by: Oudia Sebastyn

Review done by:

Erika Shelton

Grade 7

Van Antwerp Middle School

Niskayuna, NY

I read The girl in the Box by Oudia Sebastyn. This was a very good book. It was about a girl named Jackie McGee who one day gets kidnapped by a masked man, and is taken to an unknown place where she is then thrown into a very small cellar-type place. She is left with, food, water, typing paper, and a type writer. There is no light anywhere, except for a small slit in the wall which she uses as her day clock. There is no human contact between her and anyone else, and there is not a sound outside. She tries and tries to break down the heavy metal door that is keeping her from the outside world. She is forced to live her life for weeks in this cellar. She spends her time typing letters to the police, her parents, her friends, and her mysterious kidnapper. Jackie faces every day with the hope of being let out of this small dark cellar. This book is a collection of all of her letters to herself and others. Will she be let out, or will she be left there to die?

I really enjoyed this book because I knew exactly what Jackie was feeling. I felt like I was trapped in the cellar with her. She was very emotional through the whole book, and the author really did an excellent job of describing Jackieís feelings. The book really made an impact on me because of the ending. There were also some stories that Jackie wrote in the cellar that made an impact on me. After reading this book, I realized that this could happen to anyone, at anytime, and just how horrible it is. She wrote about her personal, problems,and she wrote letters to her dog. She did anything to keep her mind off of the other terrible thoughts in her mind. I think my favorite part of this book was the end. It wasnít at all what I had expected. I highly recommend this book to anyone who loves a good suspense/drama novel.