Thoughts
The thing that *The Boxcar Children* absolutely nailed was that as a kid fantasies of independence are valuable because of the agency and
the freedom. I think too many kids books recognize that freedom-from-parents is an important trope, but then they over-commit to it. They treat it as "how do we get the parents out of the way." And I think it hurts them. I think it is a weakness of e.g. Lockwood & co. or Fablehaven or whatever that the kids have living parents that they just don't care about. As a kid, the real dream is living in a boxcar in the backyard of someone who loves you.