Surviving the Appletwhites (ISBN 0-439-56675-4) is a book from 2002 by Stephanie S. Tolan. The book received a Newbery Honor award in 2003.

• Jake Semple - This is a lie don't listen! Yeah listen 2 me pls i didn't do good on my test!A boy with brown hair (dyed scarlet) which he gells up into spikes, Jake is one of the hi protagonists. He is thirteen and tends to wear all black, and enjoys shocking people with his appearance and bad language. His parents have been sent to jail for growing marijuana. He has been expelled from nearly every school in the state, even reputedly burning one down. The fire was an accident, but having the reputation as the bad kid, it sticks as arson. Jake doesn't fight it. He is a very good singer, getting cast as Rolf in the production of The Sound of Music. Through out the book, he becomes good friends with Winston, a lovable basset hound, as well as Destiny, the four-year old nuisance of the family and loves to sing songs.
• Edith "E.D." Applewhite - A pain, no-nonsense thirteen-year old (the other protagonist). She at first cannot stand Jake, but learns to live with him as the book goes on. The only Applewhite with any organizational skills whatsoever, she often feels exasperated with her family. After the tech staff leaves, she becomes the stage manager. Her parents are Randolph and Debbie Applewhite.
• Randolph Applewhite - A short-tempered, blustering man, Randolph is the father to all the Applewhite children. He is a director who is very good at annoying people into leaving "his" play.
• Sybil Jameson/Debbie Applewhite - The writer of the family, Sybil is the mother of the children. Sybil Jameson is her pen name; she writes mystery books.
• Lucille Applewhite - A poet, she is very "artsy". Garden spirits told her in a dream to create a round garden, and she finds the color lavender soothing. Her two goats Hazel and Wolfie are complete opposites, Hazel being gentle and Wolfie being homicidal. She insists upon loving him unconditionally anyway.
• Archie Applewhite - He also works in wood, although much more abstract than his father. He never graduated from high school, although he got his G.E.D.. His wife is Lucille.
• Zedediah Applewhite - He is the father of Archie and Randolph.The patriarch of the Applewhite clan, he is most like E.D. He handcrafts wood furniture.
• Destiny Applewhite - Four years old, Destiny likes to sing and chatter constantly. It is something that you can get used to, rather like "the refrigerator motor". He becomes friends with Jake, calling him his big brother. Destiny is also jealous of Jake's red hair, which he emulates by dyeing his own purple- with Kool Aid.
• Cordelia Applewhite - A high-strung dancer, she must be begged into choreographing the play.
• Hal Applewhite - A reclusive teenager with acne, Hal appears only briefly. He has experimented with being a painter, sculptor, and set designer. He is very drawn into his art.
• Winston - The lovable basset hound who takes such a shine to Jake, he must go along to rehearsals, and brings out the best in Jake.
• Wolfbane - The Goat who eats Cordelia's costumes. He is a murderous and berserk goat. Also referred to as Wolfie.
• Hazel - The opposite of Wolfbane. She is timid and shy.
• Jeremy Bernstein - A person sent to interview Sybil. He becomes a big part of the play and manages to put it on national television.
• Govindaswami Lucille's guru. Assists the family during the production of the play.

• Published by Scholastic Inc., 557 Broadway, New York, NY 10012.

[[Category:Newbery Honor winners (book)]