Midnighters: Touching Darkness

* Bibliographic information
Westerfeld, S. Midnighters: Touching Darkness. HarperCollins, 2005 ISBN: 9780060519544.

- Volume 2 in the Midnighters series.


* Plot Summary
The five teen Midnighters; Jessica, Rex, Dess, Jonathan and Melissa are back in this second book of the series. This time the Midnighters have to figure out who is following Jessica during the waking hours and what it has to do with the 25th hour. They also find an adult Midnighter, Madeline who has been hiding for 50 years so the darklings, and those who do their bidding in the other 24 hours, do not find her and kill her like they did with the other Midnighters long ago. The darklings use a Halfling, half human half darkling, to communicate with their human cohorts and when their Halfling dies they take Rex to be their new one. Also, now that Jessica has discovered her power she has to figure out how to make it work when she wants it to so she can aid in the fight against the darklings.


* Critical Evaluation
A fun book; full of entertainment. This second installment in the series has even more suspense than the first one because of the secrets and the mystery surrounding the waking hours as well as the 25th hour. Once again Westerfeld creates a great adventure for teens and anyone else who reads it. The writing is simple and easy to follow; great for teens who may not like to read because they find themselves bored or distracted; this book will keep their attention. Westerfeld also explores each character more in depth so we learn more about Dess, Melissa and Rex in this one like we did in the first one with Jonathan and Jessica. The reader also learns more about the villains; the darklings. They communicate with humans and have plans that stretch past the 25th hour.


* Reader’s Annotation
There is someone watching Jessica during the waking hours, a non-Midnighter. Jessica and the other Midnighters are determined to find out who is watching Jessica and what it has to do with the 25th hour.


* Information about the author
Westerfeld grew up in Texas, California and Connecticut because his family moved around. Him and his wife move back and forth between their two homes in New York City and Sydney, Australia. Westerfeld says he grew up in a large family that valued storytelling and he has always written, even as a child. He has written five science fiction novels for adults but his young adult science fiction novels are what he is best known for. He continues to write young adult novels because he loves the people involved. Midnighters: The Secret Hour was his first young adult novel to be published. For more information about Scott Westerfeld and his other novels check out his website at http://scottwesterfeld.com/blog/.


* Genre
Teen Fiction; Science Fiction


* Curriculum Ties, if any
N/A


* Booktalking Ideas
1) If you could have picked another power for Jessica, what would it be?
2) Westerfeld’s writing creates wonderful visuals for the reader. If it were made into a movie, who could you see playing the five Midnighters?
3) Out of the five Midnighters, who do you most relate with and why? Which one is your favorite?


* Reading Level/Interest Age
Grade 6 and Up/ 14 and Up


* Challenge Issues and Defense
N/A


* Why did you include this book in your titles you selected?
I chose to put this book on my blog because I loved reading these books and the Midnighters series has become one of my favorite series to date. The second book in the series is just as fun and exciting as the first book but in this one, readers know the characters and feel like they are in on all the fun. Everyone who reads this book is waiting for Jessica to figure out her power so she can help these others keep the creatures at bay. Then there is the added element of another mystery where someone is following Jessica; this makes for even more suspense. The story and the characters are so much fun to follow. I wish he would add more to the series just so I could revisit the 25th hour and all of its mystery.