The Face on the Milk Carton

By: Caroline B. Cooney

Narrated by: Alyssa Bresnahan

When 15-year-old Janie Johnson sees her own face in the missing children box on a milk carton, her world begins to blur. Was she kidnapped when she was a baby? Who are her parents? And who are Mr. and Mrs. Johnson? Janie’s search for the answers will lead her back 12 years into memories of another house, another family, another life. Her questions threaten to destroy the love she feels for her parents and the security they have given her. But it is a search she cannot ignore.

The Face on the Milk Carton has been extremely popular ever since it was first released. An IRS-CBC Children’s Choice Book, it also has been made into a frequently-aired television special. Recorded Books is proud to offer an unabridged recording of this riveting story that takes on new drama and urgency through Alyssa Bresnahan’s stirring narration.

©1990 Caroline B. Cooney (P)1998 Recorded Books

great story

At first it was kinda awkward but then it was leaving me on the edge.of.my.seat!

Emotional Rollercoaster

I throughly enjoyed this listen. Great performance and the author does an excellent job of diving into the mind of a teenage girl. Janie is going through an identity crisis! Being a normal teenager is already hard stuff, but man did Cooney make me remember all the reasons why I'm glad to be in my 30s. As a mother, this was an emotional read. I imagine as a teenager it would be even more so. It's not legendary writing, but as an avid reader that didn't expect the plot twist. I was surprised and it was a good ending. Now, off to start the second book.

big cliffhanger

I wish it had a better ending. I'm not a fan of cliffhangers, but it was a good story.

A Good Listen

In which Janie finds a milk carton and says/thinks the word “milk carton” a bajillion times until you forget the meaning of the words and assume it’s just random syllables. But really, Janie finds a milk carton that has a child that looks just like she did when she was younger printed on the back. Janie spends the rest of the novel wondering if she was kidnapped and if she was kidnapped, would she be willing to leave the only parents she had ever know?

Okay. I “listened” to “The Face on the Milk Carton” when I was, what, 14-years-old. I remember thinking that the characters were so grown up and cool! I had the biggest crush on Reeve and thought that Janie was in the right for withholding information from everyone because who wants to tell their parents (or fake parents) something so big?!

Listening to the novel now? Well, of course it’s going to feel different. I’m 30 now, and so I’d know who to tell and what to do if something like this were to occur. I’ve lived my life a good 15 more years than Janie now. Still, I could feel my juvenile sense of apprehension about telling people you are conflicted with—should the parents be trusted, are they actually the parents, are they bad people? I can also remember the obsessive thoughts that could cloud anybody’s mind when faced with such an ordeal. Heck, I still have to deal with the constant flux of worries I have to sort out at the end of the day. Stuff like that can really take the joy out of something.

So, what am I trying to say? Well, “The Face on the Milk Carton” aged a bit. Some won’t understand cassette tapes or the minor pop culture references. But in the end, the novel is able to delve into the mind of a “15-year-old” and pull out the fears, thoughts, hopes, and dreams concerning Janie. It may not be perfect, but it was a good read either way.

(PS: The narrator was fine! Think, this was recorded back in 1999. Try listening to some of Alyssa Bresnahan's stuff now and she sounds way different, The point is, give this a chance.)

Longing

Good story line. Performance was good. The longing for a drivers license started the longing of feeling different and wanting answers!