The Totally Made-up Civil War Diary of Amanda MacLeish

For the child struggling to make sense of a changing home life as their parents separate and their family begins to live in two different worlds.

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About This Book

Reach for this book when your child is struggling to process the split between two homes or feels the heavy weight of a parent moving out. Ten-year-old Amanda is caught in the middle of her parents' trial separation, a transition she navigates by pouring her feelings into a fictional Civil War diary for a school project. Through the metaphor of a divided nation, the story explores the complex emotions of loyalty, grief, and the fear of a changing family dynamic. It is a gentle, realistic, and deeply relatable choice for middle-grade readers (ages 8-12) who need to know that their anger and sadness are normal responses to a family in flux.

Parents Divorcing Family & Siblings Sadness & Grief Writing & Storytelling Love & Family History Creativity & Imagination Single-Parent Home

What Parents Should Know

Sad ThemesModerate

Depicts the emotional strain of a parental separation and a father moving out.

Sensitive Topics

The book deals directly and realistically with divorce and separation. The approach is secular and grounded in contemporary middle-class reality. The resolution is realistic rather than 'happily ever after': the parents do not reconcile, but Amanda begins to find a new equilibrium.