Things Not Seen ANNOTATION
When fifteen-year-old Bobby wakes up and finds himself invisible, he and his parents and his new blind friend Alicia try to find out what caused his condition and how to reverse it.
FROM THE PUBLISHER
When fifteen-year-old Bobby wakes up and finds himself invisible, he and his parents and his new blind friend Alicia try to find out what caused his condition and how to reverse it.
FROM THE CRITICS
Publishers Weekly
A 15-year-old boy discovers that he has turned invisible overnight and becomes determined to take control of the situation and of his own destiny. "As preposterous as the teen's predicament may be, the author spins a convincing and affecting story," according to PW. Ages 10-up. (Mar.)n Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.
Children's Literature - Joanne Draper
What if you woke up one morning and found you were invisible? This is the dilemma Bobby Phillips facesﾽbeing invisible changes his whole life. If he leaves the house, he either has to cover himself completely, or wear nothing at all. His parents are having a hard time explaining his extended absence from school. He has to keep his condition a secret, and this causes even more problems. When Bobby meets Alicia at the library, he believes he's found a friend who will accept him as he is. Alicia is blind, so his invisibility doesn't matter to herﾽonce she believes he is telling her the truth. Their growing friendship and the mystery concerning Bobby's condition make for an absorbing, imaginative tale. 2002, Philomel Books,
VOYA
At first it seems like any other Tuesday. Throwing off his electric blanket, fifteen-year-old Bobby stumbles to the bathroom to shower, and it is not until he wipes the fog off the mirror to comb his hair that he notices something is missing—him. Bobby quickly finds out that the reality of being invisible is quite different from what is portrayed in movies and books. Only his mother and father can know—not school, not friends, no one. Not only is Bobby invisible, but he also is alone. His mother and father approach his new condition as they approach everything else in life. His physicist father attempts to dissect the problem as he would any other scientific anomaly, whereas Bobby's mother is likely to smother him with attention and orders. Luckily, it is winter so no one seems to notice when he escapes to the library covered by layers of clothing. Once there, he strips down and proceeds to stroll silently through the library until he meets Alicia, the one person who will not notice that he is invisible. She is blind. Through Alicia Bobby learns that there is something worse than being invisible, and that is being made to feel invisible. Together they help each other work through their situations to find friendship and a new strength that they did not realize they possessed. Written in a more serious tone than Clements's popular Frindle (Simon & Schuster, 1996), this novel will prove thought-provoking as it asks the reader to consider all the "things not seen." VOYA CODES: 4Q 4P J (Better than most, marred only by occasional lapses; Broad general YA appeal; Junior High, defined as grades 7 to 9). 2002, Philomel, 256p, $15.99. Ages 12 to 15. Reviewer: Heather HeplerSOURCE: VOYA, February 2002 (Vol. 24, No.6)
KLIATT
Bobby Phillips, age 15, wakes up one morning, goes to comb his hair in the mirror—and sees no reflection. He's become invisible, and while there are some advantages, like sneaking around unseen, it quickly proves to be a big problem. He tells his parents, of course, but fearing he would become an experimental subject they try to keep Bobby's condition hidden from the world. He can't go to school, naturally, but the school quickly becomes suspicious, and tries to investigate his absence. Bored at home, Bobby sneaks out to the library, where he bumps into a blind girl, Alicia. They become close friends, and she helps him to finally figure out how to reverse his condition. As the title hints, this is a tale about sight and insight, as well as the fanciful theme of actual invisibility. Bobby's growing relationship with Alicia is a major part of it, along with trying to keep Bobby's problem hidden and finding the solution to it. I wish Clements, the author of Frindle and other books for young readers, had spent more time exploring the upside of invisibility; mostly Bobby worries about his invisibility, rather than having any fun with it. Still, the intriguing premise of the story will keep readers turning the pages. Category: Hardcover Fiction. KLIATT Codes: J—Recommended for junior high school students. 2002, Penguin Putnam, Philomel, 252p., $15.99. Ages 13 to 15. Reviewer: Paula Rohrlick; KLIATT SOURCE: KLIATT, March 2002 (Vol. 36, No. 2)
School Library Journal
Gr 6 Up-"-I turn on the bathroom light and wipe the fog off the mirror to comb my hair.-I'm not there. That's what I'm saying. I'm. Not. There." Thus starts the adventure of Bobby Phillips, who wakes up one morning to find that somehow he has turned invisible. The 15-year-old and his parents live with the worry of what happens if they can't figure out how to reverse his condition. With a nod in the direction of H. G. Wells's Invisible Man, Clements allows readers to speculate what it would be like to be invisible. As they see Bobby deal with his situation, they also experience his fears of being alone, unable to talk to his friends, or to tell anyone for fear of the consequences. He reaches out to a blind girl, Alicia Van Dorn, and together they begin to fight back as best as they can. The quest for visibility becomes even more frantic when the school officials and the local police decide that Bobby is the victim of foul play. The threat of having his parents thrown in jail for his own murder makes the teen even more desperate to find out what happened to him. Clements's story is full of life; it's poignant, funny, scary, and seemingly all too possible. The author successfully blends reality with fantasy in a tale that keeps his audience in suspense until the very end.-Saleena L. Davidson, South Brunswick Public Library, Monmouth Junction, NJ Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information.
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