When Jeff Comes Home

by Catherine Atkins

Book Overview

It's been two years since Jeff Hart was kidnapped. Now, his abductor is releasing him to return home. When Jeff finds his family, he feels shell-shocked and unable to tell anyone what happened. He... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0399233660
• ISBN13: 9780399233661
• Release Date: September 1999
• Publisher: G. P. Putnam's Sons
• Length: 231 Pages
• Weight: 0.90 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 5.8" x 8.6"
• Age Range: 12 to 17 years
• Grade Range: Grades 7 to 12

Customer Reviews

When Jeff Comes Home - - 10 stars out of 5

This book is REALLY good. If I were a teacher I would have my class read this book. I can't imagine going through something like Jeff, the main character, did. Not only did Jeff have to live with what happened, but he also had to endure the criticism of his peers after it was all over. I don't think that I would be able to live with myself after an experience like that. I can completely understand the reason for his apprehensiveness towards touch. Ray, the guy that had originally kidnapped Jeff, is unimaginably horrible. You will have no idea, until you read this book. But the plot through this book is not only interesting and nerve wracking, but it's also a complete twist at the end that I never would have expected.

Terrific.

I'm really interested in kidnappings and have read lots of books about them, both fiction and nonfiction. This I think is one of my favorites. All the characters were very well done, particularly Jeff and Vin. Vin was my favorite character, the way he wouldn't give up, trying to help Jeff even as Jeff pushed him away. What happened to Jeff, the beatings and the molestations, are written about in such a way so that you know it all but not too much -- many writers less talented would turn this story into something like sadomasochistic pornography, but Catherine Atkins is much more subtle than that. Jeff's recovery with all the fits and starts seems realistic to me, and I felt like cheering when he said he was ready to talk though of course it will be years before he ever feels really safe again. A great novel; I look forward to reading future works by this author.

from a reader in Fairbanks, AK

WHEN JEFF COMES HOME is the book I wish I could have written. Ms. Atkins brings Jeff, his fear, confusion, his heartbreak and finally his courage to stunning realization in this first person POV. Jeff, kidnapped at thirteen, then released and returned to his family at sixteen doesn't know who he is anymore. Recent criticisms of the book focusing on why the kidnapper releases him have missed the subtleties of the book. Jeff is too old to be of sexual interest to Ray, his kidnapper, but retaining control and continuing to torture him in another way is the second act of Ray's vicious drama. And Jeff doesn't know who to protect. Ray, who did release him, his family, or himself.The art of this book is in what isn't said. The writer trusts the reader to see through Jeff's mental confusion. The reader desperately wants Jeff to recognize his path to recovery. Easily the best YA I've read this year.

Sensitive Portrayal

Through Jeff's eyes, Catherine Atkins shows how victims often feel guilt,shame and somehow responsible for their situation. Anger, low self-esteem, depression, and fear...all these feelings are tangled up inside of him, when Jeff comes home. He thinks he's expected to act normal, but how can he, with what he's been through? Pretend you're human, he tells himself.Before I read this book, I empathized with abuse victims, but never really understood how deeply the assault affects a victims' psyche. Atkins skillfully puts the reader in the victim's shoes. I felt Jeff's emotional scars and pain so vividly, I had a lump in my throat while I read. When Jeff Comes Home is a sensitive portrayal of a young victim of sexual abuse, a book well worth reading and discussing.

What are family and friends for anyway?

What an achievement this novel is! Not only has Catherine Atkins brought to life an engaging yet enigmatic adolescent named Jeff, but has also created a "ring true" set of characters around him whose lives he affects in deep ways. Abducted and sexually abused for two and a half miserable years, Jeff is finally able to return home. What are his chances of leading a "normal" family and school life after what he has been through? In search of that answer, Ms. Atkins takes us places we would rather not be, but we go anyway. We cannot help but root for Jeff and his family. We want their pain to end. We want justice to prevail. Most of all, we want this terrible chapter in all their lives to close. This novel is astonishing. It goes to the heart of family life, and tells us that there is as much fear, guilt and sorrow in it as there is joy, fellowship, and forgiveness. Bravo to Ms. Atkins. You are a fine writer, and Jeff is a fine book!