Saints of the Household

Plot Summary

Jay and Max are brothers, born only 11 months apart, and are inseparable. The fact that their father is abusive towards them and their mother only brings them closer. The only thing that drives a wedge between them is when they hear a girl in trouble in the woods, and rush to protect her. They beat up the teen who was bothering her, unable to stop themselves even after they’d won the fight. The boy also happens to be the town’s sweetheart and sports star. Dealing with the reality of their violence is hard, and both have to go on their own journey to process it. Becoming social outcasts doesn’t help, as their violence is more visible than the one they attempted to stop. Both of them return to their Bribri roots to try and heal the damage that was done.

Critical Evaluation

Ari Tison uses two different styles to portray the perspectives of the two different main characters. Max, the artist, has his pieces written in poetry to reflect the art he creates, while Jay, the logical and analytical, has a series of short vignettes. Each style reflects the characters, their thoughts, and their methods of processing the trauma that they’ve both experienced. After attacking Luca, the star athlete of the town, they both go into a crisis now that they’ve seen themselves enact the same violence that they had experienced from their father. It didn’t matter that they acted to protect their cousin or that Luca himself was manipulative and violent; neither of them wanted to become their father, so they were broken after this event. 

Max processes this differently from his brother. He takes action, wanting to leave the abusive household as much as possible and process things through his painting. After this event, he begins a friendship with Melody, a girl in town, and the two develop a close relationship. He then starts to paint with more colors and more hope, actively looking for good in the world. The poetry that fills his narrative section is freeform, covering the page and sometimes landing into concrete shapes like his art. His sections come as a relief to the reader in that there are fewer words on the page, and the words themselves are filled with more positivity than those of his brother. These sections seem simpler, too, reflecting Jay’s frustration with Max not seeming to help or deal with their problems, but the poems contain a greater depth, even if they use fewer words. 

In contrast, Jay’s sections show his spiral into depression and fear as he maintains the duty to his mother and sacrifices his own needs for others. His vignettes are more narratively informative, explaining events and the trauma that both boys have experienced. But they also contain stories from their Bribri culture, and they contain sections with their grandfather as he works to pull Jay from his depression. Jay wants to remain inactive, but between his grandfather and cousin Nicole, they find ways to trick him into action so that he can move through the terrible things that have happened. 

Saints of the Household is well crafted, showing two different ways to process trauma and take accountability. Each of the boys is so different that it allows the reader to have a fuller picture of what it means to find peace again. It also allows the reader to see themselves more in the narrative, whether they are more like Jay or more like Max. The structure allows more space for empathy to be built while drawing clear distinctions between the two boys. Neither is presented as better, just as different.

Creative Use for a Library Program

I want to make poetry fun for others, mostly because I still don’t enjoy it and don’t fully understand it. I’ve read poetry, learned about poetry, and even taught poetry, and yet I still find myself avoiding it or not engaging fully with it. Saints of the Household is filled with poetry in each of Max’s sections, depicting the art he creates through words. Tison uses a variety of poetry styles, including concrete poetry, to depict concepts and thought processes. 

For a program, it would be fun to have a poetry slam or a poetry workshop. The poetry unit I taught at a high school was one of the students' favorites because they got to create their own poems. I actually found that most of them preferred writing poetry with more limits, like a limerick, or a sonnet, or a poem with specific rhyming/literary device requirements. There are so many different ways to host poetry workshops that it might work best to get input from the teens when developing it. Getting teens involved might even help promote the power and joy of poetry.

Potential Challenge Issues and Defense Preparation

Saints of the Household is a story about two boys surviving abuse and trying to break the cycle of violence. Because of this, there are violent scenes of abuse depicted along with violent scenes where the boys are the perpetrators. Unfortunately, this is a reality that teens, children, and even adults face. The best defense for this book is the text itself. This book does not condone violence, but instead shows what it looks like to learn to step away from violence and the allure of quick problem solving. When Max and Jay are violent, their guilt is put on display for the reader, regardless of their justifications. If anything, this book can prevent violence by showing those who’ve experienced it different ways of processing and working through those emotions.

Reason for Inclusion

There is a reason why this book has won so many awards. It is powerful but accessible. And it’s an important story to tell: two older teen boys learning to get in touch with their emotions and work through their violent tendencies and fears. The book is filled with good role models of men who are both strong and emotional. The book is also touching and beautifully written. While teens might not be jumping to the shelves to pick it up, those who do read it will find a book that is easy to read but difficult and fun to process. This book should be available for all those who’ve experienced abuse. It’s also a powerful representation for Indigenous people, showing how different Indigenous ways and looking to those who have come before can be healing and beneficial. I want this for my personal shelves, and think that it should be on library shelves just as much.