Lauren
An Occasionally Happy Family is a realistic, candid look at a family living in the aftermath of losing a loved one. Theo, the main character, is 13. He likes rock music and making comics. His sister Laura is 16, and while they use to be close, they bicker more than anything else. At the top of the story, their father decides to surprise them with a camping trip, which Laura quickly takes over since their father had not done any proper research. As the story continues, it reveals a family of three not quite connecting after the death of Laura and Theo’s mother about two years prior.
Theo was incredibly relatable. As the youngest in my family (until my mom remarried) I understood precisely what it is like to feel like there isn’t a group you really fit into, sometimes even within a family. Laura was enjoyable as well. She reads as a 16 year old and her passion and sense of right and wrong are compelling to read.
The largest strength of this book, however, is how it tackles grief. It does a great job of portraying how in the midst of grief there are moments that are happy and funny, moments that are frustrating and anger inducing, and moments that are just sad. Theo experiences all of these emotions and more. The story does a great job of showing how sometimes those emotions can sneak up on you and how, for some, the fear of forgetting pieces of lost loved ones is as difficult as the grief itself. As someone who lost their father, I related heavily to this topic and found myself crying, despite not expecting to.
I will admit, I found myself getting frustrated with his father, too. Both Theo and Laura try to express their emotions to their father, but still grieving himself, he does not always respond the best way (oftentimes he doesn’t even seem to notice they are trying to explain their emotions to him). Due to a reveal later in the story, Theo and Laura feel betrayed, and he also doesn’t seem to understand that until things hit a boiling point. He was frustrating to read about, but not necessarily unrealistic.
I think this can be a very important read for kids and their parents, particularly in the event of the death of a parent.
An Occasionally Happy Family is a realistic, candid look at a family living in the aftermath of losing a loved one. Theo, the main character, is 13. He likes rock music and making comics. His sister Laura is 16, and while they use to be close, they bicker more than anything else. At the top of the story, their father decides to surprise them with a camping trip, which Laura quickly takes over since their father had not done any proper research. As the story continues, it reveals a family of three not quite connecting after the death of Laura and Theo’s mother about two years prior.
Theo was incredibly relatable. As the youngest in my family (until my mom remarried) I understood precisely what it is like to feel like there isn’t a group you really fit into, sometimes even within a family. Laura was enjoyable as well. She reads as a 16 year old and her passion and sense of right and wrong are compelling to read.
The largest strength of this book, however, is how it tackles grief. It does a great job of portraying how in the midst of grief there are moments that are happy and funny, moments that are frustrating and anger inducing, and moments that are just sad. Theo experiences all of these emotions and more. The story does a great job of showing how sometimes those emotions can sneak up on you and how, for some, the fear of forgetting pieces of lost loved ones is as difficult as the grief itself. As someone who lost their father, I related heavily to this topic and found myself crying, despite not expecting to.
I will admit, I found myself getting frustrated with his father, too. Both Theo and Laura try to express their emotions to their father, but still grieving himself, he does not always respond the best way (oftentimes he doesn’t even seem to notice they are trying to explain their emotions to him). Due to a reveal later in the story, Theo and Laura feel betrayed, and he also doesn’t seem to understand that until things hit a boiling point. He was frustrating to read about, but not necessarily unrealistic.
I think this can be a very important read for kids and their parents, particularly in the event of the death of a parent.