Customer Reviews

Caught in the Act

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Mike Kelly, an orphan from New York City, is sent West to live with a family from Germany. Though he misses his family and friends he keeps is promise to his mom and Mrs. Banks. Mr. Friedrick is a man who believes that a good beating is an excellent way to keep a kid in line. As the story progresses, Hans Friedrich is suspected by Mike to have murdered two people, Mike's friend, Reuben, and another man named Ulrich. I read this book without stopping, for I could not look away. I definately intend to read numbers three and four of the Orphan Train Quartet.

"Caught In The Act" continues the story of the six Kelly children that were were sent away to get adopted by new families because their mother feels that she cannot afford to keep them. I read the first book in the series called "A Family Apart" and it was about the children getting adopted by new families and the second part was about Frances Kelly's adventures with her family. This book talks about how Michael Kelly is doing with the Friedrichs. Mike's main concern is that he believes that the Friedrichs are hiding something from him. He thinks this because he overheard a conversation about somebody named Ulrich. Mike's opinion is that Mr. Friedrich killed him. The story is all about Mike's adventure.

I really enjoyed the novel because it's interesting to see what life was like back in that time. So far I have read the books: A Family Apart, Caught In The Act and In The Face Of Danger. I'm going to read the whole series! If you are thinking of buying this book buy A Family Apart first.

Michael Patrick Kelly, a boy who steals to feed his family, is actually a very good kid. He would shine the customer (or victim's) shoes and then pick their pocket. However, he is caught, and sentenced to five years at Tombs prison- or to be sent west to start a new life. He goes west. And that, my friend, is how everything begins. Everyone of his siblings gets good parents- except him. Hans Friedrich, a rather bulky,er, really bulky man with a temper like a bomb- ready to go off. Gunter Friedrich, a 13 year old who hates Mike and is always trying to get him into trouble. And he does,too. Mrs. Friedrich is a lovely and nice cook. The maid, Marta,is in love with a rowdy boy-who loves her back! And Rueben-the hired hand is Mike's best friend. But when Reuben suddenly disapears, and a freshly dug plot of dirt turns up that day, Mike has a creeping suspicion of Mr.Friedrich, and if he will be next...

Caught in the Act is about a boy, Mike Kelly, who is sent on the Orphan Train but, unfortunately he is left with the Friedrichs. This German family moved to the U.S. to flee from someone or something. This fled turns to turmoil which causes Mike head to spin which might lead to be beaten or be the last victim of three or least he thinks. If you like suspense, mysteries, conflicts, abrupt uproars,or just plain old horror/ questionable murder books you shoulid read this book.

This book is definantly worth reading. I read the first book in the series and then went to this one. It was exciting and I couldn't put it down. I highly recommend it.

A twelve year old boy named Mike kelly is sent west on the orphan train because he was a theif.He was adopted by the Friedrichs.Gunter a thirteen year old boy who hates Mike and lies to get him beaten and send back to New York.Will he succeed? Read this book to find out.

My daughter (age 10) read the first book of the Orphan Train series for an extracurricular club at school and loved it! She asked me to find the remaining books and _devoured_ them! She says the books told interesting stories and placed them well in an earlier time that was easy to picture and understand. I read the first book in the series and have to agree! My daughter recommends that these all be read in order and give yourself a lot of time to finish them all!

This was a very nice story for 5th to 8th graders. My middle school aged daughter really likes the Orphan Train Adventures series. These books tend to be easy to read and understand so they are great for children who struggle with reading comprehension. And, the storyline is exciting enough to keep the interest of older children. If your child enjoys reading about people's lives from the past, then they would enjoy this book.

Next on my list of rereads from childhood is the second book in the Orphan Train Saga, focusing on Mike, the oldest brother in the Kelly family. Unlike his siblings, Mike is placed in a less than desirable home with the Fredericks. Historically, Mike's story in this book, (he is adopted merely as a hired hand), is probably the most accurate outcome for children placed through the Orphan Train.

The story is a page turner, Mike's adopted brother tries to get him in trouble and sent back to New York City where prison awaits, murder, mystery et. al. It reads like the dime novels of the time that Mike is so fond of. What is also interesting is that Mike acts like how a 12 year old boy would. He jumps to conclusions about his adopted family based on conversations overheard, he's impulsive and out of all the Kelly children so far the most complex.

Caught in the Act, is miles better than the previous enslavement even though it ends with convenient "happily ever after" ending (Mike is adopted by a new family and cleared of all charges). I look forward to rereading Mike's next book, A Dangerous Promise.

Michael Patrick Kelly, age 11, is one of his five brothers and sisters who are being sent west on an orphan train by their Ma so they can live a better life than they've had working on the streets of New York City. While his brothers and sisters are placed in good homes, Mike finds life difficult with the family he has been adopted into, especially since he had been a pickpocket out of necessity in New York and going west had been his only other choice besides being sent to Tombs Prison. Mr Friedrich, the father, believes that Mike is nothing but trouble and beats him whenever his temper rises. Gunter, the 13 yr. old who hates Mike and would like to see him sent back to NY and Tombs Prison,tries everything he can to get him in trouble. Most of the time, he succeeds, but Mike remains determined and stays with them despite Gunter's efforts. Mrs.Friedrich is a motherly woman who gladly welcomes his placement in their family, and Mike finds a true friend in Reuben, the hired hand, and Marta, who is a housekeeper for the Friedrichs. While Mike is in the wagon on the way to his new home, he overhears a whispered conversation about a man named Ulrich that disappeared. Apparently, Mr.Friedrich thinks that Mike is just like Ulrich and that he should be "taken care of". As the days pass, Mike hears more tidbits of conversation and believes that Mr. Friedrich has killed Ulrich and that he is afraid someone is going to find his out secret. Mike tries to pry more information loose out of Marta, but she only hints that she knows something which does not need concern him. When Reuben disappears after a fight with Mr.Friedrich, Mike can only fear the worst, and later while in the woods he spies a freshly dug patch of dirt. And then on a trip to St. Joseph, Missouri, he openly tells the people at the general store that Reuben is gone and that he suspects Mr.Friedrich of his murder.What will happen next to Mike--Will he find Reuben?And who was Ulrich? Read this 2nd book in the Orphan Train Quartet by Joan Lowery Nixon to find out the happy ending to Mike's story.