If you listen to Tiffany moaning and groaning on at the beginning of The Wee Free Men about Wentworth, you might be led to believe that this book doesn't hold family in high esteem—but you would be wrong. Even though Tiffany doesn't always get along with her brother, the whole heart of the story revolves around how she'll go through any length to save him anyway—and how she always keeps her grandmother in mind while doing so.
We also see the importance of family in the Nac Mac Feegles. The pictsies group together in clans led by their mother, and these familial clans stick together no matter what. And of course, the Queen has no family—which prompts her to kidnap children from other families for her amusement. Pretty much everywhere you look in this book, family drives the action.
Questions About Family
- Does Tiffany's attitude toward Wentworth change over the course of the book?
- How does Tiffany's relationship to her grandmother operate?
- Why doesn't the Queen have a family of her own? Does she understand the value of family?
- What are pictsie families like? Are they different from human ones?
Chew on This
Throughout the journey, Tiffany's biggest lesson isn't about magic. It's about finding out that she does love her brother Wentworth, even though she doesn't think so at the beginning.
Grandma Aching's appearance at the end of the book shows that family love lives on forever—even after death.