Found is an adventure story based on the worst fears or stereotypes about adoption—stolen children who “belong” somewhere else–yet, it also educates about positive adoption language, “real” parents being the ones who parent you, and birth parents as possibly wanting better things for their children, not as “giving them away”.
This paradox makes Found–also called The Missing: Book One—a worthwhile read. The author, Margaret Peterson Haddix, has written over two dozen books for children, including the Shadow Children series, which has sold over 4 ½ million copies.
In the prologue to Found, an airplane carrying three dozen babies is found on a runway. Pilots and all other adults seem to have vanished. Thirteen years later, Jonah and his new friend Chip receive mysterious letters, “You are one of the missing” and then “Beware. They are coming back to get you”.
Great, I thought, more of the old you-are-kidnapped –royalty stereotype. Who needs a book that preys on that?
However, the book soon veers from realistic fiction to science fiction. (Since time travel is involved, the next books may involve historical (possibly educational) fiction as well.
I think the science-fiction quality of the story makes it obviously enough of a fantasy that kids age nine or older will realize the impossibility of the scenario, making it unlikely to trigger fears of realistic kidnappings or international Babylift operations.
The book presents a nice contrast between one boy who has always known of his adoption, whose parents talk about it normally, and a boy who finds out about his adoption at age thirteen—whereupon his parents acknowledge that it’s true but say they don’t want to talk about it again.
Before the plot gets too involved, readers get a sense of the normalcy of adoption as experienced by Jonah, whose parents have talked with him about adoption over the years and are willing to help him search for information if he wants it, but who usually experiences adoption as “not much more of a deal than his liking mint chocolate-chip ice cream while Katherine liked orange sherbet”.
The plot touches on identity questions, sibling relationships between an adopted child and non-adopted sibling, moving to a new school, conferences and support groups for adoptive parents and children, and various themes of friendship and loyalty.
As with most books that have adoption as a strong plot element or theme, it is best if parents read the book either with their kids or as well, so they can discuss it with them. (It will take only an evening or two to read.)
The sequel, Sent, will soon be released and is available for pre-order at Amazon.com .
For other adoption books featuring kids ages ten to fourteen, see the following blogs:
Book Review: The Ocean Within/Tides
Book Review: Kimchi and Calamari