Following the Mystery Man [Library Binding]

Mary Downing Hahn (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 1988

When Clint, a handsome, mysterious stranger, rents a room in Madigan's grandmother's house, Madigan becomes convinced that he is the father she's never met.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

When Madigan was very young, her mother died of cancer; her father had walked out on their marriage long before that. Madigan has grown up at her grandmother's rooming house, and now she is a sixth grader, just like her friend Angie. They are young enough to get the giggles, old enough to wonder about the new man who has taken a room at Grandmother's. Clint is kind to them, and Madigan begins to think of him as her father, coming back to claim her after many years. But Clint has a much more dangerous pastone readers will comprehend by the middle of the bookand Madigan's fantasies are stripped away when he kidnaps her. She escapes from him and eventually is reunited with her grandmother, but berates herself for believing her father had returned. Like Angie, readers might scoff at Madigan's fanciful ideas, but because she is such an earnest, likable heroine, she makes her foolishness believable and the story retains suspense. Ages 9-13.
Copyright 1988 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Product Details

• Library Binding: 180 pages
• Publisher: Clarion Books (March 1988)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0899196802
• ISBN-13: 978-0899196800
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.6 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,929,386 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Awesome, May 27, 2002

A Kid's Review

This review is from: Following the Mystery Man (Paperback)

Awesome book. It's about a young girl, Madigan, who lost her mother when she was a baby and her father ran away. One day a stranger comes to town and he needs a place to stay. She thinks that he might be her dad by the way he acts around her and the way he looks like her. He's really a robber. Madigan finds out. She's very upset. He catches her spying on him when he is hiding stolen goods, and he grabs her. The best part of the book is her escape. A very exciting story that keeps you guessing at every page. I think this author writes amazing books. I really enjoy her mysteries.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A memorable book, July 8, 2006

By 

LargeMargeSentMe (Ann Arbor, Mi United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Following the Mystery Man (Paperback)

This is not just a good book, it's an extremly memorable one. I read it 15 years ago, and I still remember how good it was! I remember being completely enthralled and on the edge of my seat throughout the book. Highly recommended!

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Mystery That Keeps You At The Edge Of Your Seat, October 30, 2001

A Kid's Review

This review is from: Following the Mystery Man (Paperback)

Following the Mystery Man is a fantastic mystery thats keeps the reader involved. It tells the story about a girl named Madigan who grows up in life wothout a mother or a father. A handsome young man named Clint comes to town, and gives all the evidence of being Madigan's father. Madigan gets ideas about Clint and follows him around. She figures something out that she wishes she hadn't; for this clue changed both Madigan's and Clint's life forver. Can Madigan solve this mystery without ending up in the middle of it? This story tells a story about a girl who depritly needs a father, a mother, or even a a friend. Does she need one so badly that she jums to conclusions, gets her self tied up in the action, and even hurt. From this story, I found how much my father means to me. I understand now, after reading the book, how much my dad means to me. I will now cherish every moment that I spend with my dad; I now don't know if he will one day pack his bags and leave like Madigan's father did.