Found (Missing Series #1)

Although the plot of Found was pure genius, and the suspense of the book kept me on my toes, the execution lacked the characteristics to enjoy the book. The characters were hardly believable and unreal. I firmly believe this book could have been a million times better then say, Twilight, had it been properly executed. Specifically, I had no feel to any of the characters except for Chip in the beginning when he discovers that he is adopted, and can not speak to his mother and father about it. Jonah appeared to be the sheltered good boy from a normal family, constantly showing a lack of concerns and worries until towards the end. Chip probably was the closest Haddix created to normal kids that are 13. Slightly misunderstood, on the line of childish and grown up like any other teenager, Chip portrays a fairly decent teenage boy for the age 13. I found that though Katherine, another protagonist, was very smart and helpful, also contained the behavior of a girly and whiny child with the stereotypical traits of a teenage girl who wants the latest and greatest of the superficial materialistic world she seems to believe in(like when she bothered her mom about the brand jeans 'everyone' was wearing). Katherine didn't bother me, but rather she became a surprisingly useful character to the story (evidence in the fact she was resourceful enough to take the pictures of the government documents with her camera phone). Looking back, she reminds me of a teenage Elle Woods from Legally Blonde. I was hardly amused and completely perplexed by some of the petty, pointless, and unreasonable decisions with lack of logic. The plot was amazing, but the book itself became a complete waist of my time. It really had immense potential and could have been above and beyond. I was truly disappointed. Certain things, such as dialogue, had been deficient on elements of reality, rationality, and sensibility. Actually, Haddix seems to tell a good lesson within the pages of this book. Throughout the story, Jonah, Katherine, and Chip rely on each other as friends for a lot of vital things in their lives. The importance of friends and power of friends is shown as very powerful and mutually shared between the characters. Throughout a child's life, through their young ages to teen years, when they can't rely on anyone else, they go to their friends. Though the friendships don't always last, at one point, they were strong as the bonds of family and were a true part of growing up. To say the least, Found was like an exceedingly atrocious Disney movie.Show Less