Helpful Score: 1
Kiley is a 9-year-old who lives with her widowed father, a man who pays little attention to her. (Why are so many children's books written about kids with minimal attention from adults?) After the little girl next door is kidnapped, Kiley sees the child standing by her bedroom window. Her father doesn't believe her, and tells her to stop messing in grown-up things. Kiley schemes to get her best friend into the house. The best friend sees the girl, too, but the Gypsy woman who moved in after the abduction got her friend out of there quickly. Instead of going to any more adults, Kiley decides to write a letter to the Gypsy woman asking where the kid is. The letter ends up with the police, who think the Gypsy is involved, and things go downhill from there. Kiley doesn't tell what she knows, and lies often to her father. Through her actions the Gypsy woman is put through the wringer, and eventually hauled into court.
I was a little irritated at Kiley's behavior and more irritated with her father. Beyond that, there was a good lesson about knowing people before judging them, understanding other people's problems and where they come from, and even a little history about the Gypsies and the Holocaust. Kiley does stand up for the Gypsy woman, and shows honest compassion. In the end the truth comes out, both about Kiley's part in things and regarding the kidnapped child.
I was a little irritated at Kiley's behavior and more irritated with her father. Beyond that, there was a good lesson about knowing people before judging them, understanding other people's problems and where they come from, and even a little history about the Gypsies and the Holocaust. Kiley does stand up for the Gypsy woman, and shows honest compassion. In the end the truth comes out, both about Kiley's part in things and regarding the kidnapped child.
