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Stanley Family #2
The Famous Stanley Kidnapping Case
When the four Stanley kids learn that the whole family is going to Italy for a year, they couldn't be more excited. Even grumpy Amanda, their stepsister, admits that they're bound to have quite an adventure.
But adventure turns into trouble when Amanda brags about having a rich father, and her news falls into the hands of the wrong people--kidnappers. When they strike, Red Mask and his gang find they can't take Amanda without nabbing all the Stanley kids.
Locked in a cellar and held for ransom, the children know they must plan an escape. Nothing short of a miracle will help the Stanleys now. Can they find some way to outfox the gang?
But adventure turns into trouble when Amanda brags about having a rich father, and her news falls into the hands of the wrong people--kidnappers. When they strike, Red Mask and his gang find they can't take Amanda without nabbing all the Stanley kids.
Locked in a cellar and held for ransom, the children know they must plan an escape. Nothing short of a miracle will help the Stanleys now. Can they find some way to outfox the gang?
212 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1979
14 people are currently reading
276 people want to read
About the author
Zilpha Keatley Snyder
82 books454 followersZilpha Keatley Snyder was an American author of books for children and young adults. Three of Snyder's works were named Newbery Honor books: The Egypt Game, The Headless Cupid and The Witches of Worm. She was most famous for writing adventure stories and fantasies.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 35 reviews
February 10, 2019
Legit props to Snyder for giving the book this title. You know these kids are going to be kidnaped and the fact that the first half of the book is just a travelogue about the family moving to Italy really ramps up the tension. Every time they go on a picnic, or their parents leave for work, you think . . . this is it! It's happening! And even though I've read this before, it was so long ago that I was just as anxious and surprised as my children when the kidnaping finally happened!
I also love how her Stanley family books are about seemingly ordinary kids dealing with kid stuff: siblings and stepsiblings, homework, crushes . . . and then wham! Somebody sees a ghost or a vision of the Virgin Mary! And then . . . back to homework! It's so normal and yet so surprising!
I also love how her Stanley family books are about seemingly ordinary kids dealing with kid stuff: siblings and stepsiblings, homework, crushes . . . and then wham! Somebody sees a ghost or a vision of the Virgin Mary! And then . . . back to homework! It's so normal and yet so surprising!
March 15, 2018
I have a pretty set reading routine when I go home to visit California. I read a Nancy Drew from my mom's extensive collection, usually a Babysitters Club, like, a hundred Sweet Pickles books to my girls, and always, always this one.
It's middle grade, the main character, David, is 11 (12?), but, in the tradition of middle grade fiction from the 80s, it's so smart and funny.
The mixed family goes to Italy for a year and, as the title would suggest, the kids get kidnapped, and this author is great at writing real stakes without the feeling that the axe is about to fall.
The characters (David, his two sisters, brother, and step-sister) are real people, fleshed out and funny and frustrating. David is a perfect straightman the kind of kid you wish you knew.
I've had lots of friends wonder about good books for their voracious young readers, and this is one of them.
It's middle grade, the main character, David, is 11 (12?), but, in the tradition of middle grade fiction from the 80s, it's so smart and funny.
The mixed family goes to Italy for a year and, as the title would suggest, the kids get kidnapped, and this author is great at writing real stakes without the feeling that the axe is about to fall.
The characters (David, his two sisters, brother, and step-sister) are real people, fleshed out and funny and frustrating. David is a perfect straightman the kind of kid you wish you knew.
I've had lots of friends wonder about good books for their voracious young readers, and this is one of them.
November 16, 2010
The first thing I have to get out of the way is that this book has a serious problem with getting started. It takes over 100 pages for the plot to really kick in, as nearly half the book is spent on preparation and setup. We're told that, due to a death in the family and inheritance, the kids will be spending a year in Italy. A few chapters later, they're in Italy, and the story becomes "A Tour of Italy and Uninteresting Characters", most of whom lose their importance once the titular kidnapping occurs. I found it a frustrating exercise in boredom, and began speedreading to get through it.
But eventually it happens. 13-year-old Amanda's bragging that she has a rich father, and 7-year-old Janie's showoffy use of her ability to learn Italian and brag the same, results in a group of hoods deciding to nab Amanda by luring her away from the home and taking her then. But 11-year-old David's suspicions result in him and the younger siblings going after her, and getting taken prisoner as well.
Most of the remaining half of the book takes place in the room the kids are locked in, but it's actually a lot more interesting and entertaining than the tour of Italy we were subjected to.
The mixture of personalities results in a blend of suspense and crazy chaos. Janie showboats her knowledge of Italian and many other subjects and has long conversations with her captors, and also translates for the rest of the gang. 4-year-old Esther complains a lot, and has Janie translate for her. 4-year-old Blair simply keeps quiet for the most part. David plans not to escape, but rather, to get the kids to endear themselves to the captors so they won't be killed in the end.
But Janie will have none of that, and her escape plans won't stop coming. Nor will her theatrics whenever she has an audience. Janie unintentionally throws a monkey wrench into David and Amanda's plans, and at one point, vice versa!
Anyway, what is there to say about a story that spends half of its time following a group of kids with diverse personalities locked up in a room? If their personalities weren't so much fun to watch together, it wouldn't be that interesting of a story. But instead, it's a lot of fun... once you get past the first 100 pages, much of which is merely filler.
But eventually it happens. 13-year-old Amanda's bragging that she has a rich father, and 7-year-old Janie's showoffy use of her ability to learn Italian and brag the same, results in a group of hoods deciding to nab Amanda by luring her away from the home and taking her then. But 11-year-old David's suspicions result in him and the younger siblings going after her, and getting taken prisoner as well.
Most of the remaining half of the book takes place in the room the kids are locked in, but it's actually a lot more interesting and entertaining than the tour of Italy we were subjected to.
The mixture of personalities results in a blend of suspense and crazy chaos. Janie showboats her knowledge of Italian and many other subjects and has long conversations with her captors, and also translates for the rest of the gang. 4-year-old Esther complains a lot, and has Janie translate for her. 4-year-old Blair simply keeps quiet for the most part. David plans not to escape, but rather, to get the kids to endear themselves to the captors so they won't be killed in the end.
But Janie will have none of that, and her escape plans won't stop coming. Nor will her theatrics whenever she has an audience. Janie unintentionally throws a monkey wrench into David and Amanda's plans, and at one point, vice versa!
Anyway, what is there to say about a story that spends half of its time following a group of kids with diverse personalities locked up in a room? If their personalities weren't so much fun to watch together, it wouldn't be that interesting of a story. But instead, it's a lot of fun... once you get past the first 100 pages, much of which is merely filler.
June 8, 2012
The Stanley family is off to Italy thanks to an inheritance left by Molly's uncle (which is just mildly implausible) and because of Amanda's bragging about her rich father, they get kidnapped (which is more implausible). Fortunately, however, the Stanleys are terribly fun to read about with genius six-year-old Janie, and the four-year-old twins, neat-freak "Tesser" and possibly supernatural Blair. They are ingenious and courageous in a scary situation, which young folks will enjoy reading about, and I, at 30 years of age, could not put down.
January 25, 2010
In Italy for a year, the Stanley children are acclimatizing nicely in their new surroundings. Then the unthinkable happens: kidnappers try to nab their stepsister Amanda, thinking her rich father will part with a million dollars to get her back. The kidnappers don't bargain on ALL the Stanley kids coming along. This is an entertaining and exciting story from start to finish. Part of the series about the Stanleys.
May 31, 2021
I enjoyed the episodic exploration of Italy and Stanley family dynamics more than the actual kidnapping. The book's best joke -- that nine year old Janie is the family's Italian language translator -- wears thin after a few days in the basement of a trio of Italian kidnappers. Still brilliant and brave and engaging in a way that modern children's books see not.
March 24, 2020
This was better when I was ten.
June 12, 2009
The Headless Cupid was one of my favorite books as a child. I still like it, so I was surprised when I ran across this while doign inventory of the library that I had never read it before.
I liked it, but not quite as well as Headless Cupid. It was fun to read more about the Stanley family.
Considering the title there is no real surprise that the story involves a kidnapping. The story takes a while to build up to the kidnapping, but doesn't really drag in doing so. I was a bit disappointed that the situation resolved very quickly, in only a few paragraphs. It felt a bit abrupt, but I guess life can be like that sometimes.
Overall a good summer read.
I liked it, but not quite as well as Headless Cupid. It was fun to read more about the Stanley family.
Considering the title there is no real surprise that the story involves a kidnapping. The story takes a while to build up to the kidnapping, but doesn't really drag in doing so. I was a bit disappointed that the situation resolved very quickly, in only a few paragraphs. It felt a bit abrupt, but I guess life can be like that sometimes.
Overall a good summer read.
April 2, 2014
I adored Snyder's The Egypt Game and have admired many of her other young adult novels, and was very delighted to stumble on one I hadn't read.
So I gobbled it up. It has the requisites which make, for me, a great y/a: a bunch of children, an excellent setting, and some drama.
That it didn't wholly work for me is maybe a function of my aging cynical mind and heart? Or perhaps that I just couldn't quite get in sync with the young narrator. But I do want to try others of the Stanley series and see if possibly I can be won over.
So I gobbled it up. It has the requisites which make, for me, a great y/a: a bunch of children, an excellent setting, and some drama.
That it didn't wholly work for me is maybe a function of my aging cynical mind and heart? Or perhaps that I just couldn't quite get in sync with the young narrator. But I do want to try others of the Stanley series and see if possibly I can be won over.
July 6, 2018
This was a fun story of a blended family of five children. They all get along fairly well and work together as a team to solve the case - in this instance to escape the kidnappers who believe they can get a huge ransom from their parents. The family has moved temporarily to Italy and it was enjoyable to learn of the lifestyle and culture as you read. Includes some supernatural phenomena - talks of a haunting in their old house and the younger brother seeing visions.
January 30, 2017
I think this book probably gets 3.5 stars overall. It was generally a very fun read, and I enjoyed reading it. However, the character of Jane annoyed me a little (even though she's also entertainingly precocious) and Esther apparently only cared about cleaning and food, which was a bit concerning. It was certainly a fun read overall, though.
February 13, 2018
I was really excited when I found out that Snyder wrote a series on the Stanley family. I love the Stanley siblings and their antics. And this one is no exception. The way the ids used their wits to come up with ideas is just amazing. Granted, David could have used more back bone but he played the part of an older brother really well. 😊
October 20, 2008
Adventure, drama, intrigue . . . why can't all books for kids be this fun?
October 20, 2018
Not quite as good as The Headless Cupid, but still thoroughly enjoyable. I am really enjoying re reading these as an adult. Recommended.
November 26, 2021
4.5 stars
Although only the second in the Stanley family series, The Famous Stanley Kidnapping Case is really the third one I've read, after The Headless Cupid(very good) and Blair's Nightmare(less good). I'm glad to report that Book 2 lives up to the quality of Snyder's better stories!
The Goodreads blurb and the beautiful but slightly misleading cover painting by Dave Henderson give a very different impression of what the story is. You might expect scatterbrained and ineffectual kidnappers in an unconventional comedy, as on the cover Red Mask looks more like he is helping Amanda with her math homework than forcing her to write her own ransom note. But the villains are surprisingly very menacing, and Red Mask especially is clearly not someone to be trifled with. Amanda and David's character growth is the highlight of the story, as they are in the terrifying position of trying to save not only themselves, but also three young children who don't fully comprehend the gravity of the situation. It's a psychologically very dark book by kidlit standards, but everything is handled carefully and foreshadowing keeps it from clashing with the lighter first part of the plot.
The only thing that didn't quite work for me was the wrap-up. It would have been great to see more of the things that were only told about. It's also a shame that there are none of Alton Raible's eerie illustrations for this sequel, but the text would work beautifully with or without pictures. If you like the way Zilpha Keatley Snyder combines dark themes with realistic childhood perspectives, The Famous Stanley Kidnapping Case is not to be missed!
Although only the second in the Stanley family series, The Famous Stanley Kidnapping Case is really the third one I've read, after The Headless Cupid(very good) and Blair's Nightmare(less good). I'm glad to report that Book 2 lives up to the quality of Snyder's better stories!
The Goodreads blurb and the beautiful but slightly misleading cover painting by Dave Henderson give a very different impression of what the story is. You might expect scatterbrained and ineffectual kidnappers in an unconventional comedy, as on the cover Red Mask looks more like he is helping Amanda with her math homework than forcing her to write her own ransom note. But the villains are surprisingly very menacing, and Red Mask especially is clearly not someone to be trifled with. Amanda and David's character growth is the highlight of the story, as they are in the terrifying position of trying to save not only themselves, but also three young children who don't fully comprehend the gravity of the situation. It's a psychologically very dark book by kidlit standards, but everything is handled carefully and foreshadowing keeps it from clashing with the lighter first part of the plot.
The only thing that didn't quite work for me was the wrap-up. It would have been great to see more of the things that were only told about. It's also a shame that there are none of Alton Raible's eerie illustrations for this sequel, but the text would work beautifully with or without pictures. If you like the way Zilpha Keatley Snyder combines dark themes with realistic childhood perspectives, The Famous Stanley Kidnapping Case is not to be missed!
June 9, 2020
As a older sibling of a more than three kids the sibling interaction felt quite real, and I laughed my way through their adventures leading up to the kidnapping.
Can’t say I have any major complaints besides two things,
1. The kids visit a Witch Doctor early on in the book that warned them of danger, and one of the children is hinted at having supernatural powers though it’s not really shown, the plot would be the same even if the scenes were omitted so I’m not sure what the point was.
2. Up to page 108 the book had been rather clean no swear words, or anything else alarming (besides one of the sisters having a crush but there’s no kissing or anything like that) but at page 108 near the end of the page there’s a plain as day swear word that jumped out of the page at me, after page 108 there were no other swear words.
Besides those two mishaps the book was rather enjoyable and I shall hand it down to my younger siblings to read. I give it a 5 out of 10 stars
Can’t say I have any major complaints besides two things,
1. The kids visit a Witch Doctor early on in the book that warned them of danger, and one of the children is hinted at having supernatural powers though it’s not really shown, the plot would be the same even if the scenes were omitted so I’m not sure what the point was.
2. Up to page 108 the book had been rather clean no swear words, or anything else alarming (besides one of the sisters having a crush but there’s no kissing or anything like that) but at page 108 near the end of the page there’s a plain as day swear word that jumped out of the page at me, after page 108 there were no other swear words.
Besides those two mishaps the book was rather enjoyable and I shall hand it down to my younger siblings to read. I give it a 5 out of 10 stars
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 2, 2022
Not as much fun as the first book in the series, which is a childhood favorite of mine (so that nostalgia factor boosts it), but I did love revisiting this family in a different setting. Their personalities are more distinct after reading the first book, and Zilpha Keatley Snyder's writing is so tongue-in-cheek and refreshing because it comes from David's POV and he's the only relatively normal child of the bunch.
I'm looking forward to reading the next book in this series.
I'm looking forward to reading the next book in this series.
July 23, 2019
It was great until they got kidnapped. Then it lost momentum.
February 19, 2020
It took a while for the story to really get into the plot, i didn’t realize it was part of a series, which explains a lot, but I did find it okay to read.
September 8, 2021
It was really good. I can't wait to get the next book.
December 14, 2021
This has a lot of extraneous detail and padding near the beginning, but the slice-of-life family details ring so true, and I laughed out loud multiple times.
April 5, 2025
Zilpha definitely has a captivating way of telling stories. Highly recommended for middle schoolers.
April 23, 2025
No where near as good as it should be.
March 5, 2023
D. fiction, children's fiction, upper elementary; suspense; from stash; discard
December 21, 2021
I wasn't overly impressed by The Headless Cupid, but this looks like fun.
It was.
I never know what to expect from Snyder. For example sometimes it seems like she's being more careful to communicate, whereas other times she's more obscure and makes the reader not only figure out some things, but guess at others. Specific example, the character of Blair. I wanted to get to know him better after the first book. Thankfully, in this one, she told us a lot more about him.
This is interesting in another way. It's an effective joining of two stories, really. The first part is about the family discovering Italy, and I really liked it, though some kids might get impatient for the adventure promised by the title. Then the adventure begins, and it's more humorous than anything (because we know, of course, that there will be a happy ending). It's just thrilling enough for the reader to feel shivers and have interesting dreams, not terrifying imo.
I think that if you're interested you would be glad to make time for it.
(it's short, and you don't need to read the first book first).
It was.
I never know what to expect from Snyder. For example sometimes it seems like she's being more careful to communicate, whereas other times she's more obscure and makes the reader not only figure out some things, but guess at others. Specific example, the character of Blair. I wanted to get to know him better after the first book. Thankfully, in this one, she told us a lot more about him.
This is interesting in another way. It's an effective joining of two stories, really. The first part is about the family discovering Italy, and I really liked it, though some kids might get impatient for the adventure promised by the title. Then the adventure begins, and it's more humorous than anything (because we know, of course, that there will be a happy ending). It's just thrilling enough for the reader to feel shivers and have interesting dreams, not terrifying imo.
I think that if you're interested you would be glad to make time for it.
(it's short, and you don't need to read the first book first).
December 1, 2008
Ugh. I am so behind on my reviews. This is pretty good when compared to The Headless Cupid and definitely better than Blair's Nightmare. The humor is still there although some of the kids' personality is lacking. Family dynamics continue to be good and the hi-jinks are still well written.
September 17, 2013
Weaving very far afield from the previous book's genre, there are still scares to be had, but this time in the form of mundane kidnappers. The characters stay the same, in the face of an Italian adventure, and are the real treasure here.
October 17, 2007
I read this in elementary school.
While not as good as her other books, I did enjoy this one.
While not as good as her other books, I did enjoy this one.
Read
April 24, 2008This one was a great continuation of the first book. I just loved Janie in this book.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 35 reviews