Things Not Seen By Andrew Clements Summary
Things not Seen by Andrew Clements is an extraordinary book showing the struggle of independence between a boy and his family. The genre is the popular scientific fiction and was published in 2002. It was inspired off of a bible verse, Hebrews 11:1,"Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen." Things not Seen is one of Andrew Clements most prized book, but he is most famous for his book, Frindle which won a Christopher Award.
Plot/Character Summary:
The setting of the book is in Chicago, Illinois and takes place over the period of a few days. Bobby Phillips, the protagonist, wakes up and he is in utter awe. A huge conflict has arrived, he is invisible. His prudent mother and father are in disbelief. Bobby
shows them that he is, in fact, invisible. His mother goes on the quest to make everyone believe that he is sick and in Florida with his aunt, but in doing so, she and her husband get in a car wreck, leaving Bobby at home by himself. When the antagonist, Ms. Pagett, a child services worker, comes to see where Bobby has been. Bobby hides and when she leaves he goes out dressed in bundles of clothes. When he bumps into Alicia Dorn, who is blind. Bobby’s scarf falls off showing a transparent hole in his neck. He thinks that she knows and he tries to fix the problem. She later becomes a mentor and Bobby’s friend. The climax is when Ms. Pagett tries to search Bobby’s house. Bobby’s mom gets angry and does things that Bobby had never seen her do before. (can I spoil the ending?)
Theme:
There are many themes to take from Things Not Seen, but a few really stick out. Independence plays a huge role as the boy survives a few days without his parents or friends. He learns that he is not ready to become an adult, and learns to appreciate his parents for what they do for him. Another theme is friendship. Even when Bobby was invisible he still made it possible to create a strong friendship with Alicia Dorn.
Your Opinion: If you are looking for a book that will keep you on the edge of your seat, and never gets boring. Then this is the book for you. Each chapter held an astatic event. The only thing that was raw was the ending. It pushed the relationship between Alicia and Bobby making you want the book to end. The writing style was prominent and in first person, so you could feel his internal struggle between childhood and adulthood. The book leaves you with many themes and lessons that seep into the heart. Overall Things Not Seen by Andrew Clements is a fantastic book that I recommend to anyone looking for a phonemic, action packed, book.
Plot/Character Summary:
The setting of the book is in Chicago, Illinois and takes place over the period of a few days. Bobby Phillips, the protagonist, wakes up and he is in utter awe. A huge conflict has arrived, he is invisible. His prudent mother and father are in disbelief. Bobby
shows them that he is, in fact, invisible. His mother goes on the quest to make everyone believe that he is sick and in Florida with his aunt, but in doing so, she and her husband get in a car wreck, leaving Bobby at home by himself. When the antagonist, Ms. Pagett, a child services worker, comes to see where Bobby has been. Bobby hides and when she leaves he goes out dressed in bundles of clothes. When he bumps into Alicia Dorn, who is blind. Bobby’s scarf falls off showing a transparent hole in his neck. He thinks that she knows and he tries to fix the problem. She later becomes a mentor and Bobby’s friend. The climax is when Ms. Pagett tries to search Bobby’s house. Bobby’s mom gets angry and does things that Bobby had never seen her do before. (can I spoil the ending?)
Theme:
There are many themes to take from Things Not Seen, but a few really stick out. Independence plays a huge role as the boy survives a few days without his parents or friends. He learns that he is not ready to become an adult, and learns to appreciate his parents for what they do for him. Another theme is friendship. Even when Bobby was invisible he still made it possible to create a strong friendship with Alicia Dorn.
Your Opinion: If you are looking for a book that will keep you on the edge of your seat, and never gets boring. Then this is the book for you. Each chapter held an astatic event. The only thing that was raw was the ending. It pushed the relationship between Alicia and Bobby making you want the book to end. The writing style was prominent and in first person, so you could feel his internal struggle between childhood and adulthood. The book leaves you with many themes and lessons that seep into the heart. Overall Things Not Seen by Andrew Clements is a fantastic book that I recommend to anyone looking for a phonemic, action packed, book.