book review on girl stolen

Book Review: Girl, Stolen by April Henry

Girl, Stolen by April Henry is a thriller told through the eyes of 16-year-old Cheyenne and her accidental kidnapper, Griffith. Cheyenne has been through tragedy before. Her mother was killed in the car accident that left her blind three years before. Griffith comes from a rough family. His father steals cars and sells their parts, and his mother left years before. The two are worlds apart, and yet, as they get to know each other they realize they may each be the other’s best chance of escaping their current situation.

The story goes along at a fast pace as the tension mounts. Cheyenne runs through scenarios on escaping to keep herself safe. Griffin sees the life he leads through her eyes, and it’s not a pretty sight. I admired Cheyenne’s tenacity, and I ached for the situation Griffin found himself stuck in. Henry expertly wove in details and added plot twists that kept me wondering how things would turn out. I enjoyed Girl, Stolen to the last page, and I recommend it to mother-daughter book clubs with girls aged 14 and up.

I bought a copy of this book to read for my book club.

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Submitting a book for review, write the editor, you are here:, girl, stolen.

Bestselling adult and teen thriller writer April Henry will not disappoint suspense fans with her latest nail-biter. Sixteen-year-old Cheyenne Wilder is sleeping in the back of her stepmom’s car when the vehicle is stolen. Then her kidnappers discover that she’s the daughter of a sportswear CEO. She knows they will not need her once they get their ransom, so she has to find a way to escape before she’s killed. While that premise is page-turning enough, readers will also wonder what will happen to Griffin, the young man who just thought he was stealing a car and is himself a sort of hostage of his abusive father.

Cheyenne is also struggling with pneumonia. She had been in the car while her stepmom picked up antibiotics and wanted the keys in the ignition for the heater. Though she’s been blind for three years, she still has to work to use all her other senses to figure out what her surroundings are like. When she’s tied up, she’s able to break a glass and keep a piece without her captors knowing, but she has no idea where she is or what way would lead to help.

From the moment he realizes there’s a passenger in the new Escalade he stole, Griffin knows his life will be changed forever. Suddenly, helping his father run his chop shop seems shameful rather than a way to make a living. Cheyenne can’t see him or his dingy house, but suddenly Griffin is seeing everything more clearly. He now realizes what the two rough men who work for his father are really like: they’re monsters who want to rape Cheyenne while waiting for her money.

Griffin’s dad hits him while demanding five million dollars from Cheyenne’s family. She and Griffin get to know each other through the tension-filled day and realize they are both without mothers, neither can read, and they have many similar feelings. That bond stirs hope in Cheyenne and a grim resolve in Griffin to break from his father’s downward spiral.

Guns, a dangerous escape attempt, and a criminal more dangerous than either Cheyenne or Griffin realized they were dealing with ratchet up the suspense right until the end. April Henry does a terrific job recounting the difficulties of Cheyenne’s blindness and Griffin’s life, and readers will find sympathy for both in this pulse-pounding thriller.

Reviewed by Amy Alessio on September 28, 2010

Girl, Stolen by April Henry

• Publication Date: March 13, 2012
• Genres: Mystery , Thriller , Young Adult 16+
• Paperback: 240 pages
• Publisher: Square Fish
• ISBN-10: 0312674759
• ISBN-13: 9780312674755

Please beware of fraud schemes by third parties falsely using our company and imprint names to solicit money and personal information. Learn More .

Book details

Girl, Stolen

Girl, Stolen (Volume 1)

Author: April Henry

Award Winner

• American Library Association Best Books for Young Adults
• American Library Association Quick Picks for Reluctant Young Adults
• American Library Association Quick Picks for Young Adults
• Oklahoma Sequoyah Young Adult Book Award Master List
• Maryland Black-Eyed Susan Award
• South Dakota YARP
• Oregon Book Award - Finalist
• ALA Best Books for Young Adults
• ALA Quick Picks for Reluctant Young Adults
• Maryland Black-Eyed Susan Award ML
• St. Louis Battle of the Books ML
• Missouri Truman Readers Award Master List
• NH Isinglass Award ML
• Nebraska Golden Sower Award Master List
• Oklahoma Sequoyah YA Book Award ML
• Iowa Teen Award Master List

1 A Thousand Things Wrong Cheyenne heard the car door open. She didn't move from where she lay curled on the backseat, her head resting on her bent arm. Despite the blanket that covered her, Cheyenne was shivering. She had begged her stepmom to leave the keys in the car so she could turn on the heat if she got cold. After some back-and-forthing, Danielle had agreed. That had only been five minutes ago, and here she was, already back. Maybe the doctor had phoned in the prescription and Danielle hadn't had to wait for it to be filled. Now the door slammed closed, the SUV rocking a little as weight settled into the driver's seat. The engine started. The emergency brake clunked as it was released. The car jerked into reverse. It was a thousand little things that told Cheyenne something was wrong. Even the way the door closed hadn't sounded right. Too fast and too hard for Danielle. The breathing was all wrong too, speeded up and harsh. Cheyenne sniffed. The smell of cigarettes. But Danielle didn't smoke and, as a nurse, couldn't stand anyone who did. There was no way the person driving the car was her stepmom. But why would someone else have gotten in the car? It was a Cadillac Escalade, so it wasn't likely someone had just gotten confused and thought it was their car. Then she remembered the keys. Somebody was stealing the car! And Cheyenne was pretty sure they didn't know she was in it. She froze, wondering how much the blanket covered her. She couldn't feel it on the top of her head. Cheyenne felt like a mouse she had seen in the kitchen one time when she turned on the light before school. Caught in the middle of the floor, it had stood stock-still. Like maybe she wouldn't notice it if it didn't move. But it hadn't worked for the mouse, and now it didn't work for Cheyenne. She must have made some small sound. Or maybe the thief had looked back to see if someone was following and then realized what the shape was underneath the blanket. A swear word. A guy's voice. She had already halfway known that it was a guy, the way she sometimes just knew things now. "Who the hell are you?" His voice broke in surprise. "What are you doing in Danielle's car?" Their words collided and tangled. Both of them speaking too fast, almost yelling. Sitting up, she scrambled back against the door, the one farthest from him. "Stop our car and get out!" "No!" he shouted back. The engine surged as he drove faster. Cheyenne realized she was being kidnapped. But she couldn't see the guy who was kidnapping her or where they were going. Because for the last three years, Cheyenne had been blind. Excerpted from Girl, Stolen by April Henry. Copyright © 2010 by April Henry. Published in 2010 by Henry Holt and Company. All rights reserved. This work is protected under copyright laws and reproduction is strictly prohibited. Permission to reproduce the material in any manner or medium must be secured from the Publisher.

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About This Book

Book details.

Cheyenne, a blind sixteen year-old, is kidnapped and held for ransom; she must outwit her captors to get out alive. Sixteen year-old Cheyenne Wilder is sleeping in the back of a car while her mom fills her prescription at the pharmacy. Before Cheyenne realizes what's happening, their car is being stolen--with her inside! Griffin hadn't meant to kidnap Cheyenne, all he needed to do was steal a car for the others. But once Griffin's dad finds out that Cheyenne's father is the president of a powerful corporation, everything changes—now there's a reason to keep her. What Griffin doesn't know is that Cheyenne is not only sick with pneumonia, she is blind. How will Cheyenne survive this nightmare, and if she does, at what price? Prepare yourself for a fast-paced and hard-edged thriller full of nail-biting suspense. This title has Common Core connections.

Imprint Publisher

Henry Holt and Co. (BYR)

9781429950039

Reading Guide

Reading Guides for Girl, Stolen

Reading Group Guide

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In the news.

“Be ready to be startled and inspired as the story reaches its climax. Readers will race to the end.” — The Strand Magazine “The pace is impeccable, becoming rapidly more frantic as Cheyenne realizes her chances for success are dwindling. In addition, the premise itself is powerfully realistic and compelling, with one small incident (Griffin's jumping into a car that had the keys in the ignition) snowballing into a nightmare series of events that will change everyone.” — BCCB “Henry ( Torched ) spins a captivating tale that shifts between Cheyenne's and Griffin's thoughts. Both are well-built, complex characters, trapped in their own ways by life's circumstances, which--paired with a relentlessly fast pace--ensures a tense read.” — Publishers Weekly “Readers will be hard-pressed to put this one down before its heart-pounding conclusion.” — School Library Journal “Spine-tingling…Reminiscent of Gail Giles' thrillers and tension-filled to the last sentence, Girl, Stolen will resonate with readers long after the cover is closed. With a thoughtful and eye-opening look at disabilities, it highlights Cheyenne and Griffin's resourcefulness and resiliency as they save themselves--and possibly each other.” — BookPage “Thoroughly exciting.” — Booklist “Grabs your attention with the first page you read...Each page holds new questions that are answered in the most unexpected ways.” — VOYA, 5Q review “Constantly interesting and suspenseful.” — Kirkus Reviews “Quick-paced tension makes this a great choice for young adults seeking a riveting mystery.” — Eugene Register Guard “A page-turner” — The Oregonian “I finished Girl, Stolen in a day...It is a very suspenseful book, obviously. What held my interest beyond that was the way the author wrote the victim's character--Cheyenne's blindness was tragic but rather than focus on that, the reader is going to concentrate on her persistence and ability to adapt. The most controversial part of the story becomes Cheyenne's relationship with Griffin--an unwilling captor to begin with, he finds in Cheyenne everything he lacks in the people around him: someone who is smart and is sympathetic to his situation despite his responsibility for her kidnapping...The biggest mystery is left unanswered, pushing the reader to come to his/her own conclusions – I liked the challenge.” — Rebecca Waesch, Joseph-Beth, Cincinnati, OH

About the Creators

Girl, Stolen: A Novel

By April Henry

Cheyenne, a blind sixteen year-old, is kidnapped and held for ransom; she must outwit her captors to get out alive.

Sixteen year-old Cheyenne Wilder is sleeping in the back of a car while her mom fills her prescription at the pharmacy. Before Cheyenne realizes what's happening, their car is being stolen--with her inside! Griffin hadn't meant to kidnap Cheyenne, all he needed to do was steal a car for the others.

But once Griffin's dad finds out that Cheyenne's father is the president of a powerful corporation, everything changes―now there's a reason to keep her. What Griffin doesn't know is that Cheyenne is not only sick with pneumonia, she is blind. How will Cheyenne survive this nightmare, and if she does, at what price?

Prepare yourself for a fast-paced and hard-edged thriller full of nail-biting suspense.

This title has Common Core connections.

Book Reviews (34)

Amazing, really wanted to see griffin and Cheyenne together. The way griffin cares for her..

I decided to read it because it seems cool and scary.

One of my favorite books. If you enjoyed this check out the sequel to this book called count her bones.

this was another great book from april henry. to be honest, it is a crazy thriller, and not extremely scary to read about. but if i was sick, blind, and being kidnapped, i would be scared out of my mind.

I give this book a five out of five stars. It was a great book that always left me wanting to keep reading. Some parts of the book were so good my heart would start to race and I just couldn't put the book down.

Really good book!

Just kidding. I'm writing to myself

This book is about a blind girl who begs her stepmom to let her stay in the car while the stepmom goes and gets the girls medicine. Then a random man comes in the car and goes off without knowing that the girl was there. It is a great book!!!!

I really want to read this book supper supper bad. I am super obsessed with all April henery books and unfortunately I have not gotten a chance to read it yet. Tell me what you guys thought of it and maybe I will read it. Fill you in when I do.

This is a really good book I recommend this for young adults. This book is a mystery book and I'm sure that you would like it here is some information about this book: Cheyenne realizes she is being kidnapped and Cheyenne can't see they guy who is kidnapping her or where they are going because for the last 3 years Cheyenne has been blind.

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Girl, Stolen by April Henry

          Alone. Scared. Defenseless. And Blind. Cheyenne Wilder had all these qualities when she was kidnapped.  The book Girl, Stolen by April Henry was astonishing due to its intensity and plot twists.  Cheyenne Wilder just wanted to be free from her kidnappers.  After all, she was blind and could not see them, and she needed her medications before she died.  The day started brutally, Cheyenne was diagnosed with ammonia and was out getting her prescription with her stepmom, who had made her leave her seeing - eye dog at home.  Cheyenne stayed in her warm car when she first heard the door open.  However, it was not her step mom.  Her kidnapper, Griffin, only wanted the car, she was just an unfortunate accident.  He makes the mistake of taking her back to his boss and makes Cheyenne face deadly challenges with her captors.  Once Griffin’s ‘co- workers’ figure out that Cheyenne is the daughter of a wealthy CEO her kidnapping goes from an accident to ransom, but everyone doubts they will let her go.  Leaving her fate, and the thought of her and Griffin being something in her hands.          This book had me on my toes the whole time.  To start, on page 8 when Cheyenne told Griffin he can let her go because she was blind, he kept driving. He had his chance to leave her on the road, but he didn’t.  The plot itself is so unpredictable.  Just when the reader thinks Griffin is on his ‘co workers’ side, he switches gears and sticks up for Cheyenne. Personally, I find it hard for there to be so many plot twists with a perfectly planned plot, but April Henry made it work.  For example, towards the end of the book Griffin sticks up for Cheyenne against TJ, one of Giffin’s dad’s employees, and then Cheyenne does something insane that not only hurts Griffin, but allows her to take control of her fate.  The resolution is truly a surprise, especially after how close Griffin and Cheyenne got.  All I can say is if one likes an intense ending, this is the right book for them.         I highly recommend this book to anyone that is interested in the complex thought of human emotions.  Griffin and Cheyenne play apart in April Henry’s twisted plot.  This book expresses human feelings, twisted psychology, and unplanned criminology, in an ingenious way.  Griffin and Cheyenne, Roy and Cheyenne, TJ and Jimbo, and TJ and Cheyenne all appear in significant events that makes the book what it is.  I can ensure a reader looking for a book that primarily focuses on an emotion so complicated it can drive people as far as life will let them go, that is this the book for them.  April Henry demonstrates the insanity of our emotions without turning her book into science fiction.  In other words, adventure and thrill seekers, hopeless romantics looking for a twisted Cinderella story, and an intense drama lover, would love this book.

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Wednesday 23 March 2011

Review: stolen girl.

Life Unscripted

~ living life as i see it… or don't.

Book Review: Girl, Stolen

28 Wednesday Feb 2018

Posted by blindbeader in Book reviews , Fiction

≈ 3 Comments

It’s been a while since I read a novel featuring a blind protagonist. What with the holidays and busy work schedule and a TBR list that would take years to complete if I did nothing but read. But I promised to keep book reviews coming on this blog, and a short novel like “Girl, Stolen” seemed like a perfect place to get back into the swing of things.

Girl, Stolen

By: april henry.

Sixteen-year-old Cheyenne Wilder is sleeping in the back of a car while her mom fills her prescription for antibiotics. Before Cheyenne realizes what’s happening, their car is being stolen. Griffin hadn’t meant to kidnap Cheyenne, but once his dad finds out that Cheyennes father is the president of a powerful corporation, everything changes – now there’s a reason to keep her. How will Cheyenne survive this nightmare? Because she’s not only sick with pneumonia – she’s also blind.

Cheyenne Wilder is a young woman who went blind in the same accident that killed her mother. The author does a generally admirable job of making her neither helpless and dependent nor otherworldly capable. She’s plucky and resourceful in some ways, frustrated and angry in others. There are far too many instances where Cheyenne fills the role of “helpful educator” – far too many to just be lulling Griffin into a false sense of security – but there are also poignant depictions of grief, frustration, and fear.

Cheyenne’s pneumonia seems to add an additional complication, until it’s dropped for reasons unknown (it doesn’t seem to really affect her mental capacity). As a blind reader, though, I’m glad the author chose to make Cheyenne emotionally and nuanced, with an additional “strike against” thrown in for good measure.

Some Plot Holes

It’s clear that April Henry did a lot of research on blind people. The skills many blind people learn – orientation and mobility, computer usage, life skills – are touched on with fairly good accuracy (though I wonder at the likelihood of a wealthy family sending a recently blinded teenage girl to train for these skills with middle-aged men). The stages of denial, grief, and frustration are well-drawn, but Griffin seemed too gullible and Cheyenne too resourceful given her weakened physical state. Also, the “bad guys” (with the exception of griffin) are drawn as big, angry and/or unintelligent, which made it hard for me to take them seriously. Also, to major corporations have presidents? I thought they had CEOS.

There’s not a lot of heavy stuff in this book. In fact, there’s a lot more levity than expected. This is both a strength and a weakness. Most characters – human and canine – don’t act particularly believably in many spots, even while there are very poignant accurate portrayals.

It’s not a bad way to spend a few hours with Cheyenne and Griffin. Things tie up a little too neatly, but I found myself flipping through the pages. A little more research and less “education” might have made this a better read. But this reader found this book at just the right time.

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3 thoughts on “book review: girl, stolen”.

February 28, 2018 at 10:10 pm

Hmm. Seems to me too many authors slip a blind character in to a manuscript to make a dull plot “interesting.” I sure like you using the word “”plucky”” in your review,though. One of my favorite words!

Like Liked by 1 person

March 22, 2018 at 9:17 pm

“Plucky” is SUCH a great word. It should be used more frequently!

January 7, 2023 at 10:31 pm

I will check this book out I think! Its not often I’ve read a book with a blind protag in it!

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Girl, Stolen

77 pages • 2 hours read

A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more. For select classroom titles, we also provide Teaching Guides with discussion and quiz questions to prompt student engagement.

Chapter Summaries & Analyses

Chapters 1-4

Chapters 5-10

Chapters 11-16

Chapters 17-22

Chapters 23-26

Chapters 27-28

Chapters 29-32

Character Analysis

Symbols & Motifs

Important Quotes

Essay Topics

Discussion Questions

Summary and Study Guide

Girl, Stolen (2010) is a young adult crime/thriller novel written by April Henry. It tells the story of Cheyenne Wilder , a blind 16-year-old girl who is abducted during a car theft, and of Griffin Sawyer , the teen who steals the car while unaware Cheyenne is inside it. The novel has received numerous awards since publication, including the Young Adult Library Services Association Best Fiction for Young Adults Award. The book was also selected as a Barnes & Noble Top Teen Pick. A sequel, titled Count All Her Bones , was published in 2018.

Plot Summary

Three years ago, at age 13, Cheyenne Wilder lost her mother and her sight in a car accident. She’s now 16 years old and ill with pneumonia; her stepmom, Danielle, has driven them to the shopping center to pick up medication. Choosing to stay in the backseat, Cheyenne is shocked when she realizes that the person getting into the driver’s seat and turning on the ignition is a stranger.

Griffin Sawyer, a teenage dropout, thinks he is stealing a car for his father, and freaks when he realizes Cheyenne is in the backseat. He drives out of the shopping center in a panic. When he pulls off the main road, Cheyenne attacks him, but he subdues her. She begs him to let her go, revealing that because she is blind, she will be unable to identify him.

Driving Cheyenne to his house in the woods, Griffin tells his father, Roy, what has happened, and they take her into the house and tie her up while deciding what to do next. Once Roy discovers that Cheyenne is the daughter of the president of Nike, he decides to ransom her.

As Roy leaves the house to contact the authorities, Griffin and Cheyenne get to know each other. He is curious about her blindness. He offers her food and water and, noticing that her health is deteriorating, finds some leftover medications for her to take.

Using her heightened senses and awareness, Cheyenne learns more about her kidnappers and her surroundings. Asking to use the restroom, she attempts an escape, but Griffin finds her hiding in the bathtub. Griffins shares his story with her. He believes that his mother left him after a meth lab explosion severely burned him some years ago. His father, who used to be a mechanic and made/sold meth, is violent and emotionally abusive. Roy and Roy’s friends, TJ and Jimbo , run a chop shop from the barn, which was why he was stealing cars.

While Griffin is making food and Cheyenne is resting, TJ attempts to rape her. Griffin stops the assault, and Cheyenne and Griffin grow closer. Griffin realizes that his father will not let Cheyenne go. Roy plans to orchestrate a ransom drop at three in the morning.

Cheyenne realizes that she must escape, and she lies awake until two in the morning, when she gets up and hits Griffin so he cannot stop her. She befriends Duke, the Sawyers’ guard dog, and uses him as a guide through the woods. She walks, tired and cold, for hours, and Duke runs off after a small animal. Griffin regains consciousness and finds her. He explains that he is going to help her. They continue walking toward the road, but Griffin falls and breaks his ankle. He cannot go on and begs Cheyenne to leave him and keep going.

TJ and Jimbo find Griffin in the woods, and the men argue with each other. The men reveal that Roy had killed Griffin’s mother years earlier and buried her body. Angry at his friend for calling him an idiot, TJ loses control and kills Jimbo. He leaves Griffin in the woods and runs off.

Cheyenne is getting close to the road when she hears a man’s voice telling her to freeze. The man tells her he is a policeman, who takes her to his car. In the car she realizes that the man is actually Roy, who disguised his voice. She grabs his gun and shoots him, although the injury is not serious, and then orders him out of the car. He tries to break through the window with a rock, but Cheyenne manages to drive a short way, find the cell phone that Roy dropped, and call the police. She keeps the doors locked and holds Roy off long enough for the police to find her.

Two weeks later, Cheyenne receives a phone call from Griffin, who has gone to live with his aunt. The police have apprehended Roy and TJ. Cheyenne’s family rescued the guard dog that helped her escape. Griffin asks whether he can call her again, and Cheyenne takes “a deep breath” and thinks “about her answer” (213).

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Girl, Stolen

Book details.

by April Henry

Sixteen–year-old Cheyenne Wilder is sleeping in the back of a car while her mom fills her prescription for antibiotics. Before Cheyenne realizes what's happening, their car is being stolen. Griffin hadn't meant to kidnap Cheyenne, but once his dad finds out that Cheyenne's father is the president of a powerful corporation, everything changes—now there's a reason to keep her. How will Cheyenne survive this nightmare? Because she's not only sick with pneumonia—she's also blind.

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Book Review: Girl, Stolen

Sixteen year-old Cheyenne Wilder is sleeping in the back of a car while her mom fills her prescription at the pharmacy. Before Cheyenne realizes what’s happening, their car is being stolen–with her inside! Griffin hadn’t meant to kidnap Cheyenne, all he needed to do was steal a car for the others. But once Griffin’s dad finds out that Cheyenne’s father is the president of a powerful corporation, everything changes—now there’s a reason to keep her. What Griffin doesn’t know is that Cheyenne is not only sick with pneumonia, she is blind. How will Cheyenne survive this nightmare, and if she does, at what price? –From Goodreads

First Thoughts: Cheyenne has managed to impress me in the first 5 pages. I’m in.

Book Details Title: Girl, Stolen Author: April Henry Publisher: Henry Holt and Co. Pages: Hardcover; 224 Source: Around the World Tours

Final Rating:  5 Keys to My Heart [+/-] Click to see Rating.

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STOLEN GIRL

by Marsha Forchuk Skrypuch ‧ RELEASE DATE: Feb. 26, 2019

A gripping exploration of war-induced trauma, identity, and transformation.

A 12-year-old Ukrainian girl arrives in Canada after World War II and struggles to make sense of her jumbled memories of battle-scarred Germany.

After five years in a displaced persons camp, Nadia Kravchuk arrives in Brantford, Ontario, accompanied by her adoptive mother, Marusia. When Nadia’s fellow classmates are convinced by her blonde hair and blue eyes that she is a Nazi, Marusia repeatedly assures Nadia that’s not the case. Eventually, Nadia safely relives her trauma in order to solve the puzzle of who she really is—not Nadia Kravchuk nor Gretchen Himmel, the German identity she assumed to survive, but someone else entirely…Larissa, the younger sister of Lida, the protagonist of Skrypuch’s Making Bombs for Hitler (2016). The author once again deftly sheds light on lesser-known aspects of the Ukrainian experience during WWII. Via flashbacks and nightmares, she gradually fleshes out Nadia’s painful history of abduction from her original family and subsequent placement in a German household. As further explained in the author’s note, this was part of the Lebensborn program, an effort to identify and mark blond and blue-eyed Ukrainian children as Aryans and force them to live with Nazi families in order to augment the building of a master race.

Pub Date: Feb. 26, 2019

ISBN: 978-1-338-23304-9

Page Count: 208

Publisher: Scholastic

Review Posted Online: Oct. 27, 2018

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2018

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CHARLOTTE'S WEB

by E.B. White illustrated by Garth Williams ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 15, 1952

The three way chats, in which they are joined by other animals, about web spinning, themselves, other humans—are as often...

A successful juvenile by the beloved New Yorker writer portrays a farm episode with an imaginative twist that makes a poignant, humorous story of a pig, a spider and a little girl.

Young Fern Arable pleads for the life of runt piglet Wilbur and gets her father to sell him to a neighbor, Mr. Zuckerman. Daily, Fern visits the Zuckermans to sit and muse with Wilbur and with the clever pen spider Charlotte, who befriends him when he is lonely and downcast. At the news of Wilbur's forthcoming slaughter, campaigning Charlotte, to the astonishment of people for miles around, spins words in her web. "Some Pig" comes first. Then "Terrific"—then "Radiant". The last word, when Wilbur is about to win a show prize and Charlotte is about to die from building her egg sac, is "Humble". And as the wonderful Charlotte does die, the sadness is tempered by the promise of more spiders next spring.

Pub Date: Oct. 15, 1952

ISBN: 978-0-06-026385-0

Page Count: 192

Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins

Review Posted Online: Sept. 14, 2011

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 1952

CHILDREN'S ANIMALS | CHILDREN'S SOCIAL THEMES

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by E.B. White & illustrated by Maggie Kneen

by E.B. White illustrated by Fred Marcellino

by E.B. White illustrated by Garth Williams

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STEALING HOME

by J. Torres ; illustrated by David Namisato ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 5, 2021

An emotional, much-needed historical graphic novel.

Sandy and his family, Japanese Canadians, experience hatred and incarceration during World War II.

Sandy Saito loves baseball, and the Vancouver Asahi ballplayers are his heroes. But when they lose in the 1941 semifinals, Sandy’s dad calls it a bad omen. Sure enough, in December 1941, Japan bombs Pearl Harbor in the U.S. The Canadian government begins to ban Japanese people from certain areas, moving them to “dormitories” and setting a curfew. Sandy wants to spend time with his father, but as a doctor, his dad is busy, often sneaking out past curfew to work. One night Papa is taken to “where he [is] needed most,” and the family is forced into an internment camp. Life at the camp isn’t easy, and even with some of the Asahi players playing ball there, it just isn’t the same. Trying to understand and find joy again, Sandy struggles with his new reality and relationship with his father. Based on the true experiences of Japanese Canadians and the Vancouver Asahi team, this graphic novel is a glimpse of how their lives were affected by WWII. The end is a bit abrupt, but it’s still an inspiring and sweet look at how baseball helped them through hardship. The illustrations are all in a sepia tone, giving it an antique look and conveying the emotions and struggles. None of the illustrations of their experiences are overly graphic, making it a good introduction to this upsetting topic for middle-grade readers.

Pub Date: Oct. 5, 2021

ISBN: 978-1-5253-0334-0

Page Count: 112

Publisher: Kids Can

Review Posted Online: June 28, 2021

Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2021

CHILDREN'S HISTORICAL FICTION | GENERAL GRAPHIC NOVELS & COMICS

More by J. Torres

by J. Torres ; illustrated by Sean Dove

by J. Torres ; illustrated by Aurélie Grand

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15 biggest changes a good girl's guide to murder makes to the book.

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A Good Girl's Guide To Murder Review: Netflix’s Crime Thriller Series Fails To Capture Genre’s Fun

Emma myers' new netflix show completely reverses her wednesday role, a good girl's guide to murder ending explained.

• The show setting changes the timeline to 2019 and 2024 from the book's 2012 and 2017, altering character dynamics and platforms used for investigation.
• Pippa's motivation shifts from loyalty to Sal in the book to a more self-centered approach in the show, changing character dynamics and story depth.
• Andie Bell's personality transformation in the show from a flawed character to a more sympathetic figure alters the underlying message of the story.

The adaptation of A Good Girl's Guide To Murder was finally released on Netflix a month after its distribution in the UK, and the book-to-screen changes are staggering. A Good Girl's Guide To Murder is a special case because the book has two versions —the US version, which takes place in Connecticut, and the UK version, which takes place in Little Kilton, just like the show. However, the adaptation's actual changes are far more significant, including eliminating characters and changing personalities—even the ending for A Good Girl's Guide To Murder somewhat differs from its book counterpart.

Some of these modifications are good, such as the removal of Stanley Forbes, but not all of them are. Additionally, many of the changes that are not so great are remedied by A Good Girl's Guide To Murder 's terrific cast of characters . While some fans might find the alterations controversial, the adaptation still serves as a reminder of why the book is so good to begin with . That said, there are certainly examples of more faithful literary retellings.

Netflix's newest thriller series features a twisting murder plot, but it doesn't transcend its genre or leave the audience wanting more.

15 The Show Takes Place In 2019 And 2024 Instead of 2012 And 2017

Instagram is the main platform pippa uses, not facebook.

Although it is not a very significant change, the show takes place in a timeline different from the book . On the show, Andie Bell's death occurs in 2019, and the story picks up in 2024, five years later. The book's timeline is seven years earlier—Andie Bell died in 2012, and the story was in 2017.

The timeline change is most noticeable during 17-year-old Pippa's investigation. In the show, she uses Instagram to look for clues on social media. However, in the book, Facebook is the platform everyone uses – primarily because of the time period.

14 The Show Teases What Happens To Andie At The Very Beginning

Andie bell stumbles through the night with a head injury.

The opening scene in ​​​​​​ A ​ Good Girl's Guide To Murder involves Andie on the night she dies. Andie walks down the street, and just before she walks into the forest, she turns her head, showing a nasty gash. However, in the book, Andie's head injury is undiscovered until Pippa learns the truth from Elliot.

The show took a bolder route by revealing Andie's head injury early on. This decision takes some of the mystery away, but it poses some new questions. It's not clear, for instance, why she is stumbling around with a severe head injury, nor how Andie Bell got injured in the first place.

13 Secret Older Guy Is Pippa's First Real Suspect

Jason bell and naomi ward make her list, but they are not significant.

In the book A Good Girl's Guide To Murder , Pippa has a significant list of suspects that she thoroughly investigates, beginning with Andie's father, Jason Bell. Naomi Ward is also one of Pippa's biggest suspects before she includes others, such as Nat Da Silva, Dan Sa Silva, Howie, and Secret Older Guy.

While the show provides a brief glimpse of Pippa's persons of interest list, Pippa's first real suspect is Secret Older Guy . Jason and Naomi appear on the list, but Pippa does not seriously consider anyone until she learns about Secret Older Guy. This paints both Secret Older Guy, and the other characters, in a very different light.

12 Pippa Meets Howie At The Calamity

Howie only appears briefly in the show, and it is at the calamity party.

In the book, the drug dealer, Howie, who partnered with Andie, has a much more significant role than he does in the show. Howie does not even appear at the calamity in the book. Pippa only learns of his existence at the party and meets him later.

In the show, Howie's drug den is conveniently in the same caves as the calamity, so Pippa immediately meets him. She asks him questions about Andie Bell, but other than the reveal of her burner phone and the kind of drugs Andie sold, Howie is less important to the overall narrative .

11 Pippa Learns The Truth About Andie's And Sal's Deaths Differently

A different sequence of events leads pippa to the killers.

In the book, Pippa only discovers a scratched-out phone number in Andie's diary. When she discovers Naomi's burner phone matches most of the scratched-out phone number, Pippa figures out the rest of the digits and determines that Elliot is Secret Older Guy. When Pippa goes to confront Elliot, she ropes in Ravi in case something were to go wrong. In the show, Pippa finds Secret Older Guy's phone number from the hotel guestbook, and when Naomi calls her from the same phone number, Pippa wastes no time and confronts Elliot without telling anyone . This difference creates a very different tone for the confrontation.

Once Elliot is arrested, Pippa cannot stop thinking about his genuine shock over Pippa believing he killed Barney, which leads Pippa to study her murder board one last time. Pippa figures out by herself that Max sexually assaulted Becca with drugs that he bought from Andie. In the show, Pippa realizes Elliot could not have killed Barney after finding a photo of him and his daughters in a different location on the same day Barney died. Pippa also learns about Becca's assault from Becca's old best friend, Jesse, which leads Pippa to discover the truth.

10 Sal's Alibi Is Hinted At In The First Episode

Naomi briefly tells pippa about sal's alibi in episode 1.

Sal's alibi being legitimate is a twist that occurs halfway through the book. There is no indication his alibi was real until Pippa figures it out by sneaking onto Naomi's laptop to find an incriminating photo on Max's Facebook profile. However, Naomi tries to confess to Pippa in the first episode that Sal's alibi is legitimate.

Although Elliot interrupts their conversation, Naomi still reveals enough to eliminate Sal's alibi's twist entirely. It is no longer a shock when Pippa discovers the truth in the fourth episode, removing a dramatic moment from the original story.

9 Pippa And Ravi Are Caught During Their Break-In At The Bell House

Pippa goes in alone and dan da silva sees pippa and ravi running away.

Pippa and Ravi's break-in at the Bell House also has different outcomes in the show and the book. In the book, Pip and Ravi sneak in together, and while Becca returns to the house, she leaves shortly after. However, Pippa breaks in alone in the show, while Ravi decides to be on the lookout.

When he notices Becca coming back, Ravi bolts upstairs, and they hide in the closet. When they attempt to flee, they realize the police officer, Dan Da Silva, is with Becca in the house. Pippa and Ravi bolt toward Pippa's car, but not before Dan discovers them.

8 The Hotel Scene Is More Exciting On The Show

Pippa and ravi pull off a mischievous scheme and grow closer.

Pippa and Ravi's hotel visit is a more positive change in the show . In the book, they find an elderly lady with Alzheimer's at the desk, leading to another dead end. However, Pippa connects the dots between Max's picture of Andie and the hotel floor.

The show included Pippa's discovery and made the outing more exciting. The hotel manager does not allow Pip and Ravi to see the guestbook, so they create a diversion to steal it. They manage to escape, but Pip and Ravi have an excellent time together and grow closer because of it.

7 Nat Da Silva Is One Of Andie Bell's Best Friends

Nat and andie were bitter enemies in the book.

One of the most shocking changes in A Good Girl's Guide To Murder is Nat Da Silva's role. In the book, Nat and Andie are bitter enemies . Andie felt threatened by Nat, so she ruined Nat's life by sending a topless video of Nat to the whole school, completely humiliating her.

In the show, Nat is one of Andie's best friends, and although they fight, they genuinely love each other. Nat's topless video still exists, but it is unknown who leaked the footage. Pip and Ravi briefly suspect Andie, but Nat shoots down the theory – a major difference between the stories.

6 Andie and Sal's Relationship Is Much More Serious On The Show

Andie and sal are in love and devoted to each other.

Andie Bell and Sal Singh's relationship was extremely superficial in the book. It is quite clear they only dated each other because they found each other attractive. Andie even cheated on Sal. The show's narrative, by contrast, reveals that Andie and Sal were secretly in love and planned to run away together.

Sal is just as furious about Andie selling drugs, but given that Andie did it to make money for their escape, Sal forgives her. Andie never cheated on Sal; their love was genuine. This narrative decision certainly makes Andie and Sal's outcome much more tragic.

Emma Myers is starring in a new mystery show on Netflix, and the character she portrays is the complete opposite of her Wednesday role.

5 Pippa Fitz-Amobi's Motivation For Solving Andie Bell's Case Is Different

Pippa's motivation is more self-centered in the show.

One of the more disappointing changes in the adaptation involves Pippa's motivation for investigating Andie Bell's death. In the book, her motivation is straightforward— Pippa genuinely believes in Sal . Sal was her hero who saved her from bullies and went out of his way to be a kind and good person. She refused to believe that Sal would brutally murder Andie Bell and wanted to clear his name. However, in the show, Pippa's motivation is much more self-centered. Just before Andie disappears, Pippa notices Andie attempting to hide.

Changing Pip's motivation diminishes Sal's importance and makes Pippa more selfish.

Sal comes along and asks Pippa where Andie went, and Pippa tells him. When Andie ends up dead, and the police believe Sal killed her, Pippa carries the guilt for the next five years . She believes Andie might still be alive if she had not told Sal where Andie went. Pippa did not realize that Andie told her to be quiet as a whole; she was not necessarily hiding from Sal. This narrative decision might make Pippa more complex, but her book counterpart is already compelling. Changing Pip's motivation diminishes Sal's importance and makes Pippa more selfish.

4 The Context For Pippa's Extended Project Qualification Sidelines Ravi In The Show

Diminishing pippa's epq and her final presentation sidelines ravi's importance.

The context for Pippa's extended project qualification differs in the book and the show. In the book, Pippa's teacher warns her to stay away from the Bell and Singh families, but in the show, her mother, Leanne, orders Pippa to stay away from them. As time progresses, Leanne disapproves of where Pippa's EPQ is going and pushes her to change the topic altogether. The narrative skips over Pippa's EPQ presentation, possibly suggesting that Pippa did change her EPQ after all. However, this change hurts Ravi's character .

The EPQ presentation is essential, serving as a reminder that, despite the messy outcome of Andie's death, Sal was truly the only innocent party . Andie was not a good person; Max was a rapist; Elliot and Becca were killers. The town of Little Kilton accused Sal of a heinous crime and dragged his name through the mud, but he did nothing wrong. Pippa also gives Ravi the stage to speak about his brother, which he has wanted to do since Sal died. Eliminating this scene in the show effectively diminishes Ravi and Sal's bond and Ravi's character arc.

3 Pippa's Investigation On The Show Minimizes Her Intelligence

Pippa's investigation in the books is more thorough and assertive.

Most of Pippa's discoveries regarding the Andie Bell case fall into her lap in the show. Naomi directs Pippa to Sal's alibi; Dan Da Silva shows Pippa Sal's police interview; Ravi catfishes Emma; Jesse tells Pippa about Becca's assault. Pippa's big breaks in the case happen to her; she does not search for them.

In the book, her investigation is far more thorough . Pippa chases every reporter, lead, and connection. She is clever and thoughtful; she knows how not to get caught. While Pippa is still phenomenal, it is disappointing that the adaptation made her more of a passive character.

2 Max Hastings Gets Away With His Crime (For Now)

He gets immediately arrested for sexual assault in the book.

The final episode of A Good Girl's Guide to Murder shows that Max Hastings does not get arrested for his crimes, although he is charged with four counts of sexual assault and two counts of rape in the book. It seems that he gets away with it in the show . However, Pippa does not plan to let the issue go.

Pippa promises to find all of Max's victims and ensure they get the justice they deserve. Max Hastings might have gotten away for now, but that could very much change if the show is renewed for future seasons.

1 Andie Bell's Entire Personality Is Different

Andie bell's personality change defeats the message of the story.

Perhaps the biggest change from book to screen in A Good Girl's Guide To Murder is Andie Bell's personality. In the book, Andie is not a good person. She treats her friends terribly, and she humiliates anybody who threatens her. Andie lies, cheats, and steals— she does everything she wants simply because she can and not for any deeper reason. The show portrays a different Andie Bell—she has devoted friends, and her relationship with Becca is good until the end. Andie only sold drugs because she felt like she had to; she was desperate to get away from her father's abuse.

Although Andie and Sal's newfound romance makes the situation more tragic, the message of A Good Girl's Guide To Murder is lost.

Once Andie started dating Sal, she broke things off with Elliot Ward. Andie is still not perfect, but the show portrays her as decent. Changing Andie Bell's personality defeats the purpose of the book: Andie being a horrible person does not mean she deserves to die, and her death does excuse the pain and damage she caused. If the victim is decent, there would not be a significant point to the story. Unfortunately, the show did change Andie. Although Andie and Sal's newfound romance makes the situation more tragic, the message of A Good Girl's Guide To Murder is lost.

A Good Girl's Guide to Murder (2024)

Pip Fitz-Amobi, a determined young investigator, is set on uncovering the truth behind schoolgirl Andie Bell's murder five years prior. Sal Singh, Andie's boyfriend, confessed before his own death, but Pip doesn't believe he's guilty. Teaming up with Sal's brother Ravi, she dives into a web of secrets to find the real killer​.

Cheyenne, a blind sixteen year-old, is kidnapped and held for ransom; she must outwit her captors to get out alive. Sixteen year-old Cheyenne Wilder is sleeping in the back of a car while her mom fills her prescription at the pharmacy. Before Cheyenne realizes what's happening, their car is being stolen--with her inside! Griffin hadn't meant to kidnap Cheyenne, all he needed to do was steal a car for the others. But once Griffin's dad finds out that Cheyenne's father is the president of a powerful corporation, everything changes—now there's a reason to keep her. What Griffin doesn't know is that Cheyenne is not only sick with pneumonia, she is blind. How will Cheyenne survive this nightmare, and if she does, at what price? Prepare yourself for a fast-paced and hard-edged thriller full of nail-biting suspense. This title has Common Core connections.

How do you escape when you can't see the way out? Sixteen-year-old Cheyenne Wilder is sleeping in the back of a car while her mother fills her prescription. Before Cheyenne realizes what has happened, the car is being stolen from the car park. Cheyenne is not only sick with pneumonia – she is also blind. Griffin, the teenage driver, hadn't meant to kidnap her – he was just stealing a car for the gang. But once Griffin's dad finds out that Cheyenne's father is the president of Nike, everything changes – now there's a reason to keep her. Will Cheyenne be able to survive this harrowing ordeal, and escape? And if so, at what price?

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April Henry masterminds another edge-of-your-seat thriller in this much-anticipated sequel to Girl, Stolen . Six months ago, Griffin Sawyer meant to steal a car, but he never meant to steal the girl asleep in the backseat. Panicked, he took her home. His father, Roy, decided to hold Cheyenne—who is blind—for ransom. Griffin helped her escape, and now Roy is awaiting trial. As they prepare to testify, Griffin and Cheyenne reconnect and make plans to meet. But the plan goes wrong and Cheyenne gets captured by Roy’s henchmen—this time for the kill. Can Cheyenne free herself? And is Griffin a pawn or a player in this deadly chase? April Henry masterminds another edge-of-your-seat thriller in Count All Her Bones . This title has Common Core connections. A Christy Ottaviano Book

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I write mysteries and thrillers. I live in Portland, Oregon with my family.

When I was 11, I sent a short story about a six-foot tall frog who loved peanut butter to Roald Dahl, the author of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. He took it to lunch and showed it to the editor of a British children's magazine - and she asked to publish the story! (For no money, which might have been a warning about how hard it is to make a living writing.)

My dream of writing went dormant until I was in my 30s, working at a corporate job, and started writing books on the side. Those first few years - when I wrote a book a year, worked full time, and had a baby - are now thankfully a blur. Now I'm very lucky to make a living doing what I love. I have written 26 novels for adults and teens, with more on the way. My books have been on the New York Times bestseller list, won the Anthony Award, gotten starred reviews, been chosen for IndieNext, translated into eight languages and won awards in a dozen states.

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‘a good girl’s guide to murder’ review: emma myers solves a mystery in netflix’s solid six-parter.

A teenage gumshoe gets to the bottom of a homicide case years earlier in a small English village in this adaptation of Holly Jackson's YA novel.

By Daniel Fienberg

Daniel Fienberg

Chief Television Critic

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One needn’t have read Holly Jackson’s novel of the same name to immediately identify exactly what Netflix ‘s A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder is up to. The six-part series fits squarely into a well-trod, but deservedly beloved tradition of mysteries about meddling teenage gumshoes, with traces of everything from Nancy Drew to Harriet the Spy to Veronica Mars , if you’re looking for American antecedents. Or, with its small village British setting, maybe it’s more Miss Teen Marple? 

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Myers plays Pippa Fitz-Amobi, a 17-year-old resident of bucolic Little Kilton. Pippa has loving parents (Anna Maxwell Martin and Gary Beadle), a core group of friends led by bestie Cara (Asha Banks) and she’s one year away from heading off to Cambridge for uni. Everything is neatly in order.

For her EPQ — Extended Project Qualification, basically a senior project — Pippa casts aside her plans for an essay on feminism in the gothic novel to do something more controversial.

For five years, Pippa has fixated on the disappearance of local teen Andie (India Lillie Davies). It’s been widely assumed that Andie’s boyfriend Sal Singh (Rahul Pattni) killed her and killed himself. He even confessed! But Pippa has never been convinced and she decides to make solving the crime into her school project, going so far as to turn her bedroom wall into one of those TV murder boards with lines connecting various suspects and timelines.

Soon, Pippa is getting close enough to the truth that she’s receiving threatening texts and notes and the people she loves might be in jeopardy.

Like the best protagonists in this genre, Pippa Fitz-Amobi isn’t always the most appealing of characters. She’s a meddler and a prototypical narcissist, thinking only in terms of her own fixation on the Andie mystery without giving any consideration to the communal wounds she might be exposing. She’s a “good girl,” but she’s judgmental and hurts others’ feelings. And like most 17-year-olds, Pippa isn’t always the most trained of detectives. She misinterprets data, questions suspects without strategy and keeps breaking into places she definitely doesn’t belong, contributing to the show’s most palpable set pieces. 

A platter-eyed ingenue without guile, Myers perfectly captures a young woman who finds herself unprepared for heightened emotions she’s only read about in books (she’s introduced reading Jane Eyre , which isn’t a coincidence). Whether it’s terror or sadness or the first buddings of romance or the kind of investigative posturing she must have seen in a movie — the first three, Wells-directed, episodes lean more toward humor — Pippa wears her feelings on her surface and Myers makes them feel real, however contrived the plot.

That she’s playing 17, but reads as slightly younger, points to some of the show’s minor demographic confusion. It’s mostly suited for tween viewers, with tame language, limited onscreen violence and no onscreen sexuality — Pippa’s chaste flirtations with Ravi are kept vague enough to prevent questions of age-appropriateness. The show’s depiction of drug use is quaint and a literally underground rave borders on hilarious. But when the series goes dark in its closing episode, some details go very dark and mature, even if it’s still more kid-friendly than the murky twists and turns in Veronica Mars . 

Insight into teenage life in 2024 is limited to the series’ reliance on social media for every major plot point, while insight into small-town life in 2024 is close to nil, even if Little Kilton seems like a fine place to live, other than the occasional homicides. More nuance and definitely more characterization — Pippa’s non-Cara friends and several key adults lack even a single dimension — could have been woven into the first five episodes, which string out a fairly obvious “twist” for far too long, leading up to a finale in which one or two reveals are nonsensical.

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Italian Boxer Quits Bout, Sparking Furor Over Gender at Olympics

The Italian, Angela Carini, stopped fighting only 46 seconds into her matchup against Imane Khelif of Algeria, who had been barred from a women’s event last year.

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By Tariq Panja and Jeré Longman

Reporting from Paris

An Italian boxer abandoned her bout at the Paris Olympics after only 46 seconds on Thursday, refusing to continue after taking a heavy punch from an Algerian opponent who had been disqualified from last year’s world championships over questions about her eligibility to compete in women’s sports.

The Italian boxer, Angela Carini, withdrew after her Algerian opponent, Imane Khelif, landed a powerful blow that struck Carini square in the face. Carini paused for a moment, then turned her back to Khelif and walked to her corner. Her coaches quickly signaled that she would not continue, and the referee stopped the fight.

Khelif, 25, was permitted to compete at the Olympics even though she had been barred last year after boxing officials said she did not meet eligibility requirements to compete in a women’s event. Another athlete also barred from last year’s world championships under similar circumstances, Lin Yu-ting, has also been cleared to fight in Paris.

The International Boxing Association, which ran those championships and ordered the disqualifications, offered little insight into the reasons for the boxers’ removal, saying in a statement that the disqualifications came after “the athletes did not undergo a testosterone examination but were subject to a separate and recognized test .”

The association said that test, the specifics of which it said were confidential, “conclusively indicated that both athletes did not meet the required necessary eligibility criteria and were found to have competitive advantages over other female competitors.”

Those rules, which the boxing association adopted for the 2016 Rio Games, are the same ones the International Olympic Committee is operating under as the authority running the boxing tournament at the Paris Games. But the rules, the I.O.C. confirmed, do not include language about testosterone or restrictions on gender eligibility beyond a single line saying “gender tests may be conducted.”

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