Reagan Kaufman
EDCI 5120—Dr. Rush
Summer 2008

Nixon, J.L. (1979). The kidnapping of Christina Lattimore. Orlando: Harcourt.

Grade Level: 6-8 grades
Category: Mystery
Read-Alouds: pp. 15-20 (no to money); pp. 45-50 (kidnapped); pp. 102-120 (set-up); pp. 185-192 (Lorna); pp, 290-303 (conclusion).

Summary: Christina Lattimore seems to have an ideal family. Her dad is a preacher, mom is beautiful, and grandma is in oil and all that implies. Despite what her life looks like from the outside, Christina is fed up with her family when they refuse to fund a school trip to France. Shortly after a feud, Christina is kidnapped, or is she? Victim or criminal? You decide.
Themes: Common mystery conflict of man v. man is displayed in the novel as one seeks to decipher hidden clues and foreshadowing to identify the villain. In addition to the obvious, I think there are larger themes of dysfunctional families, hidden agendas, and coming of age. Overall, I do not think “deep” discussions would necessarily come from this book but it would be an enjoyable way to teach literary elements.
Discussion Questions:
• Why is the facade of perfection in the Lattimore family paramount to the story? How do you see Cristabel, Dad, Mom, and Christina try to uphold their part of the façade?
• Early on Christina questions what is important. In the end, how does she answer this question and how does her answer show her growth as a character?
• In what ways is the author’s use of foreshadowing and suggestion effective?

Reader Response: This is one of those books that my mom bought for me in middle school that I thought was lame, never read, and subsequently gave away. When I noticed a cousin reading it recently and heard her rave reviews of it, I decided to overcome my old bias and give it a try. I’m a sucker for a good murder mystery. I think Nixon’s novel was pretty good. As an adult with experience looking for clues, I did find some of the writing and thoughts simplistic but overall, it was an exciting page turner. I would not use this for a whole class discussion. It would be a fun read for literature circles but I did not find themes to be deep or overly significant so I think the focus on reading groups would more need to stem from a lesson on literary elements. This novel would work well as a precursor to reading more difficult novels in a similar genre, such as Agatha Christie’s And then there were none. ( )

Christina begs her family to let her travel to Europe with her junior class. Shortly after her request is denied she is kidnapped by someone she recognizes and overhears her kidnappers devise an elaborate plan to divide the ransom. Once she is released she uses her wits to convince her family that she is not the mastermind and find the real villain. The Kidnapping of Christina Lattimore is a suspenseful read to get reluctant readers hooked into a good mystery. ( )

320/320 pages read ( )

Pretty good book with lots of twists and turns ( )

It was predictable. ( )