The Diamond Girls by Jacqueline Wilson is one in a series of books written about the matriarchal Diamond family: mom has five children, all from different dads, and she loves them all ferociously but not always with the best of judgment or foresight or care, relying as she does on the power of tarot , fate as writ in the stars, and the kindness of strangers.  This series for young adults (of the female persuasion: I don’t think these books will appeal to boys and I rarely slot books by gender) is not easy to find in the United States and I only have been privy to the Diamond girls thanks to my local source to all things British (including arnica for wounds and fig jam on cheddar). I have a feeling many Americans might feel a bit uncomfortable with the Diamond mothering style, one that wastes little time on vegetables or quality time or twenty minutes of reading a night (Mama Diamond doesn’t even insist on school attendance, much less gives a hoot about homework).  What is the opposite of helicopter mothering? Whatever the term, Mama Diamond is it, but she loves her girls to bits and must have done something right, because as many mistakes as the girls make, they know how to handle a crisis (“new” housing that’s been ransacked by a gang) , feed a family of six (go down to the chippy), and settle down for the night (cuddle next to a sister).

What is wonderful about The Diamond Girls is the realism of the characters and of their relationships.  The adults are very, very far from perfect but nor are they monsters (except for one); the children act like kids, fighting with each other and longing to grow up and away, to become responsible, and yet very needy of their mother and of what little security she can provide; and the relationships between family members are rife with squabbles and disagreements but forced to live on together, they forge on through forgiveness, love, and understanding.

There are tremendous roadblocks on the Diamond girls’ to adulthood (poverty being the biggest one).  They handle their problems with surprising maturity at times, and with perfectly age-appropriate inadequacy at other times.  There is humor in this book along with serious situations of pregnancy, truancy, and abuse, making it a pleasurable and mind-broadening read to share between parents and children.