Come Here, Come Home: An Analysis of the No-Name Story Pattern in Middle Grade Novels and How it Can Be Used to Amplify Family

Abstract

This paper discusses the no-name story pattern and how it functions in middle grade children’s novels. The pattern is characterized by the appearance of three stages in novels, the home stage, the away stage, and the second home stage. This paper focusses on three novels written in 2018, Boy Underwater, The House with Chicken Legs, and The Storm Keeper’s Island. It compares the novels to the no-name story pattern and discusses how this pattern emphasises the role of family. Furthermore, it tries to explain the role of non-traditional families in these novels and how this influences the perceptions of the reader.