Common Sense Media Review
By Mary Eisenhart
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Thought-provoking story of abducted teen who returns.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 14+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Read
What's the Story?
Nine years ago, 7-year-old Ethan De Wilde walked into a stranger's car and disappeared. Now, miraculously, he and his family are reunited. But the adjustment is made much harder by the fact that, while he remembers a nomadic existence with his prostitute \"mom,\" the group home she dumped him at, and the homeless life he had after he ran away, he can't remember anything about his past life with his real family. And his brother, who witnessed the abduction, views Ethan with frank hatred.
Is It Any Good?
Lisa McMann has a well-deserved reputation for engaging young readers with irresistible plot hooks, as well as for creating appealing characters and dramatic situations that keep them interested. (See her great title for younger readers, The Unwanteds).
While the characters here are a little thin and stereotypical at times, they serve the purpose of moving the plot along and keeping the reader wondering what happens next, right up to the reality-altering ending. In the process, seeing normal family life through the eyes of a teen who's never experienced it, kids may get a new perspective on why their own parents do the weird things they do.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about whether they were surprised by Dead to You's ending? If you weren't surprised, what incidents earlier in the story led you to think things would turn out this way?
What happens now? To the De Wildes, to Ethan, to Cami? Some people think there should be a sequel -- do you?
There are many thousands of kids who live homeless on their own or with irresponsible parents. What do you know about their lives and how different they are from yours?
Do you know any families in which a family member came back after a long absence? How did it affect the family?
Book Details
- Author :
- Genre : Family Life
- Topics : School ( High School )
- Book type : Fiction
- Publisher : Simon Pulse
- Publication date : February 7, 2012
- Number of pages : 256
- Last updated : October 1, 2025
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