ACCESS DIGITIZED EDITION
Guide/Reviews Database
INTERMEDIATE FICTION
Levithan, David

The Mysterious Disappearance of Aidan S. (as Told to His Brother)

224 pp. | Knopf | February, 2021 | Trade ISBN 978-1-9848-4859-8 $16.99 | Library ISBN 978-1-9848-4860-4 $19.99 | Ebook ISBN 978-1-9848-4861-1 $9.99
(2) 4-6 Lucas's brother Aidan goes missing, which leads to the worried, sympathetic response one would expect from his community. Six nights later, Lucas finds Aidan in the attic, claiming that he's been somewhere impossible--which generates a whole new set of responses from disbelievers: media attention, resentment from those who helped with the search, prying and even some amateur spy work by other kids. That Lucas, rather than Aidan himself, serves as narrator allows the novel to focus on the effect on their family of Aidan's disappearance and return. It also, relatably, brings in the viewpoint of the sibling of someone getting all the attention. Other than the one major piece of possible magic, YA author Levithan's (Every Day, rev. 2/12; the Dash & Lily books) middle-grade debut is set squarely in the real world, with a voice accessible to realistic fiction fans. But it urges readers to consider a fantasy trope from a practical angle: if someone really went to, say, Narnia, what would happen when they got home?
Reviewer: Shoshana Flax | Horn Book Magazine Issue: March, 2021

RELATED 

INTERMEDIATE FICTION

The Republic of Birds
by Miller, Jessica
INTERMEDIATE FICTION

Atlantis
by Mone, Gregory
INTERMEDIATE FICTION

It Doesn't Take a Genius
by Rhuday-Perkovich, Olugbemisola
INTERMEDIATE FICTION

Cece Rios and the Desert of Souls
by Rivera, Kaela
INTERMEDIATE FICTION

Soul Lanterns
by Kuzki, Shaw
More

Get connected. Join our global community of more than 200,000 librarians and educators.

This coverage is free for all visitors. Your support makes this possible.

We are currently offering this content for free. Sign up now to activate your personal profile, where you can save articles for future viewing.

ALREADY A SUBSCRIBER?