Voices after Midnight [Paperback]

Richard Peck (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 1, 1990

Why is Chad so uneasy when his California family rents a town house in New York City?  Once there he hears voices--late at night, after midnight in this strange house that's at least one hundred years old.



Then he finds that his younger brother, Luke, hears them, too, and even their older sister Heidi's afraid to stay in the house alone.



As Chad and Luke explore the house, they begin to slip in and out of their own time, back to the winter of 1888.  Are the voices they hear crying out for help?  Will Chad ignore the voices or plunge into the unknown danger of one handred years before?

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

PW singled out this tale of time travel for its "superb characterization and careful historical background." Ages 10-14.
Copyright 1990 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From the Publisher

Why is Chad so uneasy when his California family rents a town house in New York City? Once there he hears voices--late at night, after midnight in this strange house that's at least one hundred years old.

Then he finds that his younger brother, Luke, hears them, too, and even their older sister Heidi's afraid to stay in the house alone.

As Chad and Luke explore the house, they begin to slip in and out of their own time, back to the winter of 1888. Are the voices they hear crying out for help? Will Chad ignore the voices or plunge into the unknown danger of one handred years before?

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 192 pages
• Publisher: Yearling (November 1, 1990)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0440403782
• ISBN-13: 978-0440900290
• Product Dimensions: 7.4 x 5.1 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #756,656 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Richard Peck has written over twenty novels, and in the process has become one of America's most highly respected writers for young adults. A versatile writer, he is beloved by middle graders as well as young adults for his mysteries and coming-of-age novels. He now lives in New York City. In addition to writing, he spends a great deal of time traveling around the country attending speaking engagements at conferences, schools and libraries...Mr. Peck has won a number of major awards for the body of his work, including the Margaret A. Edwards Award from School Library Journal, the National Council of Teachers of English/ALAN Award, and the 1991 Medallion from the University of Southern Mississippi. Virtually every publication and association in the field of children s literature has recommended his books, including Mystery Writers of America which twice gave him their Edgar Allan Poe Award. Dial Books for Young Readers is honored to welcome Richard Peck to its list with Lost in Cyberspace and its sequel The Great Interactive Dream Machine...

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars CINDERELLA IN REEBOKS, October 10, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Voices after Midnight (Paperback)

Wow--this is one fascinating read, less about ghosts than true Time Travel! The plot hooks you right in subtly, then proceeds with inevitable events, to conclude with a satsifying ending. Of equal interest to boys and girls, this book attempts to answer the adolescent quandry: how do you know when a girl has a romance on the side?

Three California-grown kids are suddenly confronted by New York City's pop culture and Victorian history when they vacation there for two weeks with their parents and family dog one summer. The boys hear/dream voices at night and see strange, anachronistic sights by day. Soon they themselves are slipping through temporal portals, first by surprise, then by design. They gain information and perspective about the family that used to own their rented, multi-storied house. Yet their adventures are not always the same year in the Past, nor the same season as in the Present.

Of course their parents are clueless about these historical peregrinations, but it becomes more serious than mere parlor tricks--invisibly observing social interactions of the 19th century. The kids gradually realize that they have a task to accomplish in the Past; they they were chosen to perform some unselfish act for strangers long dead. Soon it becomes a true rescue mission of utmost urgency, yet the kids face grave danger themselves, if they can not get "back to the future." How much must they sacrifice for these strangers who have unwittingly touched their lives?

Do the kids have the right to attempt "unfinished business," thereby tampering with history, even it it proves to be compassionate meddling? At first they exist 90% of the time in the present and slip back or make contact with the past about 10%. But as the novel progresses they spend increasingly more time in historical New York City: the freak blizzard of March 1888. Can they get back in time to accomplish their self-imposed mission, yet not become trapped themselves? And if they succeed, how many family histories will be altered? Peck's tongue-in-cheek humor about teenage lifestyles lightens up an otherwise serious read. This is great stuff--even better than Blossom Culp!

10 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Vocies After Midnight, May 29, 2000

By 

Eliza Muench (New York-The United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Voices After Midnight (Hardcover)

In "Voices After Midnight" Chad,Luke,their older sister Heidi,parents and family dog Al take a vaction from California to New York City. When they arrive there Chad and Luke are hearing voices late into the night-after midnight.This house is a least one hundred years old, are they hearing voices from the past? Heidi is acting stranger by the second, is it becuase of her mom's friends daughter Jocelyn? Or something else? Now everytime Chad and Luke open doors slowly they go back to the past-to 1888, or 1929 or just a couple weeks ago. Soon they start to see the Dunlaps people that lived there over one hundred years ago. Chad is starting to think his brother is right, mabey they do have a gift or better yet a mission. Can Chad and Luke change the past to save the Dunlaps from the bizzard of 1888? When they go to a New Year's Eve party at a very rich family's manor they find their sister-Heidi waltzing with non other than Tyler Dunlap. Then they find out that she is also living in his old bedroom. Tyler can't seem to take his eyes off of her-but he's also asking questions she can't answer. Heidi makes the owners of the house daughter VERY angery at Tyler for waltzing with someone other than her. Luke and Chad are very suprised that Heidi of all people has the gift to travle in time. They're soon to find out that if you're wearing clothes from the past you're visible. Tyler has a younger sister the same age as Chad -Emily, and Chad has a little crush himself. Can Chad,Luke,and Heidi save Emily,and Tyler from freezing in the blizzard of 1888?

5.0 out of 5 stars One of Pecks best, April 9, 2007

By 

Sarah M. Atkinson (Columbus, IN United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Voices after Midnight (Paperback)

Voices after Midnight was the first Richard Peck book I read and out of the ones I have read so far it is the best. I read this first as a kid then again as an adult and I never stopped liking it. The different characters weave in and out of time till they get to the right time and accomplish what they need to do. Also if you like this book I think you might also like Time for Andrew by Mary Downing Hahn.