Kidnap Kids - Softcover

Strasser, Todd

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0399231110 ISBN 13: 9780399231117

Publisher: Putnam Juvenile, 1998

Synopsis

During a weekend in the country, Steven and Benjy Marks try to spend some quality time with their parents by taking them prisoner, but terrorists who are lurking outside their cabin have a different plan in mind.

About this title

From Kirkus Reviews:

There's nothing like a terrorist attack to bring a family back together, as two brothers and their hyper-frantic parents discover in this wild, patchy problem novel from Strasser (Hey Dad, Get a Life!, 1996, etc.). With their father off on world-spanning business trips and their mother prosecuting a high-profile trial of a group of militants dubbed the Nut Bombers, Steven and Benjy seldom see either one. After months of being escorted to school as a security precaution, and guarded at home by a succession of unappealing nannies, the boys are sick and tired of being on their own. They shovel on the guilt; when their parents finally agree to a weekend in the country, the boys are relieved but suspicious. Sure enough, Mom and Dad bring along work--so Steven and Benjy deftly handcuff them to heavy furniture when they're not paying attention, and lock their cell phones and laptops in a trunk. Enter a trio of Nut Bombers bent on revenge--and the stage is set for a night of narrow escapes. Through his narrator Steven, Strasser lays on such a thick parental guilt trip that the boy sounds more whiny than resourceful, and the events of the story are more of a series of set pieces than a single plot. Steven and Benjy's feelings, however, will be understandable to plenty of young readers, and just as close to their hearts will be the wish to--occasionally--take their own parents prisoner. (Fiction. 10-12) -- Copyright ©1998, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

From School Library Journal:

Grade 5-8?Steven and his younger brother, Benjy, are tired of never seeing their parents. Megan Marks is a lawyer who is constantly occupied with the "Nut Bomber" trial and secretly fears for her safety and that of her family because of possible repercussions. Her husband is working on a project in Thailand. Luckily, both parents eventually find time to slip away with their sons to a new log house in the hills. Despite the adults' good intentions to spend time away from their jobs, they end up bringing work with them. Frustrated, the boys handcuff their parents until they realize the error of their ways and plan to spend more time with the youngsters. Then, the bad guys catch up with them and all of the family members must run for their lives. The characters are contemporary, with a young man as the boys' caretaker, and children who are upset with their lack of quality time at home. Intrigue, danger, and suspense lurk around several corners, and will keep readers turning the pages.?Mary M. Hopf, Los Angeles Public Library
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About this edition

• Publisher: Putnam Juvenile
• Publication date: 1998
• ISBN 10: 0399231110
• ISBN 13: 9780399231117
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 166