This link is divided into three sections:

1. those incest books where the main character has a boyfriend
2. those where she does not have a boyfriend, and
3. those books which involve other types of sexual abuse.  

It seemed natural to categorize this way because of the impact incest has on peer heterosexual relationships; also, some readers may be interested in pursuing books in a similar tangential direction.  I indicated my personal preferences, so that those with limited time may more productively focus their reading efforts.

KEY: * = good example; ** = great example; *** = best example; -- = bad example

Adult and Professional Books

Articles and Community Resources

TEEN BOOKS, FATHER-DAUGHTER INCEST...boyfriend included

**Abby, My Love, by Hadley Irwin. New York : Atheneum, 1985 (One of the first books written on this subject; in love since junior high, Chip and Abby finally share Abby's secret; available at Cedar Rapids Public Library and Mt. Mercy College library.)

***Chinese Handcuffs, by Chris Crutcher. New York : Greenwillow Books, 1989 (Still troubled by his older brother's violent suicide, eighteen-year-old Dillon becomes deeply involved in the terrible secret of his friend Jennifer, who feels she can tell no one what her stepfather is doing to her; available at Kirkwood Community College library, Cedar Rapids Public Library, and Mt. Mercy College library.)

Don't Tell a Soul, by Barbara Cole. New York : Rosen Pub. Group, 1987 (Presents two points of view about sexual abuse, that of the child and that of the mother whose second husband is the abuser; available at Cedar Rapids Public Library.)

Hanged Man, by Francesca Lia Block. New York : HarperCollins, 1994 (Having stopped eating after the death of her father, seventeen-year-old Laurel feels herself losing control of her life in Los Angeles; available at Cedar Rapids Public Library.)

**Weeping Willow, by Ruth White. New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, Inc., 1992 (Despite all the problems she faces at home, Tiny Lambert's experiences in high school help her begin to feel good about herself --until the day that she is raped by her stepfather; available at Cedar Rapids Public Library and Mt. Mercy College library.)

When She Hollers, by Cynthia Voigt.  New York : Scholastic, 1994 (Tish, a teenager who has been enduring abuse from her adoptive stepfather since she was a small child, finally decides to stop him; available at Cedar Rapids Public Library)

TEEN BOOKS, FATHER-DAUGHTER INCEST...boyfriend excluded

Gillyflower, by Ellen Howard.  New York: Atheneum, 1986   (Sexually abused by her father and fearing for the safety of her younger sister, Gilly seeks the courage to tell someone what is happening; available at Cedar Rapids Public Library.)

*I Hadn't Meant to Tell You This, by Jacqueline Woodson. New York : Delacorte, 1999 (Marie, the only black girl in the eighth grade willing to befriend her white classmate Lena, discovers that Lena's father is doing horrible things to her in private; available at Cedar Rapids Public Library and Mt. Mercy College library.)

*Lena, by Jacqueline Woodson. New York : Delacorte Press, 1999 (Thirteen-year-old Lena and her younger sister Dion mourn the death of their mother as they hitchhike while running away from their abusive father; available at Cedar Rapids Public Library and Mt. Mercy College library.)

--Night Riding, by Katherine McConne Martin. New York : Knopf : Distributed by Random House, 1989 (Eleven-year-old Prin's secure world is turned upside down when she discovers that her new friend is being abused by the girl's own father; although not a good example of this type of book because it engages in victim-blaming, it's included for comparison purposes; available at Mt. Mercy College library.)

**A Solitary Secret, by Patricia Hermes.  San Diego : Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1985 (A fourteen-year-old girl living with her father describes becoming an incest victim; available at Cedar Rapids Public Library and Mt. Mercy College library.)

TEEN BOOKS, WITH OTHER TYPES OF SEXUAL ABUSE

A Different Kind of Love, by Michael Borich. New York : Holt, Rinehart and Winston, 1985 (A fourteen-year-old girl's life with her single mother is complicated when an overly affectionate uncle comes to visit; available at Cedar Rapids Public Library.)

Melusine: a Mystery, by Lynne Reid Banks. New York : Harper & Row, 1989 (A teenaged boy becomes embroiled in the mysterious life of a farm girl while vacationing in southern France; available at Mt. Mercy College library and Cedar Rapids Public Library.)

Sleeping Dogs, by Sonya Hartnett. Ringwood, Vic. ; New York : Viking, 1995 (A sadistic father of five children runs a trailer park in rural Australia; involves brother-sister incest and familial murder; available at Cedar Rapids Public Library.)

Those Other People, by Alice Childress. New York : Putnam, 1989 (Bigotry surfaces when a popular male teacher sexually assaults a fifteen-year-old girl and the only witnesses are a black boy and a gay student teacher; available at Cedar Rapids Public Library.)

Created by Robyn Clark-Bridges, Evening Supervisor at Mount Mercy College's Busse Library in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.  This project was completed for a reference class assignment in the University of Iowa School of Library and Information Science program. Last updated 5/11/05.  Send comments and suggestions to rclark@mtmercy.edu