp, two ten-year-old girls
discover they are twins and agree to exchange identities in an attempt to reconciliate
their divorced parents.
Kehle, Mary. In the middle: what to do when
your parents divorce. Wheaton,
IL: H.
Shaw Publishers, 1987. 88p.
Kimball, Gayle. How to survive your parents' divorce: kids' advice to kids. Chico, CA:
Equality Press, 1994. 149p.
King, Larry, & Chaia King. Daddy day, daughter day. Illustrated by Wendy Christensen. Los Angeles, CA: Dove Kids: Distributed by
Penguin USA, c1997. Larry King and
daughter share daughter’s childhood experience of divorce from both points of
view.
Klass, David. Breakaway run. New York, NY: Dutton,
1987. 169p. Seventeen-year-old Tony, a soccer player whose parents are
divorcing, goes to Atami, Japan, to spend four-and-a-half months with a
Japanese family.
Klass, Sheila Solomon.
Next stop, nowhere. New York, NY: Scholastic, 1995. 181p. When her mother remarries, fourteen-year-old
Beth has to leave her familiar life in New York City and her new friend Josef
to go live with her artisan father in Vermont.
Klass, Sheila Solomon.
Page four. New York, NY: Scribner, 1986.
166p. During senior year when
his father leaves his "all-American" family, Dave's schoolwork,
sports, and relationships suffer to the point where he sometimes feels he'll
never recover.
Klein, Norma. Breaking up. New York, NY: Pantheon
Books, 1980. 207p. While she is visiting her father and
stepmother in California, 15-year-old Alison learns her mother is a lesbian.
Klein, Norma. Now that I know. Toronto;
New York, NY: Bantam Books,
1988. 165p. Thirteen-year-old Nina has grown accustomed to spending part of
the week with each of her divorced parents until she discovers the real reason
for the breakup of their marriage:
homosexuality.
Klein, Norma. Taking sides. New York, NY: Avon Books,
1974. 143p. Twelve-year-old Nell adjusts to life with her father and
five-year-old brother after her parents divorce.
Krementz, Jill. How it feels when parents divorce. New York, NY: Knopf: Distributed by
Random House, 1984. 115p. 1999.
Boys and girls, ages seven to sixteen, share their feelings about their
parents' divorce.
Kripke, Dorothy Karp, & Myer S. Kripke. Let's
talk about loving: about love, sex,
marriage, and family. Illustrated
by Laszlo Matulay. New York, NY: Ktav Pub. House, 1980. 77p.
Discusses, with a Jewish point of view, the different kinds of love--for
God, for other people, and, especially and more explicitly, between husbands
and wives.
Kropp, Paul. Moonkid and Liberty. Boston:
Joy Street Books, 1990.
167p. While Libby and Ian, who
live with their non-conformist father, experience the problems of starting over
at a new high school, their mother resurfaces in their lives and wants them to
come and live with her in California.
Krulik, Nancy E. Jungle2jungle. New York, NY: Disney
Press, 1997. 92p. A children’s novel. When a New York commodities broker arrives
in the Amazon jungle to finalize his divorce with his wife, he discovers that a
son he never knew he had is being raised by the local Indians.
LaFaye, A. The year of the Sawdust Man. New York, NY: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, 1998. 220p.
In 1934, when her mother leaves her and her father, eleven-year-old
Nissa tries to cope with the gossip of her small Louisiana town and the changes
in her own life.
Lapka, Fay S. The sea, the song, and the trumpetfish. Wheaton, IL: H. Shaw Publishers, 1991.
150p. Thirteen-year-old Sylvie,
shipped off to spend Christmas in Hawaii with an aunt because of her parents'
divorce, discovers friendship and God's care and grace through an unusual set
of circumstances.
Lawson, Julie. Danger game. Boston: Little, Brown and
Co., 1996. 213p. While spending the summer with her cousins
on Vancouver Island, sixteen-year-old Chelsea, driven to acts of pyromania in
reaction to her parents' divorce and years of sexual abuse, finally gains the
confidence to break her silence and confront her abuser.
Lehrman, Robert. Separations. New York, NY:
U.S.A.: Puffin Books, 1993. 212p.
When Kim's parents get a divorce, she must leave her father, her tennis
coach, and her suburban home to move into New York City. First published in the USA by Viking Penguin
in 1990.
LeMieux, Anne Connelly.
The TV guidance counselor. New York, NY: Tambourine Books, 1993.
239p. Sixteen-year-old Michael
tries to deal with his parents' ugly divorce by pursuing his new obsession with
photography, until an accident pushes him to the breaking point.
Levine, Betty K. The great Burgerland disaster. New York, NY: Atheneum, 1980.
104p. Mike's efforts to turn a
fast-food spot into a three-star underground gourmet restaurant have
ramifications that he and his divorced parents cannot foresee.
Levinson, Marilyn. A place to start. New York, NY: Atheneum, 1987.
187p. Fearing that the terrible
dissension in his family will result in his parents getting a divorce,
sixteen-year-old Grant turns to a sympathetic teacher and a new female friend
for help.
Levinson, Marilyn. No boys allowed. Mahwah, NJ:
Bridgewater Press, 1993.
124p. When her father leaves the
family to marry a younger woman, eleven-year-old Cassie Landauer feels she
can't trust any male, including her best friend, until her great-uncle helps
her put the changes in her life in perspective.
Levitin, Sonia. Evil encounter. New York, NY: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, 1996. 249p.
Michelle begins attending group sessions to help her deal with her
parents' divorce, but her increasingly intense involvement with the group's
charismatic leader leads to even bigger problems for both her and her mother.
Lisle, Janet Taylor.
The gold dust letters. New York, NY: Orchard Books, 1994.
116p. When nine-year-old Angela
and her friends begin investigating the letters she has received from her fairy
godmother, it helps take Angela's mind off her strained relationship with her
father.
Littleton, Mark R. Winter thunder. Eugene, OR:
Harvest House, 1992. 175p. Although she enjoys ice skating and
horseback riding with a moody boy who has come to stay nearby with his
grandparents, twelve-year-old Crista wonders what secrets he may be
hiding. Sequel to The Secret of Moonlight Mountain.
A Christian youth novel.
Love, Sandra. Crossing over. New York, NY: Lothrop,
Lee & Shepard Books, 1981.
155p. When Megan, thirteen, and
Kevin, ten, go to spend a school year with their divorced father, now a teacher
at a military school, they find life a bit different than with their easygoing
mother.
Ludvigson, Gary. Bedtime teaching tales for kids: a parent's storybook. Bedford, MA: Mills & Sanderson, 1989.
209p. A psychologist presents
eighteen bedtime stories dealing with such issues as handicaps, sibling
rivalry, divorce, honesty, and child abuse.
Brief introductory sections present the author's professional advice for
parents.
Mack, Tracy. Drawing lessons. New York, NY: Scholastic Press, 2000.
Twelve-year-old Rory begins to lose the passion for making art that she
shares with her father after she finds him kissing his female model and fears
for the safety of her parents' marriage.
Major, Kevin. Dear Bruce Springsteen: a novel. New York, NY: Delacorte
Press; Toronoto: Doubleday Canada, 1987. 134p.
In his letters to his favorite rock star, fourteen-year-old Terry
reveals his musical aspirations and his problems coping with his parents'
separation, communicating with girls, and finding his own place in the world.
Mann, Peggy. My dad lives in a downtown hotel. Illustrated by Richard Cuffari. Garden City, NY: Doubleday, 1973. 92p. Convinced that his parents' separation is
somehow his fault, a young boy tries to persuade his father to come home.
Martin, Ann M. Dawn on the coast. Milwaukee:
G. Stevens, 1994. 142p. Large print. Since her parents' divorce, Dawn lives in Connecticut with her
mother while her brother and father are in California, but after a week's
vacation in sunny, healthy southern California, Dawn isn't sure she wants to
return to the East Coast.
Martin, Ann M. Dawn's family feud. New York, NY: Scholastic, 1993.
145p. Dawn's little brother Jeff
is visiting the new Schafer-Spier family.
He is miserable because all his old friends have changed, and Mary
Anne's dad is trying way too hard to be Jeff's best friend. Dawn hopes that the family trip to Boston
will bring everyone together, but now the Schafers and the Spiers aren't
talking at all. Could this mean divorce
for the family?
Martin, Ann M. Welcome back, Stacey! Milwaukee, WI: G. Stevens, 1994.
144p. Large print. When her parents decide to get a divorce,
Stacey must choose between staying in New York with her father or moving back
to Stoneybrook with her mother.
Matteson, Richard, & Janis Long Harris. What
if I married the wrong person? Minneapolis, Minn.: Bethany House, c1996. 250p.
180p. Olivia spends her fourteenth
year trying to adjust to her parents' divorce, watching the changes her widowed
grandmother is going through, and discovering boys.
Mayle, Peter. Why are we getting a divorce? Illustrated by Arthur Robins. New York, NY: Harmony Books, 1988. 1st
published: Divorce can happen to the nicest people (1979). 28p. A handbook offering reassurance,
sympathy, and sound advice on how to cope with a family that is splitting
up. Juvenile literature.
Maynard, Christopher. Why are all families different?: questions children ask about families. New York, NY: DK Pub., 1997. Answers
questions about various aspects of family life, including divorce, aging, and
death.
Mazer, Harry. Guy Lenny. New York, NY: Delacorte
Press, 1971. 117p. A twelve-year-old boy begins to feel like a
ping-pong ball when his father decides to remarry and consequently plans to
send him to live with his mother, whom he has not seen for seven years.
Mazer, Norma Fox. E, my name is Emily. New York, NY: Scholastic, 1991.
167p. With the help of her best
friend, eighth grader Emily Boots begins to come to terms with her parents'
divorce.
Mazer, Norma Fox. I, Trissy. New York, NY: Delacorte
Press, 1971. 150p. A sixth-grade girl types out all the
frustrations she feels following the separation of her parents.
Mazer, Norma Fox. Taking Terri Mueller. New York, NY: Avon Books, 1981.
189p. Fourteen-year-old Terri
remembers only life with her father, but then she discovers that he kidnapped
her from her mother after a divorce and that her mother is still alive.
McBain, Ed. Me and Mr. Stenner. Philadelphia: Lippincott, 1976.
157p. When her mother remarries,
an eleven-year-old learns that she can love her stepfather and her real father
at the same time.
McCleery, Patsy R. Mattie monkey mouth. Nashville, TN: Scythe Publications, 1996.
81p.
McCusker, Paul. Behind the locked door. Colorado Springs, CO: Focus on the Family; Dallas, TX:
Distributed in the U.S.A. and
Canada by Word Books, 1993. 84p. Mark's curiosity leads him into trouble when
he stays with Mr. Whittaker, the owner of Whit's End, while his mother is in
Washington, DC, trying to work out her differences with Mark's father.
McEwan, Elaine K. Murphy's mansion. Elgin, IL:
Chariot Books, 1994. 109p. Between worrying about his mother's dates
and dealing with an unusual new girl in his sixth grade class, Josh tries to
learn more about the Murphy mansion and the old woman who lives there.
McEwan, Elaine K. Operation Garbage: a Josh McIntire book.
Elgin, IL: David C. Cook Pub.
Co., 1993. 90p. The success of his class project on
hazardous wastes and his involvement with a group of Christian friends helps
fifth-grader Josh McIntire deal with his feelings since his parents' divorce.
McEwan, Elaine K. Underground hero. Elgin, IL:
Chariot Books, 1993. 92p. Ten-year-old Josh learns the value of prayer
when dealing with his parents' divorce and when he gets in trouble for
investigating a house that may have been a stop on the Underground Railroad.
McGraw, Eloise Jarvis.
Hideaway. New York, NY: Collier Books;
London: Collier Macmillan, 1990
(1st 1983). 217p. When his father forgets to come for him
after his mother leaves on her wedding trip with her new husband,
twelve-year-old Jerry runs away from both of them to his grandparents' house,
only they don't live there anymore.
McGuire, Paula. Putting it together: teenagers talk about family breakup. Foreword by Andrea Marks. New York, NY: Delacorte Press, 1987.
167p. Presents interviews with
twenty young people who have experienced family breakup through divorce,
separation, or death.
Mead, Alice. Walking the edge. Morton Grove, IL: A. Whitman & Co., 1995.
190p. Frustrated by his life of
near-poverty and the unreliability of his divorced, drunken father,
thirteen-year-old Scott throws himself into a science project raising clams to
restock the bay of his Maine village.
Mendonca, Susan. Tough choices. New York, NY: Dial Press,
1980. 136p. Fourteen-year-old Crystal Borne has to choose between living with
her unreliable mother or living with her father and his new wife and daughter.
Moore, Emily. Something to count on. New York, NY: Dutton, 1980. 103p. Ten-year-old Lorraine's behavior problems at
school are aggravated by her family situation and eased by an understanding new
teacher.
Morgenroth, Barbara.
Will the real Renie Lake please
stand up? New York, NY: Atheneum, 1981. 164p. Following her
parents' divorce, Renie experiences criminal companions, arrest, a new home,
and mistreatment from her stepsister before she finally takes a stand against
more trouble.
Morris, Winifred. Dancer in the mirror. New York, NY: Atheneum, 1987.
158p. Emotionally devastated by
her parents' divorce, sixteen-year-old Carole is grateful for the friendship of
the self-confident, imaginative, and popular Marty but finds herself in a
terrible dilemma when Marty suggest a logical solution to their individual
problems.
Murphy, Claire Rudolf.
To the summit. New York, NY: Lodestar Books, 1992.
156p. Seventeen-year-old Sarah
hopes that accompanying her father on an expedition to climb Mount McKinley
will help to bridge the gap that has widened between them since her parents'
divorce.
Murray, Stephen, & Randy Smith.
Divorce recovery for teenagers. Grand Rapids, MI: Youth Specialties, 1990.
155p.
Napoli, Donna Jo. Changing tunes. New York, NY: Dutton Children's Books, 1998.
130p. Ten-year-old Eileen's life
changes drastically when her father separates from her mother and moves out,
taking with him the piano on which she is used to practicing every day.
Naylor, Phyllis Reynolds.
A triangle has four sides. Minneapolis, MN: Augsburg Pub. House, 1984.
111p. Thirteen short stories of
young people facing such problems as shyness, pregnancy, divorce, and jealousy.
Naylor, Phyllis Reynolds.
Being Danny's dog. New York, NY: Atheneum Books for Young Readers, 1995. 150p. Ten-year-old
T.R. and his twelve-year-old brother
Danny move to Rosemary Acres with their mother and find new friends as well as
a lot of community rules to follow.
Naylor, Phyllis Reynolds.
Getting along in your family. Drawings by Rick Cooley. Nashville:
Abingdon, 1976. 112p. Includes such topics as fair treatment,
loyalty, divorce, sharing tasks, and fighting.
Nelson, Carol. Dear Angie, your family's getting a divorce. Elgin, IL:
D. C. Cook Pub. Co., 1980. 119p.
Nightingale, Lois V.
My parents still love me even
though they're getting divorced: (an
interactive tale for children).
Yorba Linda, CA: Nightingale
Rose Publications, c1997. 128p.
Norris, Gunilla Brodde.
Lillan. Illustrated by Nancie Swanberg. New York, NY: Atheneum, 1968. 136p. During the year following her parents'
divorce, a sense of financial and emotional security gradually returns to a
ten-year-old Swedish girl as she learns to accept her mother's new beau.
Norris, Lori Peters.
D is for divorce. Deerfield Beach, FL: Health Communications, 1991. 37p.
Designed to help children ages 4-8.
Nystrom, Carolyn. Mike's lonely summer: a child's guide through divorce. Illustrated by Ann Baum. Belleville, MI: Lion Pub. Corp., 1986.
45p. Ten-year-old Mike
experiences feelings of confusion, guilt, fear, and anger when his parents get
a divorce.
Orenstein, Denise Gosliner.
When the wind blows hard. Illustrated by Linda Strauss Edwards. Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley, 1982.
102p. After her parents'
separation and a subsequent move to Klawock, Alaska, Shawn endures loneliness
until her friendship with Vesta and Vesta's grandfather brings new insight into
human relationships.
Orgel, Doris. Risking love. New York, NY: Dial Books,
1985. 185p. Eighteen-year-old Dinah Moskowitz uses therapy to confront her past
relationships, especially those with her divorced parents and with her
boyfriend, in order to move forward into the present.
Orlev, Uri. Lydia, queen of Palestine. Translated from the Hebrew by Hillel
Halkin. Lidyah, malkat Erets
Yi´sra'el. New York, NY: U.S.A.:
Puffin Books, 1995 (Boston:
Houghton Mifflin, 1993). 170p. Ten-year-old Lydia describes her childhood
escapades in pre-World War II Romania, her struggles to understand her parents'
divorce amid the chaos of the war, and her life on a kibbutz in Palestine. Based on the life of the Israeli poet
Arianna Haran. Originally published in
Israel in 1991 by Keter Publishing House.
Osborne, Mary Pope. Last one home. New York, NY: Dial Books,
1986. 148p. Twelve-year-old Bailey struggles with her feelings of loneliness
after her parents' divorce when her father plans to remarry and her brother
prepares to leave for the service.
Page, Carole Gift. The two worlds of Tracy Corbett. Minneapolis, MN: Augsburg Pub. House, 1980.
128p. Twelve-year-old Tracy
struggles to comes to terms with her parents' divorce, moving to a new
community, and the general difficulties of growing up.
Park, Barbara. Don't make me smile. New York, NY: Knopf; Distributed by
Random House, 1981. 114p. A young boy has trouble adjusting to his
parent's divorce.
Paulsen, Gary. Hatchet. New York, NY: Viking
Penguin, 1987. 195p. Santa Barbara, CA: Cornerstone Books, 1987.
222p. 1999. After a plane crash, thirteen-year-old Brian
spends fifty-four days in the wilderness, learning to survive with only the aid
of a hatchet given him by his mother, and learning also to survive his parents'
divorce.
Paulsen, Gary. Just for boys presents Hatchet. New York, NY: Bradbury Press, 1987.
142p. After a plane crash,
thirteen-year-old Brian spends fifty-four days in the wilderness, learning to
survive initially with only the aid of a hatchet given him by his mother, and
learning also to survive his parents' divorce.
Peck, Richard. Unfinished portrait of Jessica. New York, NY: Delacorte Press, 1991.
162p. A trip to Mexico to visit
the divorced vagabond father whom she idolizes cures fourteen-year-old Jessica
of certain illusions and helps her reconstruct her relationship with her
mother.
Pennebaker, Ruth. Conditions of love. New York, NY: Holt, 1999. 261p. During her freshman year at an elite high
school in Dallas, Sarah tries to come to terms with her own volatile emotions,
her changing relationship with her best friend, feelings about her mother, and
new insights into her dead father whom she idolized.
Perl, Lila. The telltale summer of Tina C. New York, NY: Seabury Press, 1975.
160p. Already unsure of herself,
thirteen-year-old Tina is thrown into deeper confusion when she learns that her
recently divorced parents both intend to remarry.
Petersen, P. J. I want answers and a parachute. Illustrated by Anna DiVito. New York, NY: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, 1993. 101p.
Matt finds his little brother's fears very annoying when they travel
from Tucson to San Francisco to visit their divorced father. Juvenile fiction.
Pevsner, Stella. A smart kid like you. New York, NY: Seabury Press, 1975.
216p. Just as Nina begins to
accept her parents' divorce, she discovers her father's new wife is to be her
seventh grade math teacher.
Pfeffer, Susan Beth.
Dear dad, love Laurie. Illustrated by the author. New York, NY: Scholastic, 1989. 120p. Laurie's letters to her divorced father
chronicle her year in the sixth grade and her efforts to enter her school's
program for the gifted and talented.
Pfeffer, Susan Beth.
Make believe. New York, NY: Holt, 1993. 135p. Carrie and Jill are best friends and their
families have always been close, so when Jill's parents separate, it not only
affects Carrie and Jill's friendship, but Carrie's feelings about her own
family as well.
Pfeffer, Susan Beth.
Starting with Melodie. New York, NY: Four Winds Press, 1982.
122p. Fifteen-year-old Elaine
becomes involved in her best friend's problems when Melodie's famous parents
decide to divorce and cannot agree on their children's custody.
Pfeffer, Susan Beth.
The pizza puzzle. New York, NY: Delacorte Press, 1996.
119p. Distracted by her worries
that her parents may get a divorce, Taryn gets in trouble with her
seventh-grade English teacher and is caught up in an increasingly complicated
series of lies.
Phillips, Carolyn E.
Our family got a divorce. Glendale, CA: GL Regal Books, 1979.
110p. A young boy relates how
his family coped with divorce with the help of Jesus.
Platt, Kin. Chloris and the creeps. Philadelphia: Chilton Book Co., 1973.
146p. After her parents' divorce
and father's suicide, an eleven-year-old causes misery in the family by her
hostile reaction to her mother's new husband.
Platt, Kin. Chloris and the freaks. Scarsdale, NY: Bradbury Press, 1975.
217p. A novel. Adjusting to her father's suicide and
mother's remarriage leads a young girl to astrology which she uses to sort her
family problems.
Platt, Kin. Chloris and the weirdos. Scarsdale, NY: Bradbury Press, 1978.
231p. A 13-year-old chronicles
life with a mixed-up sister, a twice-divorced mother, and a boyfriend who is an
ace skateboarder.
Platt, Kin. The boy who could make himself disappear. Philadelphia: Chilton, 1968. 216p. A twelve-year-old boy with a psychological
speech defect gradually develops a schizophrenic withdrawal after moving from
Los Angeles to live with his mother in New York following the divorce of his
harsh and detached parents.
Prokop, Michael S. Divorce happens to the nicest kids: a self help book for kids (3-15) and
adults. Illustrated by Dennis J.
McCullough. Warren, OH: Alegra House, 1986. 223p.
Quarles, Heather. A door near here. New York, NY: Delacorte Press, 1998.
231p. Four siblings struggle to
maintain a seminormal home life when their single mother's alcoholism becomes
debilitating.
Rabinowitz, Ann. Bethie.
New York, NY: Macmillan; London:
Collier Macmillan, 1989.
226p. Growing up in New York
City during World War II, Beth's friendship with Grace is strained as Grace
grows more and more despondent following her parents' divorce.
Ransom, Candice F. Third grade detectives. Mahwah, NJ:
Troll Associates, 1994. 128p. Amber is looking forward to a fun-filled
summer vacation, but when her beloved stuffed raccoon disappears and her two
best friends start acting funny, she discovers that things don't always turn
out the way you want. Divorce a
sub-theme.
Ransom, Candice F. Who needs third grade?. Mahwah, NJ:
Troll Associates, 1993.
126p. Eight-year-old Amber,
still adjusting to her parents' divorce, starts third grade and finds herself
torn with jealousy over the new girl Delight, who seems to be stealing away Amber's
best friend Mindy.
Robinson, Lee. Gateway. Boston: Houghton Mifflin
Co., 1996. 170p. As her parents proceed with a divorce and a
custody battle over her, thirteen-year-old Margaret views their activities with
humor and good sense.
Robson, Bonnie. My parents are divorced, too: teenagers talk about their experiences and
how they cope. New York, NY: Everest House, 1980. 208p.
(Toronto, Canada: Dorset Pub.,
1979, 211p.) Interviews with 28 young
people explore their understanding of their parents' divorce, what caused it,
their feeling about it, and how they coped with it.
Rodowsky, Colby F. Spindrift. New York, NY: Farrar,
Straus and Giroux, 2000. During the
summer after seventh grade, Cassie sees her close-knit family life in Bethany
Beach, Delaware, changing drastically as her older sister has a baby, reveals
the true nature of her husband, and announces the breakup of her marriage.
Roehm, Michelle. Girls
know best: advice for girls from girls on
just about everything / written by girls just like you! Introduction by Kerri Strug. Hillsboro, OR: Beyond Words Pub., 1997.
160p. (Milwaukee, WI: Gareth Stevens Publishing, 1999.) Thirty-eight different girls respond to
questions on specific issues including siblings, school, homework, parents,
divorce, stepfamilies, boys, race, religion, and appearance.
Rofes, Eric E., ed. The kids' book of divorce: by, for, and about kids. The Unit at Fayerweather Street School. New York, NY: Vintage Books, 1982, 1981.
122p. Twenty school children,
fourteen of whose parents are divorced, discuss the various aspects of divorce
and give advice on coping with the feelings, fears, and problems caused by
divorce and its aftermath. (Originally
published: Lexington, MA: Lewis Pub. Co., 1981).
Rosen, Michael J. The heart is big enough: five stories. Illustrated by Matthew Valiquette. San Diego, CA: Harcourt
Brace, 1997. 198p. In each story a child overcomes a difficult
situation such as a physical disability, parental divorce, or aging
grandparent.
Roy, Ron. Avalanche! Illustrated by Robert MacLean.
New York, NY: Dutton, 1981. 58p.
Upset over his parent's impending divorce, fourteen-year-old Scott goes
to visit his brother in Colorado where they are both nearly buried by an
avalanche.
Roy, Ron. The chimpanzee kid: a novel. New York, NY: Clarion
Books, 1985. 151p. Considered to be something of a misfit by
his classmates because of his interest in animal rights, Harold finds a friend
in the new boy in class who agrees to help him in his secret plan to free a
caged lab chimp.
Ruby, Lois. Pig-Out Inn. Boston: Houghton Mifflin,
1987. 171p. Spending a summer helping her mother run a truckstop diner,
fourteen-year-old Dovi becomes involved in a custody battle between divorced
parents who both want to hold on to their young son.
Sachs, Marilyn. At the sound of the beep. New York, NY: Dutton Children's Books, 1990.
154p. Distraught at the thought of
their parents' divorcing, a brother and sister run away from home and take up
residence in Golden Gate Park, where they encounter many homeless people and
hear there is a murderer loose among them.
Sallis, Susan. An open mind: a novel. New York,
NY: Harper & Row, 1978. 139p.
Torn by conflicting loyalties and emotions, a teen-age boy finally comes
to terms with his father's pending remarriage with the help of a spastic boy.
Sallis, Susan. Secret places of the stairs. New York, NY: Harper & Row, 1984.
151p. Seventeen-year-old Cass
misunderstands her divorced parents until she discovers the secret they've been
keeping from her: she has a severely
handicapped, terminally ill younger sister.
Sanderlin, Owenita. Tennis rebel. New York, NY: F. Watts, 1978.
95p. Trying to adjust to her
parents' divorce, a teenager moves to California with her mother and works her
way up the tennis circuit.
Schnur, Steven. The Koufax dilemma. Illustrated by Meryl Treatner. New York, NY: Morrow Junior Books, 1997.
189p. Angry when he cannot pitch
in the season's opening game because of Passover, Danny finally makes some
important decisions about loyalty to his divorced parents, his team, his
heritage, and himself.
Schraff, Anne E. Mister Fudge and Missy Moran. Logan, IA:
Perfection Learning, 1991.
127p. After years of living with
her father, eleven-year-old Missy Moran has to choose between her divorced
parents all over again.
Schraff, Anne E. North star. Philadelphia, PA: Macrae
Smith, 1972. 162p. Sixteen-year-old Tam finds her life and
outlook changing in many ways, especially when her parents decide to divorce.
Shalant, Phyllis. The great eye. New York, NY: Dutton
Children's Books, 1996. 160p. Writing poetry on a computer and working with
a labrador retriever guide dog candidate help twelve-year-old Lucy deal with
feelings of loss during her parents' separation.
Shoup, Barbara. Wish you were here. New York, NY: Hyperion Books for Children, 1994. 282p. A high school
senior tries to cope with the shifting patterns of his life while struggling to
come to terms with his parents' divorce, his best friend's sudden departure,
his mother's remarriage, and his father's nearly-fatal accident.
Shreve, Susan Richards.
The formerly great Alexander
Family. New York, NY: Tambourine Books, 1995. 91p.
Ten-year-old Liam is stunned to learn that his perfect family is about
to be ruined when his parents announce that they are getting a divorce.
Siebold, Jan. Rope burn. Morton Grove, Ill.:
A. Whitman, 1998. While working on a writing assignment at his
new school, Richard learns the meaning of various proverbs and how to express
his feelings about his parents' divorce.
Silsbee, Peter. The temptation of Kate. New York, NY: Bradbury Press, 1990.
155p. A demon fights for the
soul of a young girl troubled by her parents' divorce and by a recent move from
New York City to the country.
Skinner, Daphne. The Santa clause. New York, NY: Hyperion Paperbacks for Children, 1994. 80p. Based on the motion picture from Hollywood
Pictures, executive producers Richard Baker, Rick Messina, James Miller, based
on the screenplay written by Leo Benvenuti & Steve Rudnick. Children’s fictional novel including divorce.
Slepian, Jan. Getting on with it. New York, NY: Four Winds Press, 1985.
171p. A fourteen-year-old
resents her exile to her grandmother's for the summer while her parents arrange
their divorce, but her friendship with a neighbor and the secret they uncover
help her come to terms with her changing life.
Slote, Alfred. Love
and tennis. New York, NY: Macmillan, 1979. 163p. A 15-year-old
tennis player's experiences in the world of competitive sports help him come to
terms with his parents' divorce, his first romance, and his own ambition.
Slote, Alfred. Matt
Gargan's boy. Philadelphia: Lippincott, 1975. 159p. A major leaguer's
son feels threatened when a girl tries out for his baseball team and his
divorced mother becomes interested in the girl's father.
Smith, Robert Kimmel.
The squeaky wheel. New York, NY: Delacorte Press, 1990.
181p. Moving to a new
neighborhood following his parents' divorce, Mark has trouble making new
friends and coping with his father's absence.
Sommer, Karen. Satch and the Motormouth. Elgin, IL:
Chariot Books, 1987. 130p. Sixth-grader Satch, a child of divorced
parents, has to think again about his adversarial relationship with a girl in
his class when he finds out some startling news about her mother and his
father.
Southgate, Martha. Another way to dance. New York, NY: Delacorte Press, 1996.
179p. While spending the summer
at the School of American Ballet in New York City, fourteen-year-old Vicki
Harris must come to terms with the reality of her parents' divorce, her crush
on Mikhail Baryshnikov, and the impact of being an African American on her
future as a dancer.
Spencer, Anne J., & Robert B. Shapiro. Helping students cope with
divorce: a complete group education and
counseling program for grades 7-12.
West Nyack, NY: Center for
Applied Research in Education, 1993.
183p.
Sprague, Gary. My parents got a divorce. Elgin, IL:
Chariot Books, 1992. 125p. Christian students discuss how they learned
to deal with their parents' breakup.
Steiner, Barbara A. Tessa.
New York, NY: Morrow Junior
Books, 1988. 218p. Turning fourteen in 1946 brings several
unwanted changes for Tessa as her long-standing friendship with a black boy is
threatened and her parents' separation forces her to choose between living with
her mother in the city or staying with her father in the Arkansas woods and
hunting for Indian relics.
Stern, Zoe. Divorce is not the end of the world: Zoe's and Evan's coping guide for kids. Zoe and Evan Stern, with a little help from
their mom, Ellen Sue Stern.
Berkeley, CA: Tricycle Press,
1997. 88p. A teenage brother and sister whose parents are divorced discuss
topics relating to this situation, respond to letters from other children, and
offer tips based on their experience.
Includes insights from their mother.
Stewart, Gail. Teens and divorce. San Diego, Ca.: Lucent Books, 2000.
PPD: 0001.
Stinson, Kandi M. Adolescents, family, and friends: social support after parents' divorce or
remarriage. New York, NY: Praeger, 1991. 171p.
Stinson, Kathy. One year commencing. Saskatoon, Canada: Thistledown Press, c1997.
147p. As the daughter of
divorced parents, twelve-year-old Al faces the heartrending decision of whether
to live with her mother in western Canada or with her father in Toronto.
Stolz, Mary. Leap before you look. New York, NY: Harper & Row, 1972.
259p. In the attempt to redefine
her family's relationship after her parents' divorce, Jimmie realizes there are
no families without interconflicts.
Stone, Bruce. Half Nelson, full Nelson. New York, NY: Harper & Row, 1985.
218p. When his parents separate,
Nelson and his friend Heidi concoct a plan to kidnap Nelson's little sister and
bring his family back together.
Stowe, Cynthia. Home sweet home, good-bye. New York, NY: Scholastic, 1990.
121p. Reluctantly getting ready
to move to a new house with his mother, eleven-year-old Charlie gets caught in
a funny chain of events, culminating in the reuniting of his long-divorced
parents.
Strasser, Todd. Man of the house. Based on the screenplay by James Orr &
Jim Cruickshank; from a story by David
Peckinpah and Richard Jefferies.
Alternative title: Walt Disney
Pictures presents Man of the house. New
York, NY: Disney Press, 1995. 92p.
Sullivan, Maria. The parent/child manual on divorce. Illustrated by Chris Otsuki. New York, NY: Tor, 1988. 119p. Examines, through stories that offer
solutions, some of the problems involved in surviving a divorce and encourages
discussion among parents and children.
Swan-Jackson, Alys. When your parents split up: how to keep yourself together. Illustrated by Andy Cooke. New York, NY: Price Stern Sloan, 1997.
90p.
Swiger, Elinor Porter.
The law and you; a handbook for young people. Indianapolis, Bobbs-Merrill, 1973. 138p.
A brief history of our legal system accompanies discussions of the laws
most frequently affecting young people, such as those involving pets,
shoplifting, trespassing, truancy, divorce, and minibikes.
Talbert, Marc. Pillow of clouds. New York, NY: Dial Books for Young Readers, 1991. 204p. Angry at being
forced to decide which of his divorcing parents will get custody of him,
Chester is further burdened with guilty feelings about the parent he is leaving
behind.
Talbert, Marc. Thin ice. Boston: Little, brown,
1986. 207p. Ten-year-old Martin feels as though he's skating on thin ice in
all his relationships, but things really get bad when his teacher begins dating
his divorced mother.
Teens write through
it: essays from teens who have
triumphed over trouble. Compiled by
the editors at Fairview Press.
Minneapolis: Fairview Press,
1998. 207p. Essays by teens about how they dealt with such problems as drug
addiction, sexual abuse, disability, racism, divorce, anorexia, and depression.
Thomas, Jerry D. Danger on Seventh Street and other stories. Nampa, ID:
Pacific Press, 1998. 192p. A collection of stories to help the reader
deal with problems and make good decisions, in such areas as prayer, guilt,
divorce, cheating, drugs, and faith in the truth of the Bible.
Thomas, Jerry D. The midnight raccoon alarm. Nampa, ID:
Pacific Press, 1999. 192p. A collection of stories dealing with all
kinds of dilemmas and decisions that young people have to face, including
family relationships, fear, peer pressure, stealing, divorce, honesty, and
more.
Thomas, Rob. Rats saw God. New York, NY: Simon &
Schuster Books for Young Readers, 1996.
219p. In hopes of graduating,
Steve York agrees to complete a hundred-page writing assignment which helps him
to sort out his relationship with his famous astronaut father and the events
that changed him from promising student to troubled teen.
Turow, Rita. Daddy doesn't live here anymore.
Introd. by Seymour Pastron.
Matteson, IL: Greatlakes Living
Press, 1977. 196p.
Twaite, James A., Daniel Silitsky & Anya K. Luchow. Children
of divorce: adjustment, parental
conflict, custody, remarriage, and recommendations for clinicians. Northvale, NJ: Jason Aronson, 1998.
394p.
Van Leeuwen, Jean. Blue sky, butterfly. New York, NY: Dial Books for Young Readers, 1996. 125p. When her father
leaves, Twig feels isolated from her older brother and her mother as they all
try to cope with the change in their lives.
Velásquez, Gloria. Maya's divided world. Houston, TX: Piñata Books, 1995.
125p. When a seventeen-year-old
Mexican American girl starts getting into trouble as a reaction to her parents'
divorce, she is helped by a psychologist who has problems of her own.
Vigna, Judith. I live with Daddy. Morton Grove, IL: A. Whitman & Co.,
1997. Olivia, who lives with just her
dad since her parents got divorced, has chosen to write a book about her mom's
glamorous career as a TV reporter but manages to show that she loves both her
parents equally.
Voigt, Cynthia. Bad, badder, baddest. New York, NY: Scholastic Press, 1997.
266p. When fifth graders Mikey
and Margalo devise a plan to prevent Mikey's parents from getting a divorce,
the two friends find their scheme foiled by a new girl at school.
Walker, Cassandra. Stories from my life: Cassandra Walker talks to teens about
growing up. Edited by Elizabeth
Verdick. Minneapolis, MN: Free SpiritPub., 1997. 152p.
Stories from the author's life that deal with such topics related to
growing up as crushes, friends, family, divorce, and self-esteem.
Ward, Elaine M. Roots and wings. Illustrations by Ruth Lull. New York, NY: Friendship Press, 1983. A
collection of seven stories with Christian emphasis about modern children who have
to face problems such as divorce, separation, and illness.
Warren, Mary Phraner.
Eight bells for Wendy. Philadelphia: Westminster Press, 1968.
207p. The summer her parents are
supposed to get a divorce, Wendy goes to live with cousins who teach her
important lessons in the art of loving people and life.
Weeks, Sarah. Guy time. New York, NY:
HarperCollins, 2000. A humorous
account of thirteen-year-old Guy's dealing with the separation, and possible
divorce, of his eccentric parents and with his own new-found interest in girls.
Wersba, Barbara. Wonderful me. New York, NY: Harper
& Row, 1989. 156p. A novel.
Sixteen-year-old Heidi, a lonely child of divorced parents and a
confirmed dog-lover, becomes entranced by a young man until she realizes that,
for now, she must have her independence.
Weyland, Jack. Kimberly. Salt Lake City: Deseret
Book Co., 1992. 151p. Twenty-one-year-old Ben falls in love with
his singing partner Kimberly but finds their relationship strained by the
divorce that is tearing apart her Mormon family.
Weyn, Suzanne. Emma's turn. Illustrated by Joel Iskowitz.
Mahwah, NJ: Troll Associates,
1990. 91p. Eleven-year-old Emma slights her new friends in the suburbs
because she is excited about seeing her recently divorced father during her
ballet class's field trip to Manhattan to see "The Nutcracker," but
several disappointments help her put her new life in a better perspective.
Wiggins, VeraLee. LeeAnne, the disposable kid. Hagerstown, MD: Review and Herald Pub. Association, 1995. 154p.
When her irresponsible mother dumps her with her divorced father,
fifteen-year-old LeeAnne tries to accept his faith as a Seventh-Day Adventist,
his enduring love for her, and his hope to marry again.
Willey, Margaret. The Melinda zone. New York, NY: Bantam, 1993. 135p. While spending the summer with her cousin,
who is preoccupied with problems of her own, fifteen-year-old Melinda learns to
assert herself instead of always trying to please her divorced parents.
Williams, Ginny. Lost & found friend. Eugene, OR:
Harvest House, 1994. 222p. Kelly, Julie, and Greg pray for their friend
Brent who is losing interest in life following his parents' divorce.
Williams, Vera B. Scooter. New York, NY: Greenwillow
Books, 1993. 147p.
Willner-Pardo, Gina, & Sue Thomas. Jason
and the losers. New York, NY: Clarion Books, 1995. 120p.
Following his parents' divorce a fifth grader goes to live with his aunt
and uncle and attends a new school where he changes some attitudes about
friendship. 235p.
Wilson, Barbara Foley. Teenage marriage and divorce, United States,
1970-81. Hyattsville, MD: U.S. Dept. of Health and Human Services,
Public Health Service, National Center for Health Statistics; Washington, DC: GPO, 1985. 23p.
Wilson, Jacqueline. The suitcase kid. Illustrated by Ying-Hwa Hu. New York, NY: Delacorte, 1997. 140p. Ten-year-old Andrea tries to deal with her
parents' divorce and the presence of stepparents, stepsisters, and
stepbrothers. (1st published
in the UK by Doubleday, 1992).
Wilson, Nancy Hope. The reason for Janey. New York, NY: Macmillan; Toronto: Maxwell Macmillan Canada; New York, NY: Maxwell Macmillan International, 1994. 160p. Philly's life
changes greatly when, after her parents' divorce, her mother takes in Janey, a
retarded adult, to live with them.
Wittlinger, Ellen. Hard love. New York, NY: Simon &
Schuster Books for Young Readers, 1999.
After starting to publish a magazine in which he writes his secret feelings
about his lonely life and his parents' divorce, sixteen-year-old John meets an
unusual girl and begins to develop a healthier attitude.
Wittlinger, Ellen. Noticing paradise. Boston:
Houghton Mifflin, 1995.
184p. Sixteen-year-olds Noah,
who is upset over his parents' divorce, and Cat, who has always been sheltered
by her parents, find adventure and romance on a tour of the Galapagos Islands.
Wolf, Anthony E. “Why did you have to get a divorce? And when
can I get a hamster?” New York,
NY: Noonday Press, 1998. 238p.
Help for children of divorced parents.
Wolitzer, Hilma. Out of love. New York, NY: Farrar,
Straus and Giroux, 1976. 146p. Teddy Hecht must learn how to reconcile her
parent's divorce and must also learn to accept her new stepmother.
Wood, Phyllis Anderson.
Win me and you lose. Philadelphia: Westminster Press, 1977.
137p. As they help their
neighbor who is threatened by a deranged killer, a seventeen-year-old boy and
his recently divorced father become reacquainted.