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Things Not Seen (Things, Bk 1)
Things Not Seen - Things, Bk 1
Author: Andrew Clements
Bobby Phillips is an average fifteen-year-old boy. Until the morning he wakes up and can't see himself in the mirror. Not blind, not dreaming. Bobby is just plain invisible... — There doesn't seem to be any rhyme or reason to Bobby's new condition; even his dad the physicist can't figure it out. For Bobby that means no school, no ...  more »
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ISBN-13: 9780439531061
ISBN-10: 0439531063
Publication Date: 10/2002
Pages: 251
Rating:
  • Currently 3.9/5 Stars.
 25

3.9 stars, based on 25 ratings
Publisher: Scholastic
Book Type: Paperback
Other Versions: Hardcover, Audio Cassette, Audio CD
Reviews: Member | Amazon | Write a Review

Top Member Book Reviews

reviewed Things Not Seen (Things, Bk 1) on
Helpful Score: 4
Interesting premise. The writing style was short and abrupt. I didn't care for that, but my kids did. My kids really identified with the struggles the main character was going through. The target audience is obviously young teens. It was a good read.
Terabithia avatar reviewed Things Not Seen (Things, Bk 1) on + 71 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 1
It's a Tuesday morning in February, and I get up as usual, and I stumble into the bathroom to take a shower in the dark. Which is my school-day method because it's sort of like an extra ten minutes of sleep.
It's after the shower when it happens.
It's when I turn on the bathroom light and wipe the fog off the mirror to comb my hair. It's what I see in the mirror. It's what I don't see.
I look a second time, and then rub at the mirror again.
I'm not there.
That's what I'm saying.
I'm. Not. There.
ophelia99 avatar reviewed Things Not Seen (Things, Bk 1) on + 2527 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 1
I got this book on a whime, because the premise sounded interesting. It was a decent book overall; although not so spectacular that I want to read the next two books in the series.

Bobby wakes up one morning to discover that he is invisible. No one can see him and he can't see himself. What seems kind of cool at first, is actually quite a problem as Bobby and his family try to figure out what happened and Bobby tries to struggle through normal everyday life. He ends up meeting a blind girl named Alicia; they are both invisible to people in their own way. Bobby and Alicia form an unlikely friendship that helps Bobby to deal with his invisibility.

This was a pretty good book. Bobby and Alicia are likable characters, as are their parents. Bobby has to struggle with interesting issues as an invisible person. He can't go to school and can't even go out places unless he goes au natural. Bobby's condition is dealt with in detail given that his dad is a successful physicist that is determined to fix his son. We learn strange facts like the fact that Bobby's spit is invisible, but things he holds in his hand do not become invisible.

Of course this book, like many books dealing with teenagers, is about more than Bobby becoming invisible. It is about how Bobby felt invisible before he actually became invisible and how his parents react to his invisibility. It is about how people, including surrounding society, deal with disabilities. It is also about Bobby and Alicia, from very different social circles, form a steadfast friendship because of their respective disabilities. They would have probably never even tried to get to know each other if it wasn't for Alicia's blindness and Bobby's invisibility.

The book is a quick read and keeps you engaged. The writing is not spectacular, but it is very readable. Overall it was an interesting read and deals with some interesting topics. I liked it. The story wraps up very nicely at the end. I actually had no idea that there were two additional books dealing with Bobby and Alicia until I looked up this book on Amazon. Will I read those books? Probably not, I got what I wanted from the book and am not really all that interested in what happens to Bobby and Alicia next.
reviewed Things Not Seen (Things, Bk 1) on
Helpful Score: 1
this book is about a boy who was turned invisible and then he had to try to figure out how to get back to normal.
shannonm avatar reviewed Things Not Seen (Things, Bk 1) on
Helpful Score: 1
Really good book, the setting gets stuck at parts (because he's stuck at staying home and going to the library) but the events keep it going and make you want to keep reading to find out what happens next. The "friendship" Bobby and Alicia have is really nice and cute too :)
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chermoli avatar reviewed Things Not Seen (Things, Bk 1) on + 4 more book reviews
Very different view of child and his dead father.
banana27 avatar reviewed Things Not Seen (Things, Bk 1) on + 12 more book reviews
great read also read all of clement's books


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