Serafina and the Black Cloak

By Robert Beatty

     This entertaining tale will leave you guessing.  Meet a young Serafina, hidden in the basement of the Biltmore Estate.  Her Pa is the chief mechanic and repairs all of the machines at the house. They live secretly in the basement, and Serafina makes a point of not being seen.  At night she wanders the halls of the mansion, finding, capturing and ridding the house of rats.  She is unnaturally fast and adept at seeing these horrible rodents.  One night during her inspection she hears and sees something that frightens her, a figure in a black coat.  

     The next day it is discovered that the children from Biltmore and the surrounding area are disappearing, Serafina knows that the mysterious figure in the cloak is the culprit.  The problem is that Serafina needs to remain a secret so how can she let the residents know that they are in danger.  Finally, she approaches the young master, Braeden Vanderbilt.  The two children form a bond and endeavor to figure out who the person is in the black cloak.  As more children disappear and after a harrowing night in the dark forest, Serafina knows that she has no other solution but to become the bait in a trap and to lead towards a sure battle with a mountain lion.  

     Will Serafina's plan work, will she be able to draw the evil away from Biltmore Manor and away from Braeden?  By the end of the story Serafina discovers her dubious beginnings, makes a frightening trek through a dangerous forest, meets her mother and fights her own demons, but will she to retain her friendship with Braeden and will she be accepted by everyone at Biltmore?  

     This is a very interesting story.  Interesting in that it combines two genres of literature.  It has aspects of a historical fiction, while it dwells into the supernatural world.  I feel that this book would be great in fourth grade and up to seventh or eighth grade.  This book was a definite page turner and I am giving it a 4 out of 5 stars.  

Links

Author - Robert Beatty

Biltmore Estate history

Vanderbilt history

Ghost stories from the Blue Ridge mountains

The Face on the Milk Carton

By Caroline B. Cooney 

     This is one of those what if books.  Could this really happen?  How would you react?  This is a very believable tale in which one young girl, Jane Johnson, happens to recognize herself on the side of a milk carton that illustrates abducted children.  Jane lives in a small town on the east coast of the United States, and by all accounts is a happy and beloved daughter of doting parents.  She has a great group of friends and an older neighbor boy for company.  But the image on the milk carton begins to haunt her.  

     Haunt her to the point that she begins to have daymares aka memories.  Jane could never imagine her loving parents kidnapping a child, so is torn on how to proceed.  She finally, fesses up to her neighbor, Reeve, her worries.  But Reeve has other things on his mind, as he is emotionally attracted to Jane and wants to begin a relationship.  Jane goes to extreme lengths to discover the truth, even skipping school and traveling to New Jersey in search of the Spring family.  She immediately recognizes her siblings but has Reeve drive away, not sure how to proceed.  

     Jane confronts her parents about missing pictures of a young Jane, birth certificate etc. and they explain how Jane came to be with them.  Their daughter Hannah had brought Jane to them, with a story about Jane being their Grandaughter.  She believes them until the evidence continues to pile up against their story.  Reeve calls his older sister, who is studying to be a lawyer and they eventually confront Jane's parents, and decide that their daughter Hannah had abducted a young Jenny Spring.  The story ends on a cliffhanger as to what becomes of Jane.  

     This is a very entertaining tale, gives a great deal of insight told from the perspective of a young, confused girl.  I would rate this story a 4 out of 5 and encourage anybody fifth grade up to pick up a copy.  

Links

About the Movie

Author - Caroline B. Cooney

Child abduction

Facts

Vanished True Stories of the Missing

                                                                                                        By Marc Tyler Nobleman


     This is a small collection of interesting individuals that have vanished, almost out of thin air.  These seven short stories relay a short background, the tale of their vanishing and a resolution.  Some of the lost were found, some remains were discovered and some have never been seen or heard from again.  These are true stories, some of the people were well known, some were known because of their vanishing.  Either way, all of the stories illustrate how easy it is for people to disappear and never been seen or heard from again.

     Although these stories are short, they are not exactly a quick read.  The topic is real the characters are real and the content is depressing.  I would rate this book as 3 stars and would encourage those who are interested in missing people to read.

Links 

Teaching Books

Vanished into thin air

Marc Tyler Nobleman's Blog - Noblemania

Marc Tyler Nobleman - Biography