Below is the complete list of Lois Lowry’s The Willoughbys books in order. For this series, the chronological reading order is the same as the order of publication.
Publication Order of The Willoughbys Books
About The Willoughbys
The Willoughbys series by Lois Lowry is a darkly humorous children’s fiction duology that turns traditional stories about orphans, cruel parents, and unlikely family reunions into delightfully absurd comedy. Beginning with The Willoughbys (2008) and continuing with The Willoughbys Return (2020), the novels parody the conventions of old-fashioned children’s literature while exploring family relationships, friendship, greed, and the difference between biological relatives and people who genuinely care for one another.
The original novel introduces the four Willoughby children: Timothy, twins Barnaby A and Barnaby B, and their younger sister, Jane. They live in an impressive house with parents who find their existence profoundly inconvenient. Mr. and Mrs. Willoughby are selfish, neglectful, and entirely uninterested in providing the affection or guidance their children need.
The children, however, are equally dissatisfied with their parents. Having developed a fascination with traditional stories featuring unfortunate orphans, they conclude that their lives might improve considerably without adult supervision. They therefore devise a plan to send their parents on an extended vacation, hoping the journey will permanently remove them from the household.
Their scheme produces unexpected consequences when the adults arrange for a nanny to supervise the children during their absence. Rather than becoming the oppressive figure they anticipate, Nanny proves to be a warm, sensible presence whose arrival begins transforming their peculiar household.
Meanwhile, the children’s adventures become entangled with those of Commander Melanoff, a wealthy candy manufacturer living in isolation following a devastating family tragedy. His circumstances introduce another unconventional family situation, gradually connecting characters who have experienced abandonment, loneliness, and loss.
Lowry deliberately draws upon familiar literary conventions associated with classic orphan stories. The neglected children, absent parents, mysterious benefactors, and remarkable coincidences resemble ingredients found in older works of children’s fiction. Yet she exaggerates these elements until their sentimentality becomes comic, exposing the absurdity of stories in which children must suffer extraordinary hardships before discovering happiness.
The sequel, The Willoughbys Return (2020), moves the narrative forward thirty years. The original children have grown up, and Timothy Willoughby now oversees the fortune associated with the Melanoff candy company. His son, Richie, enjoys considerable material comfort but struggles with loneliness.
Richie’s circumstances begin changing when he becomes acquainted with Winifred and Winston Poore, two children from a financially struggling neighbouring family. Although their backgrounds differ dramatically, their developing friendship challenges Richie’s assumptions about wealth, happiness, and companionship.
At the same time, the family’s prosperity faces an extraordinary threat when selling sweets becomes illegal. The situation creates financial uncertainty for a household whose comfortable existence depends upon the candy business.
An even stranger complication emerges when the original Willoughby parents, who have spent three decades frozen on a Swiss mountainside, thaw as rising temperatures melt the surrounding ice. Having survived without ageing, they return to a world that has changed almost beyond recognition.
Their reappearance introduces comic observations about modern society, including technological developments and shifting social expectations. Lowry also incorporates contemporary concerns such as climate change and economic inequality, treating them through the same exaggerated humour that characterises the original novel.
Although the sequel introduces a new generation, it preserves the first book’s interest in unconventional family structures. Richie’s friendship with the Poore children demonstrates that material privilege cannot replace companionship, while the returning grandparents provide an amusing reminder that age does not necessarily produce wisdom or kindness.
The series is especially distinctive for its playful narrative voice. Lowry uses deliberately exaggerated characters, improbable coincidences, and occasional explanatory asides to create the atmosphere of an old-fashioned tale told by a narrator who understands just how ridiculous the events have become.
In 2020, The Willoughbys was adapted into a Netflix animated film featuring an ensemble voice cast that included Will Forte, Maya Rudolph, Alessia Cara, Ricky Gervais, and Terry Crews. The adaptation retains the original story’s eccentric family premise while making substantial changes to its characters and events.
Unlike Lowry’s serious novels such as The Giver and Number the Stars, The Willoughbys approaches questions of belonging and family through satire rather than emotional drama. Its humour can be surprisingly dark, particularly in its treatment of parental neglect, but beneath the absurdity lies an affectionate belief that families are defined by kindness, responsibility, and genuine attachment rather than conventional expectations.