The Missing (novel series)
The Missing is a series of fictional young-adult novels written by Margaret Peterson Haddix. It tells the story of famous children from history stolen by futuristic time travelers from their place in time and accidentally sent to the twenty-first century as babies. They are then adopted by families in the twenty-first century. Because Jonah is one of the stolen children, he, along with his non-adopted sister Katherine, must help return the missing kids to their rightful places in history and fix time before it is destroyed. The first book in the series, Found, was published on April 22, 2008. The series continued with book titles Sent, Sabotaged, Torn, Caught and Risked (originally intended to be titled Kept). The seventh book Revealed, was released on September 2, 2014. According to Haddix, the series will consist of eight books. The title for the last book will be Redeemed. There were also two ebook short stories, Sought, which takes place before Risked, and Rescued, which takes place between Risked and Revealed.
Synopsis
Found
 | |
| Author | Margaret Peterson Haddix |
|---|---|
| Cover artist | Cliff Nielsen |
| Country | UK |
| Language | English |
| Series | The Missing (novel series) |
| Genre | Young adult Science fiction novel |
| Publisher | New York : Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, ©2008[1] |
Publication date | 22 April 2008 |
| Media type | Print (Hardback & Paperback) |
| Pages | 314 (Paperback Edition) |
| ISBN | 0-545-11645-7 |
| OCLC | [1] 156891904[1] |
| Followed by | Sent |
Thirteen-year-old Jonah had always known that he was adopted and had never thought much of it until he began receiving strange letters sent to his house. When Jonah's friend Chip also learns that he is adopted, Jonah, Chip and Jonah's sister Katherine come to realize that Jonah and Chip are important missing children from history who were transported to the twenty-first century by baby smuggling time travelers, whose names are Gary and Hodge. Later, they are unknowingly lured into a cave, known as a time hollow, with all but one of the other 36 missing children in an attempt by the smugglers to take them to future. After they have defeated the smugglers, another time traveler from the future known to them as JB (Janitor Boy) decides to send Chip and another boy, Alex, back to the 1480s, where they were originally taken from. While trying to stop him, Jonah and Katherine are accidentally taken along for the trip as well, leaving it up to them to save their friends and return to the twenty first century. This sets the plot and the title for the following book in the series, "Sent".
Found was released on April 22, 2008.
Sent
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First edition cover | |
| Author | Margaret Peterson Haddix |
|---|---|
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Series | The Missing |
| Genre | Historical fiction Young adult Science fiction novel |
| Publisher | New York : Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, ©2008 |
Publication date | 25 August 2009 |
| Media type | Print (Hardback & Paperback) |
| Pages | 313 |
| Preceded by | Found |
| Followed by | Sabotaged |
In this book, Jonah, Katherine, Chip, and Chip's real brother, Alex, have one warning of disaster before they are sent back to 1400s to the Tower of London, with the promise that they can return to their home in the twenty-first century if they can repair history. They quickly discover that Chip and Alex's true identities are Edward V (king of England) and Richard of Shrewsbury, Duke of York. But before Chip can enjoy being the King of England, they discover that they are virtually prisoners—and that the boys' uncle, King Richard III, wants them dead. Jonah and Katherine must repair time and save Chip and Alex from their certain deaths before it is even possible that they can return home.
Sent was released on August 25, 2009.[2]
Sabotaged
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| Author | Margaret Peterson Haddix |
|---|---|
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Series | The Missing |
| Genre | Young adult Science fiction novel |
| Publisher | New York : Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, ©2008 |
Publication date | 24 August 2010 |
| Media type | Print (Hardback) |
| Preceded by | Sent |
| Followed by | Torn |
In this third volume of the series, Jonah and Katherine return Andrea, identified as the missing child Virginia Dare, to 1600, her correct time period from where she was kidnapped. During their time journey, the device used for their time travel, called an Elucidator, is lost, causing the children arrive not certain as to where or when they are. They eventually piece together clues to find that their attempt to fix time by sending Andrea back is being thwarted by a man who calls himself Second. Along the way they save the life of Andrea's 16th-century grandfather, John White and meet two of the other missing children, Brendan and Antonio, who were mysteriously sent back to their original time by Second. While on Croatan Island, Andrea changes time itself and is reunited with her grandfather. Second appears and Jonah and Katherine are saved by JB, only to be hurled into another time.
Sabotaged was released on August 24, 2010.[3]
Torn
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| Author | Margaret Peterson Haddix |
|---|---|
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Series | The Missing (novel series) |
| Genre | Young adult Science fiction novel |
Publication date | 23 August 2011 |
| Media type | Print (Hardback & Paperback) |
| Preceded by | Sabotaged |
| Followed by | Caught |
Jonah and Katherine land on the decks of Henry Hudson's ship, called the Discovery, moments before a mutiny in the early 1600s. JB reveals that John Hudson, one of the kids stolen from history and Henry Hudson's son, is missing completely, and Jonah will have to play his part. Jonah and Katherine must survive being on the 17th century boat, with unlikely help from two of the sailors. When they find out that Second has disguised himself as Hudson's first mate and has murdered one of them, Jonah and Katherine escape the boat after a docking and manage to get into the Damaged Time of 1605. They save their friends Brendan, Antonio, Andrea and John White when Jonah rescues everyone from the fire of 1605. It then turns out that Second sent John Hudson to 1605. John Hudson, called Dalton Sullivan in the twenty-first century, was already in 1605, living in England. JB then concludes that Second unraveled time from 1605 to 1611, made his own new, alternate universe and is sealing it off completely from others. JB then sends everyone to the 21st century, where they can live in peace, for a while.
Torn was released on August 23, 2011.
Caught
| Author | Margaret Peterson Haddix |
|---|---|
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Series | The Missing (novel series) |
| Genre | Young adult Science fiction novel |
Publication date | 3 September 2012 |
| Media type | Print (Hardback & Paperback) |
| Preceded by | Torn |
| Followed by | Risked |
Jonah and Katherine are in school when time freezes. Jonah and Katherine are transported to Albert Einstein's time, where they must help to save his illegitimate daughter Lieserl, who is known as Emily in the twenty-first century, and keep Einstein from discovering time travel instead of the theory of relativity, which would ruin history. Jonah and Katherine follow Mileva, Einstein's wife, in order to put Emily in her correct time, 1903. When they get to Mileva's parents' house, they discover that Lieserl is just a baby and is close to death from scarlet fever. However, during Jonah and Katherine's followings, Mileva discovers them, steals their eludicator, and communicates with them, causing a huge disturbance in time. They are all sent, along with Emily, to a place outside of time, called a time hollow. Mileva freezes everyone there using the Elucidator and then watches her whole life, part of her daughter Emily's life, and learns English to understand how time travel worked. Then she unfreezes only Jonah and allows him to come with her and save time. Jonah lets Mileva keep the Elucidator when she returns to her time, which allows her to send her demented son, Tete Einstein, to the future as a baby, where he grows up to become JB.
Caught was released on September 3, 2012.[4]
Risked
| Author | Margaret Peterson Haddix |
|---|---|
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Series | The Missing (novel series) |
| Genre | Young adult Science fiction novel |
Publication date | 4 September 2013 |
| Media type | Print (Hardback & Paperback) |
| Preceded by | Caught |
| Followed by | Revealed |
It's a paradox: When Jonah and Katherine find themselves on a mission to return Alexei and Anastasia Romanov to history and then save them from the Russian Revolution, they are at a loss. Because in their own time, the bones of Alexei and Anastasia have been positively identified through DNA testing. What hope do they have of saving Alexis and Anastasia's lives when the twenty-first century has proof of their deaths?
The book was released on September 4, 2013.[5]
Revealed
| Author | Margaret Peterson Haddix |
|---|---|
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Series | The Missing (novel series) |
| Genre | Young adult Science fiction novel |
Publication date | 2 September 2014 |
| Media type | Print (Hardback & Paperback) |
| Preceded by | Risked |
| Followed by | Redeemed |
Charles Lindbergh appears in the Skidmore's home, grabs Katherine, and vanishes again. Jonah finds out that Chip, Andrea, and all the other children from the plane have disappeared as well. Jonah’s parents and all the other adults in his town have "un-aged" into children, particularly teenagers. Jonah is the only normal person left (if he is considered normal), and must save everyone with the help of un-aged JB and Angela. In collecting clues, they discover that Gary and Hodge have a terrible plot which could mean the end of everything Jonah has ever cared about.
Staying true to its name, Jonah's real identity as a missing child is "revealed" in this book. Also, one particular action he makes during his trips through time doesn't affect time itself, but affects the remainder of his life.
Revealed was released on September 2, 2014.[6]
Redeemed
The eighth and final book in this series, Redeemed, will be released on September 8, 2015. The currently released summary is:
After traveling through history multiple times and finding out his original identity, Jonah thought he’d fixed everything. But some of his actions left unexpected consequences. His parents—and many other adults—are still stuck as teenagers. And now Jonah has a new sibling, an identical twin brother named Jordan.
As odd as all this is for Jonah, it’s beyond confusing for Jordan. How does everyone in his family have memories of Jonah when he doesn’t? How can his annoying kid sister Katherine speak so expertly about time travel—and have people from the future treating her with respect? A few rash moves by Jordan send them all into the future—and into danger. What if he’s also the only one who can get them back to safety, once and for all?
Characters
Protagonists
- Jonah Skidmore - Jonah is the 13-year-old main character in the series. He is one of the famous children of history that were kidnapped by time travelers and accidentally sent to the twenty-first century. He is the adopted brother of Katherine Skidmore and the adopted son of Michael and Linda Skidmore. Jonah is helping to restore history caused by the kidnappings. He is facing the struggle of figuring out who he is as one of the missing children of history. In "Revealed" he discovers that while he was listed under Charles Lindbergh on the plane, he was really just an ordinary kid in original time, and Gary and Hodge only kidnapped him to pass him off as Charles Lindbergh's son.
- Katherine Skidmore - Jonah's one year younger sister and a main character of the series. Even though she is not a missing child of history, Katherine has decided to help Jonah. She also comes up with JB's nickname, which stands for "Janitor Boy." She called JB "Cute Janitor Boy" before she knew what he really was.
- Chip Winston (King Edward V) - Jonah's friend and Alex's older brother. One of the missing children of history, Chip and Alex are particularly famous for their disappearance. Both boys' pasts were restored in Sent.
- JB (Tete Einstein) - a time traveler from the future who helps Jonah and Katherine restore time. Knows the rules of time traveling and guides Jonah and Katherine in many of their journeys. He is the son of Albert Einstein and brother to Emily Quinn (Lieserl Einstein). He was sent forward in time by his mother, Mileva Einstein, (using the Elucidator Jonah left with her) to a point in time when his mental illness could be cured so that he could live a normal life. He then grew up to become the time traveler Jonah and Katherine know as "JB".
- Alex Polchak (Richard, Duke of York) - Chip's younger brother. As one of the missing children of history, Alex has been adopted by different people than Chip. Less is known about Alex as he appears later in the first book and less personal information is given. His past is restored in Sent with Chip's.
- Andrea Crowell (Virginia Dare) - Another missing child of history, Andrea is the famous Virginia Dare, the first English child born in the American colonies. She, along with the rest of the mysterious Roanoke Colony, disappeared during the years her grandfather, John White was gone. Jonah developed a small crush on her over time. Her past was restored in Sabotaged.
- Angela DuPre - An ally of Jonah and Katherine, Angela was one of the few people to have seen the missing children before the event was covered up. In the prologue of "Found", she discovered the missing children of history when she saw the babies inside of a plane at the airport where she worked.
- Hadley Correo - A time agent like JB, who sometimes works with JB and assists Jonah and the others when they travel through time.
- Brendan (One Who Survives Much) - An obscure missing child, Brendan was originally a painter and a member of a neighboring Indian tribe. He was apprenticed by John White along with Antonio; most of their works were demolished in a fire, while the rest were taken illegally by time travelers. His past was restored in Sabotaged.
- Antonio (Walks with Pride)- Like Brendan, most of Antonio's past is unknown except that he was a painter and a member of a neighboring tribe to the Roanoke Colony. He was also apprenticed to White as a painter and later had most of his works destroyed in a fire. His past was restored in Sabotaged.
- Dalton Sullivan (John Hudson) - A missing child of history. Dalton never relived his past due to Second's interference but instead Jonah played his part.
- Emily Quinn (Lieserl Einstein) - Another missing child of history, Emily is Albert Einstein's illegitimate daughter. She was only briefly mentioned and presumed dead by scarlet fever after 1903, a year after her birth, in her original time. She is also JB's sister.
- Daniella McCarthy (Anastasia Romanov) - Stolen from 1918 with her brother Alexei, Daniella is the youngest grand duchess and daughter of Czar Nicholas II.
- Gavin Danes (Alexei Romanov) - Stolen from 1918 along with his older sister Anastasia, Gavin is the only son of Czar Nicholas II and heir to the throne of Russia. Stricken with hemophilia, Gavin is originally a sarcastic, mean boy, who wants to take Gary and Hodge's offer and go to the future, but changes his mind and befriends Jonah, Chip, Katherine, and Daniella.
- Jordan Skidmore - Jonah's twin brother who, like Jonah, was supposed to die from starvation at an orphanage. He was kidnapped by Gary and Hodge solely to convince Jonah he had created a time paradox. Jonah, thinking Jordan is himself, delivers him to his parents. In the epilogue of Revealed, Jonah is extremely resentful of him. He will most likely be the main character in Redeemed.
Antagonists
- Gary and Hodge - The pair of original time kidnappers that gather up all of the missing children in the first book. They are sent to time prison, but Gavin releases them, not knowing the consequences. They are eventually recaptured.
- Second Chance (Sam Chase) - Used to be JB's projectionist, manipulates and splits time. He has also gone back in time to "help" Jonah and Katherine.
References
External links
- Haddix Books - Margaret Peterson Haddix
- Haddix Books - Found
- Haddix Books - Margaret Haddix news
- Sent book summary - Simon and Schuster
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