The Face on the Milk Carton Summary
The Face on the Milk Carton by Caroline B. Cooney is a 1995 novel about a girl who realizes that she is the victim of a kidnapping.
- Janie Johnson is a typical fifteen-year-old girl until she sees her own face on a milk carton and realizes that she was kidnapped as a child.
- With the help of her boyfriend, Reeve, Janie begins to piece together her past and learns that she was taken from her biological parents by a woman named Hannah.
- Hannah claimed that Janie was her daughter, and the Johnsons believed her. But when Hannah deserted them, they took Janie and fled their former life to avoid being discovered by the cult to which Hannah belonged.
Summary
During lunch one school day, fifteen-year-old Janie Johnson's world is turned upside down when she sees a picture of a kidnapped child on a milk carton and realizes it is herself. This discovery triggers a series of flashbacks, leading Janie (whose real name is Jennie Spring) to recall memories of her family and the events surrounding her abduction. With the help of her confidant and boyfriend, Reeve, Janie confronts her parents and learns that she was left with them by their daughter, Hannah. The Johnsons believe Hannah's story that Janie is their granddaughter and that both Hannah and Janie are being hunted by a religious cult Hannah joined after running away from home. When Hannah abandons them, the Johnsons take Janie and flee their old life. They move to Connecticut and change their last name from Javenson to Johnson to avoid the cult's detection. However, the Johnsons only know part of the truth about Janie's real identity.
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