Bookworms! Name me some successful recent adult fiction on the subject of children/childhood

[ZeroMinusZero]

Hey, I have recently finished writing a novel from the perspective of a young woman looking back at her childhood (mostly around the age of 11/12). The entire thing is about childhood and the darker aspects of it. I am on the verge of sending it off to literary agents and I thought it would be a good idea to mention in the letter that novels about childhood can sell pretty well (I know they already know this... but I thought it might be worth reminding them).

The only problem is that most of the examples of successful novels on this subject are quite old (things like Paddy Clarke Ha Ha Ha and Black Swan Green) and I know agents are all about 'what's hot right now' so I wondered if anyone knew of any books from the last couple of years that have sold half decently. Preferably good books, but the most important thing is that they were reasonably popular.

Any suggestions? Many thanks in advance! :)

I don't know if The Book Of Lost Things is the sort of book you're after, but it's a bloody good read about a young boy.

The Children's Book by AS Byatt - not sure that's what you're after??

Hedley I'm not sure but it looks like the sort of thing. bunny I had forgotten about the Children's Book. I'm not a big AS Byatt fan but I have read it and it sort of fits the bill. Thanks!

The book thief? About childhood and nazis. Not pretty. Is that what you're after?

Thanks for that maisie. Is the Book Thief for adults or for children? Wikipedia says it's for children/teens, though it looks like adults could read it too. I'm really only looking for books for adults, but about children.

I thought it was pretty firmly aimed at adults. I'm pretty sure it was in a Richard and judy type selection (but you'd have to check) too which would strengthen your case further. Good luck!

Just a thought - is your book definitely a book for adults or could it be marketed at older children/young adults?
Good luck anyway.

I guess the adult/teen distinction can be a bit meaningless anyway, so the Book Thief is probably a bit of both.

bunny thanks for the thought but it's definitely 100% for adults. For a start, it features child abuse. But also, a lot of the enjoyment comes from the fact it's a reminisce of childhood, which is really a thing for adults, I think. But if it ever gets published and the publishers want to try to get teens to read it too, I guess that's fine :)

The Book Thief is a crossover late teens/adults book.

The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas is told from the point of view of a child, and the horror is all the more effective due to being seen through the lens of innocence.

When God Was a Rabbit has sold well and is mainly about childhood. Room was a bestseller too. I'd look at the former as that is reminiscing about childhood.

The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake covers a lot of the narrator's childhood. I read it last year but I didn't enjoy it that much.