Missing

Dec 13, 2012 Payton rated it 4 of 5 stars

I have recently read the book Missing by Catherine Macphail. Although the exact genre is hard to say, I would call it a realistic fiction. I found it sort of creepy, in a non-morbid, but interesting way. It was about a family of four with a younger daughter who had a brother named Derek who had run away, and later been identified dead. The hardest part of reading this is that I was this girl, this was my family, now, of course it wasn’t actually me, but I am the younger sister of Derek, and we a...more I have recently read the book Missing by Catherine Macphail. Although the exact genre is hard to say, I would call it a realistic fiction. I found it sort of creepy, in a non-morbid, but interesting way. It was about a family of four with a younger daughter who had a brother named Derek who had run away, and later been identified dead. The hardest part of reading this is that I was this girl, this was my family, now, of course it wasn’t actually me, but I am the younger sister of Derek, and we are just a family of four, and I couldn’t help but imagining this happening to me. In the book, the sister of Derek, Maxine starts receiving mysterious phone calls from her brother. Is it a ghost? A prank? Is he actually alive? As I read on, I myself, ventured along with Maxine and her family as they grieved for their lost, and Maxine, without her family knowing, trying to solve this mystery of the person calling her. Part of the book that is extremely important, is the relationship between the characters, which would be that Maxine feels as if all her parents ever cared about was Derek, and now after his death, she has been forgotten, and her mother seems to be one more medium visit where she speaks to her dead son short of the loony bin. If Maxine had a stronger bond with her parents she could have told them about the phone calls, and it could have been settled, but instead she had to independently figure it out, and up until the point of family psychiatry, they couldn’t understand each others feelings, and much less their own. Maxine and her family are very religious, and whoever it is making the calls agrees to meet Maxine after so long at the church, where she finds out that her brother really is alive! He really had switched clothes with a kid who looked like him, and they had thought that was Derek. Derek didn’t want to return to his family, because he knew it would hurt them. As the reader, finding out he is alive is a shocking and happy moment, but for Maxine, it could mean even less recognition from her family, as they will be ecstatic over Derek. But in the end, it all ends up perfectly fine with a better than ever family. For some people, this may have just been some book that is spooky about a ghost, but turns out as a happily-ever-after, but for me it was more. I enjoyed it a lot, and it meant a ton to me as well. At first it was coincidental that there was this family that had its problems like mine, and the younger sisters had an older brother named Derek, which is just describing my family. But then we learn that Derek runs away, and it scare me because as much as my brother and I don’t get along, I don’t want anything to happen to me, and my mother wants our family to go to family therapy just like Maxine’s mother did, and Maxine thought it wouldn’t work as I did, but now, I might just have to give it a shot.

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Apr 16, 2011 M added it

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Jan 21, 2010 Amanda B. rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: advisorybooks-2009-10

I am very intrigued with mysterious stories, and being that my cousin read this book she highly suggested it for me. Luckily, I truly enjoyed this book. The story traces Maxine Moody’s changing life after her brother Derek decides to run away. Her brother’s disappearance led to a kind of downfall in her family life. Maxine began to feel estranged from her parents and questioning if she should have left. Although she had these feelings, she had cynical emotions towards her brother; Maxine missed...more

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Nov 05, 2010 Crissy rated it 4 of 5 stars

I choose this book because it look good and the cover looked intresting and the first page was good when i read it. I think it non fiction. the setting is all over its not in one spot its like at her house, a church, at shcool, and a cemitary.Derek is missing for awhile they think hes dead and he had been calling his sister but she thinks somebody is messing with her. But she found out that he was alive and he came back home. I really liked this book i think people would love it.

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Dec 11, 2009 Monika rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Missing, by Catherine Macphail, is a short, mysterious, and suspenseful book about Maxine Moody, and the problems she faces after her brother, Derek, runs away. Maxine feels like her parents ignore her after Derek’s disappearance, and has a horrible feeling that they would rather it have been her that disappeared. She misses Derek, but is also happy at the thought of him possibly being dead.
The author, Catherine Macphail, has a way of keeping you pulled into the book, and a way to illustrate w...more Missing, by Catherine Macphail, is a short, mysterious, and suspenseful book about Maxine Moody, and the problems she faces after her brother, Derek, runs away. Maxine feels like her parents ignore her after Derek’s disappearance, and has a horrible feeling that they would rather it have been her that disappeared. She misses Derek, but is also happy at the thought of him possibly being dead.
The author, Catherine Macphail, has a way of keeping you pulled into the book, and a way to illustrate with words what is going on during the book. I could see everything that she wrote in my head, like I was there, and I was Maxine going through this aweful time in her life. Macphail has a great way of letting the reader feel like he or she is there, from her descriptions of places, and situations, to how the charcters talk. She makes the book very easy to understand. Everything in this book could happen in real life, and it makes you think the whole time you are reading it. The book has a couple of dead parts in it, but these parts are overshadowed by all the good parts the book contains. The book has an ending that you never expected. I felt like the story should have gone on a little more, but the ending was not horrible.
I would recommend this book to anyone who loves a mysterious book that makes you think about how something can change your life in such a big way. Maxine’s story makes you think about how your life would be if one of your sibblings ran away. Would you feel like your parents are ignoring you? Would you miss them, or would you deep down inside be relieved that they might be gone forever? Derek leaves because he is bullied, and feel like his parents are not paying any attention to him and his problems. There are some parents who lose a child, and it sometimes seems like they have forgotten they have other children that are at home who need love and comfort in this sitution, but the parents are to worried about the child who is gone. You can be worried and scared, but you also have to remember to involve your other kids in your life. Maxine was also entertaining the thought of leaving her parents after Derek had left when she realized that her parents might love Derek more. Would you want your kid to feel like this? It’s kind of like a chain reaction. One kid feels ignored, leaves, and the other feels ignored, and leaves.
If you would like to figure out if Maxine decides to run away, if her parents realize that they are ignoring her, or if Derek is dead. Read ,Missing, by Catherine Macphail.
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Mar 24, 2010 Alison rated it 3 of 5 stars

I really liked the book. It was really good. But the one thing I was wondering is why would he run away from home? Was it because everyone picked on him and he couldnt take it anymore? Well anyways I liked the book so thats all that matters. Oh and the reason why I liked the book is because some kids really do do this in real life and this book can always teach thoughs kids lessons to so they kind of know what they are looking at.

Catherine Macphail. Copyright 2000

Maxine (Maxie for short) Her bro...more I really liked the book. It was really good. But the one thing I was wondering is why would he run away from home? Was it because everyone picked on him and he couldnt take it anymore? Well anyways I liked the book so thats all that matters. Oh and the reason why I liked the book is because some kids really do do this in real life and this book can always teach thoughs kids lessons to so they kind of know what they are looking at.

Catherine Macphail. Copyright 2000

Maxine (Maxie for short) Her brother went missing and her mother didnt want to think of him missing even though he always got into trouble. So Maxine always felt left out and she was happy Derek was gone but then she noticed her parents weren't even paying any attention to her. Maxine started to skip school and when she came home one day she saw her teacher there after she told her dad she went to the church after school. Then she ran into Cam the next day or so and after that she wanted to talk to him about some things about he brother. That day she got home and her parents sat her down to talk to her telling her that they had to go to London to identify a body that looks like Dereks, so Maxine had to go the her neighbors house. After they identified the body and when Maxine got home she started to get phone calls and they said it was Derek. Maxine didn't want to believe it so she hung up. After a while she didn't get the phone calls. Then after that she got another one after another. Maxine kept answering it and the final one said to meet them at the Church and not to tell anyone. When she got to the Church the person was trying to convince her that it was him. Maxine was telling him to come out so she could believe him and he started to and she pressed the emergency button she had and then the St. Anthony statue almost fell on her. Someone came in and asked her who she was talking to and she lied and said she was talking to St. Anthony. Cam new something was up when she he called her and so she started to explain everything to him and told him she really thought Derek wasn't dead because she found his gold chain on the floor at the church and he had it when he left. But Cam didn't want to believe it at all he told her it was probably someone messing with her and that its time she went to the police about it.(less)

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Mar 06, 2011 Amy Abraham rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: finished

This story was about a young boy who went missing. The fortune teller had told his mom that his presence was always with her. One day his father and mother got a call from a person asking them to fly to Europe to come and identify if the dead body was their son. Indeed it was there son. They flew back and buried Derek.

Derek's sister Maxine began getting phone calls saying that it was Derek. At first she didn't know what to believe. She began pondering the whole idea of it. Thinking that it could...more

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Oct 27, 2009 Diana Martinez rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: english-1

This book is not based on a true story. The book is about a young girl named Maxine and her older brother named Derek. Maxine's brother goes missing and from that point on everything at home goes wrong. Her parents don't pay attention to her because they are worried about what has happened to Derek. Throughtout the whole book she experinces all types of things. She gets bullied by the same bully that bullied her brother, skips school, and doesn't even come home sometimes and she tries to find wa...more

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May 03, 2011 Ericaj rated it 5 of 5 stars

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. The book I read is Missing by Catherine Macphail. I read this book because I saw it on my teachers shelve and it looked good so I read it. This book is a nonfiction book and it takes place in England in what seems like a town. There is one main character Maxine Moody who is a teen and full of problems. There are also three other character that are not main character’s but there are part of the book the first one is Cam be is two years older than Maxine and he gets made fun of because he is Chine...more

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Mar 18, 2010 Jennifer rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: classroom-library

This was not my favorite book. I used it for my mystery unit when I taught 8th grade. The kids really liked it, although I though the characters were annoying and stupid. This year one of my sophomores picked it up and read it. She loved it and told all of her friends. Now several students have red it and really like it. The premise is creepy. Maxine is getting phone calls from her dead brother. She spends the rest of the book trying to figure out what is really going on.
The one thing I really d...more

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Dec 05, 2009 Stephanie rated it 3 of 5 stars

This book missing by Catherine MacPhail is about a girl named Maxine, she lives with her mom, her dad, and older brother named Derek. But Derek has been missing, and that means Maxine has been feeling left out by her mom and dad because all their focus was on Derek, so what Maxine did to get away from all the drama within school and home was she would cut school. That did not benefit her at all. Her mom found out she was cutting school. Then later that day mom also found out that they found a b...more

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Sep 24, 2012 Lauren W rated it 5 of 5 stars

Date finished: 9/14/12
191 pages
By Catherine Macphail

This book is about a boy named Derek and his sister Maxine Moody, Derek always gets into trouble because he gets bullied. Eventually Derek ran away one morning. Derek was missing for a little while now and Maxine felt like they only loved him. Their parents hardly ever acted like they cared about her, it was all about Derek! One day the Moody family got a call saying that they had found a body and it look just like Derek and had the same cloth...more

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Oct 23, 2011 Tania Maradiaga rated it 3 of 5 stars

After reading Missing by Catherine MacPhail, I found the book to be quite satisfying. I really enjoyed the plot and suspense MacPhail set when Maxine's parents had found and identified a body as Derek's, and when Maxine was constantly receiving eerie phone calls from what seemed to be a mere "prankster" claiming to be Derek, her so-called "dead" brother. At the end of this selection, Derek came home in one piece, after hiding in the cemetery all along; afraid to come out of the shadows. To be bl...more

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May 01, 2009 Mr. Z rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: a-classroom-library, family-life, mystery

Ever since Maxine's brother went missing, it seems like she can't get any attention from her parents. They seem to ignore her as they continue holding out hope that their long-time missing son will finally return home. This routine has been going on for so long that Maxine can't help but think the unthinkable - she actually wishes that her brother would be found dead! That way, she reasons, she will get the attention back that she's been missing since her brother's disappearance. What DID happen...more

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Sep 29, 2009 Brie added it

Maxine Moody always wondered what it would be like to be an only child and she is about to find out .Maxine’s brother, dearek, had gone missing she thought she would like this but she didn’t . All her parents thought and wondered about was dearek, they had no room left in there hearts for her. Every time there was a sighting of him she was dropped on a neighbors door step .She wished dearek was dead. Her parents got a call that dearek was dead, Maxine was very happy but that next day she got a p...more

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Jun 08, 2011 Emma (BelleBooks) rated it 4 of 5 stars

I can remember reading this book as a teenager in school and I loved it.
I recently re-read it and I still love it!

Missing follows Maxine and her family as they each in their own way try to come to terms with the disappearance of Derek, Maxine's big brother.
The family are slowly starting to rip apart and Maxine is feeling more and more left out as her parents ship her off to anyone who will have her to chase down the next lead.
When the news comes that a body has been found, and Maxine's father id...more

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Nov 24, 2011 Taylor.Y rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

“Maxine, it’s me Derek,” Maxine responds, “No it can’t be Derek, Derek’s dead!”

Maxine is a 13-year-old girl with a big attitude who lives in a small town. A few months ago her big brother Derek ran away or as her parents say, went missing. Ever since then Maxine feels extremely unloved. Maxine thinks her parents don’t care what she does or where she goes, so she doesn’t go to school instead, she goes to Sweeny’s dads arcade to battle the Mighty Zola. Sweeny is a big bully that Maxine strongly d...more “Maxine, it’s me Derek,” Maxine responds, “No it can’t be Derek, Derek’s dead!”

Maxine is a 13-year-old girl with a big attitude who lives in a small town. A few months ago her big brother Derek ran away or as her parents say, went missing. Ever since then Maxine feels extremely unloved. Maxine thinks her parents don’t care what she does or where she goes, so she doesn’t go to school instead, she goes to Sweeny’s dads arcade to battle the Mighty Zola. Sweeny is a big bully that Maxine strongly dislikes.

It turns out that Maxine’s parents, Mrs. And Mr. Moody do care about Maxine because, her teacher told them that Maxine wasn’t at school. They were worried where she was. The Moodys didn’t want to loose another loved one but Maxine didn’t know that.

Mrs. Moody calls a psychic to see if she could reach out to Derek. As the psychic is telling Mrs. Moody that she feels Derek’s spirit in the room. Maxine walked in to the house and her mom didn’t even notice her, Maxine was convinced her mom didn’t care for her. Mrs. Moody cared too much for Derek that she’ll have no love for her thought Maxine as she lied on her bed.

Ring, Ring Maxine hears the phone ring in the middle of the night. “Hello” said Maxine. “Hi Maxie,” Maxie thought Maxine, only Derek ever called me Maxie, “It’s me Derek,” said the mysterious voice. “No it can’t be Derek, Dereks dead!” Maxine said angrily as she slammed the phone down. ‘Derek’ kept on calling but Maxine didn’t want to tell her parents cause they ‘didn’t care’.

Maxine’s only and closest friend is Cam and he’s the only person who wouldn’t think she’s crazy getting phone calls from her ‘dead’ brother. “Maybe it’s a crook,” said Cam. “ What if it’s actually Derek, because I found his necklace in the church the other day. I gave it to him on his last birthday before he ran away.” Said Maxine.

Ring, Ring “Hello” said Maxine. “So now you know that I’m Derek, lets meet tomorrow in the cemetery at my grave.” said supposedly ‘Derek’. The next morning at school Maxine run up to Cam and said, “I’m meeting ‘Derek’ at his grave this afternoon.” “No don’t go, it’s probably a crook!” said Cam.

Will Maxine go to meet ‘Derek’ or will she tell her parents? What will she do? Is ‘Derek’ actually Derek, or is it a crook? What happens to Maxine?

Missing. This suspenseful, mystery written By Katherine MacPhail. I liked how at the end of every chapter I just wanted to keep on reading. I found that at the end it wasn’t too exciting, so I was like, “that’s it?” when I found out what happens with Derek.

I think the author chose Missing as the title because it’s about a boy who goes missing. (The titles pretty self-explanatory)
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Jul 13, 2010 Kimberly rated it 5 of 5 stars

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Jun 01, 2011 Tally rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: reviewed

Years ago, reading it for the first time, I was in love with it. Now I find it the perfect book to reread again and again as it never fails to seem like new.

I have found it intriguing in every aspect. Though there were parts that I knew ahead of time that would happen, I still found myself turning page after page. I think the author did a great job writing it, the characters' reactions seem genuine and I guess that's what keeps me rereading this over the years.

*spoiler*
I'm picky about endings wh...more

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Nov 20, 2012 Matthew Don rated it 4 of 5 stars

Maxine is living with her older brother's disappearance. She is left out by her Mum and her father is trying to cope. Then, they get the call they had been dreading. Derek's body is found. Then, Maxine starts getting mysterious calls from someone hailing to be Derek. She can't tell anyone. But, she confides in smartie-pants Cam. Together, can they stop these mysterious calls, and find out which sick pranker is behind this...

Missing, suspenseful, is written wonderfully by Catherine MacPhail, who...more

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Sep 10, 2010 Pksoper rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2010

I really liked this book. I'm not sure if it's sophisticated enough for a 12 year-old. I would say that a readerly 9-10 year-old would love it.

Maxine's family has (and is continuing to) fall apart over the disappearance of Derek, the oldest child. The mom goes to mediums, the dad tries to support the mom, and Maxine is left to raise herself (at least according to Maxine). So, when she starts getting phone calls from Derek, are they real? Who can she talk to about them?

Reading this book was a goo...more

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Nov 02, 2010 Noahm rated it 3 of 5 stars

i liked this book it was better than it looked

this book is by catherine macphail. i chose this book because it seemed like an interesting story from the back so i read a couple of pages then decided to keep reading. i finished this book in about 4 days.
this book whas about a girl that had a brother that ran away he ran away because he couldent take the way his parents were treating him. when he left there was another boy he switched cloths with him and then that boy died in a fire that night wel...more

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Jan 08, 2011 Naomi rated it 3 of 5 stars

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. I have to say that it was nice just to read a book that didn't have a sequel and was really short. I've read too many series that are between 300 and 500 pages. It was such a relief to read a short book. I did buy this about 2-3 years ago. I lost it, and when I found it this last summer, I had too many other books that I wanted to read first. I was bored and remembered the book. In all, the book was a quick read to take my mind off things and keep me busy.
I have to say though, the book was somew...more

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Apr 28, 2013 Ali rated it 3 of 5 stars

I came across this book while sifting around in the library, as usual, and remembered that I had read this one back in elementary school. Although I don't remember exact details I just distinctly recall the book making me feel sad while reading it. A young girls brother goes missing and I had put myself in her shoes, since my brother is one of the most important things to me. I don't remember the ending much but have an idea about it. I recall it being a pretty good and real quick read.

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Sep 12, 2010 Ayaka rated it 3 of 5 stars

I was very surprised by this last part of the story. It was .... amazing! Very surprised!! However, the story was a little bit sad stoyr. I forgot the name of main character.. but the story begin with the case:her(main character) brother had disappeared. Because of this, main character feels loneliness, because her parents are thinking about her brother only. She was thinking so. However, the end was very good✿ I liked it!!

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Sep 18, 2012 Angie added it

Missing, by Catherine MacPhail. Is a very different mysterious book in which adds a twist to what would usually happen, in other mystery books. Have you ever thought that some one was watching you, but you just didn't realize until you got an utter feeling? The fact that something wasn't right that you just had to find what was wrong. Even if it meant risking something that was supposedly gone when it really wasn't?

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May 30, 2008 Zulema rated it 5 of 5 stars

I enjoyed the book Missing a lot.It is an amazing boook that i enjoyed reading. I read this book in like abpout two days. Let me tell you, i am not a big fan of books and abosolutely love this one. I rdont read because i want to but because i have to and this book turned it all around. I was hooked on by the first couple of pages. I couldnt put the book down. I love this book. I learned from this book that you should have hope no matter what happens and what gets in your way. In the book, the m...more

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Mar 08, 2008 (A) Archers at KIPP rated it 5 of 5 stars

Recommended to (A) Archers by: Zuly

Shelves: girls-have-read

I enjoyed the book Missing a lot.It is an amazing boook that i enjoyed reading. I read this book in like abpout two days. Let me tell you, i am not a big fan of books and abosolutely love this one. I rdont read because i want to but because i have to and this book turned it all around. I was hooked on by the first couple of pages. I couldnt put the book down. I love this book. I learned from this book that you should have hope no matter what happens and what gets in your way. In the book, the ma...more

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Jun 08, 2011 Charan Sandhu rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: everyone

Shelves: read-in-2011

Missing was an exciting book to read. As I started I got into the story and kept flipping until I was done. The emotion of love and hatred portrayed by Maxine for her brother makes it even more interesting. Her change of emotions for her brother kept the story interesting. At one point I felt like everyone was a suspect even Cam when she talks about the possibility. This book gives out a strong message that can not go on unnoticed. Bullying is a big problem, especially amongst teens. Many of the...more

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Jan 08, 2011 Monique rated it 3 of 5 stars

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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title link	preview: Missing
avg rating	preview: Missing Goodreads rating: 3.56 (575 ratings)
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