Upbeat, easily read portraits of six types of families-- nuclear, extended, adoptive (not really a parallel category), single-parent, blended, and foster families--lightened with dialogue and illustrative incidents (e.g., Jose's adjustment to sharing his room with an uncle). This serviceable, textbook-like introduction with cheerful low-budget illustrations and sturdy format is much less wide-ranging than Jenness's Families (1990), but is more easily read. What Is a Family? (a companion volume) uses the same characters to reiterate much of the same information, expanding somewhat on the concepts of conflict and sharing. Glossary; index. (Nonfiction. 5-9)
