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Weird Disappearances: Real Tales of Missing People
Where did Virginia Dare and the rest of the colonists of Roanoke go? Did Anastasia Romanov escape being murdered by revolutionaries? Weird Real Tales of Missing People , for readers ages 9 to 12, features five true tales that examine moments in history when someone vanished without a trace. These mysterious disappearances are discussed against the backdrop of historical circumstances, whether it be the upheaval of the Russian Revolution or the blazing of a new trail high in the skies.
This is the fourth book in the new Mystery & Mayhem series, which features true tales that whet kids’ appetites for history by engaging them in genres with proven track records―mystery and adventure. History is made of near misses, unexplained disappearances, unsolved mysteries, and bizarre events that are almost too weird to be true―almost! Delving into these tidbits of history offers a jumping off point into a lifelong habit of appreciating history.
Each of the five true tales told within Weird Disappearances is paired with a map, as well as fun facts about the setting and time period. These nonfiction narratives use clear, concise language with compelling plots that both avid and reluctant readers will be drawn to.
Nomad Press books in the Mystery & Mayhem series introduce readers to historical concepts and events by engaging them in an extremely popular genre―real-life adventure and mystery. Readers ages 9 to 12 are fascinated with the strange-but-true tales that populate history, and books in this series offer compelling narrative nonfiction paired with concise language that appeals to both voracious and reluctant readers. Nomad’s unique approach to the study of history uses tantalizing tales based in factual knowledge that encourage a lifelong curiosity in the historical events that shape our world.
This is the fourth book in the new Mystery & Mayhem series, which features true tales that whet kids’ appetites for history by engaging them in genres with proven track records―mystery and adventure. History is made of near misses, unexplained disappearances, unsolved mysteries, and bizarre events that are almost too weird to be true―almost! Delving into these tidbits of history offers a jumping off point into a lifelong habit of appreciating history.
Each of the five true tales told within Weird Disappearances is paired with a map, as well as fun facts about the setting and time period. These nonfiction narratives use clear, concise language with compelling plots that both avid and reluctant readers will be drawn to.
Nomad Press books in the Mystery & Mayhem series introduce readers to historical concepts and events by engaging them in an extremely popular genre―real-life adventure and mystery. Readers ages 9 to 12 are fascinated with the strange-but-true tales that populate history, and books in this series offer compelling narrative nonfiction paired with concise language that appeals to both voracious and reluctant readers. Nomad’s unique approach to the study of history uses tantalizing tales based in factual knowledge that encourage a lifelong curiosity in the historical events that shape our world.
- GenresNonfiction
128 pages, Hardcover
Published May 16, 2017
13 people want to read
About the author
Tom McCarthy
107 books498 followersTom McCarthy — “English fiction’s new laureate of disappointment” (Time Out, September 2007) — is a writer and artist. He was born in 1969 and lives in a tower-block in London. Tom grew up in Greenwich, south London, and studied English at New College, Oxford. After a couple of years in Prague in the early 1990s, he lived in Amsterdam as literary editor of the local Time Out, and later worked in British television as well as co-editing Mute magazine.
His debut novel Remainder was first published in November 2005 by Paris-based art press Metronome. After becoming a cult hit championed first by British webzines (it was 3:AM Magazine’s Book of the Year for 2005) and then by the literary press, Remainder was republished by Alma Books in the UK (2006) and Vintage in the US (2007). A French version is to be followed by editions in Japanese, Korean, Greek, Spanish and Croatian.
A work of literary criticism, Tintin and the Secret of Literature, was released by Granta Books in June 2006. It also came out in France and an American edition is in the offing.
Tom’s second novel, Men in Space came out in 2007.
He has published numerous stories, essays and articles on literature, philosophy and art in publications including The Observer, The Times Literary Supplement and Contemporary Magazine, as well as in anthologies such as London from Punk to Blair (Reaktion Books), Theology and the Political (Duke University Press) and The Milgram Experiment (Jan van Eyck Press). His story, “Kool Thing, Or Why I Want to Fuck Patty Hearst” appeared in The Empty Page: Fiction Inspired By Sonic Youth (Serpent’s Tail) in 2008.
His ongoing project the International Necronautical Society, a semi-fictitious avant-garde network that surfaces through publications, proclamations, denunciations and live events, has been described by Untitled Magazine as ‘the most comprehensive total art work we have seen in years’ and by Art Monthly as ‘a platform for fantastically mobile thinking’. In 2003 the INS broke into the BBC website and inserted propaganda into its source-code. The following year, they set up a broadcasting unit at the ICA from which more than forty ‘agents’ generated non-stop poem-codes which were transmitted over FM radio in London and by internet to collaborating radio stations around the world.
Tom has also tutored and lectured at various institutions including the Architectural Association, Central Saint Martins School of Art, the Royal College of Art, Goldsmiths College and Southern California Institute of Architecture. He recently taught a course on ‘Catastrophe’ with Marko Daniel at the London Consortium.
His debut novel Remainder was first published in November 2005 by Paris-based art press Metronome. After becoming a cult hit championed first by British webzines (it was 3:AM Magazine’s Book of the Year for 2005) and then by the literary press, Remainder was republished by Alma Books in the UK (2006) and Vintage in the US (2007). A French version is to be followed by editions in Japanese, Korean, Greek, Spanish and Croatian.
A work of literary criticism, Tintin and the Secret of Literature, was released by Granta Books in June 2006. It also came out in France and an American edition is in the offing.
Tom’s second novel, Men in Space came out in 2007.
He has published numerous stories, essays and articles on literature, philosophy and art in publications including The Observer, The Times Literary Supplement and Contemporary Magazine, as well as in anthologies such as London from Punk to Blair (Reaktion Books), Theology and the Political (Duke University Press) and The Milgram Experiment (Jan van Eyck Press). His story, “Kool Thing, Or Why I Want to Fuck Patty Hearst” appeared in The Empty Page: Fiction Inspired By Sonic Youth (Serpent’s Tail) in 2008.
His ongoing project the International Necronautical Society, a semi-fictitious avant-garde network that surfaces through publications, proclamations, denunciations and live events, has been described by Untitled Magazine as ‘the most comprehensive total art work we have seen in years’ and by Art Monthly as ‘a platform for fantastically mobile thinking’. In 2003 the INS broke into the BBC website and inserted propaganda into its source-code. The following year, they set up a broadcasting unit at the ICA from which more than forty ‘agents’ generated non-stop poem-codes which were transmitted over FM radio in London and by internet to collaborating radio stations around the world.
Tom has also tutored and lectured at various institutions including the Architectural Association, Central Saint Martins School of Art, the Royal College of Art, Goldsmiths College and Southern California Institute of Architecture. He recently taught a course on ‘Catastrophe’ with Marko Daniel at the London Consortium.
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
January 13, 2018
This book highlights some well-known true stories of mysterious disappearances. These are the Roanoke Colony, Amelia Earhart, Anastasia Romanov, Percy Fawcett, and Solomon Northup. Books about the unknown definitely have an audience amongst the intended age group (9-12), but this publication falls short of being an engaging and accurate read.
The writing style of this book attempts to be conversational, interspersing narrative with facts. Nevertheless, the tone of the book seems muddled. In addition to this, the author makes his narrative needlessly dramatic by adding cinematic-like scenes to what has no need for embellishment.
While having few (if any) grammatical errors, Weird Disappearances was rife with punctuation errors. There was a profusion of commas, even in places where they weren’t needed. The construction of a few sentences was awkward—for example, the author describes Amelia Earhart’s urge to fly solo as “It was time to feel flying for herself” (30).
Furthermore, the book had (at least) two historical errors. Firstly, the John White, the leader of the Roanoke colony, is quoted as saying that the settlers “were ready for the untapped riches that North Carolina offered” (11-12). Although the casual reader might overlook this detail, North Carolina didn’t exist at the time—all of England’s claims in that area were all called Virginia. Therefore, John White couldn’t have said that. The second error is that the book places Rasputin’s death in 1915 (54), when he was in fact murdered in 1916.
These flaws more than obscure the positive aspects of the book. At the end of the chapter, there is a section that discusses important events in the times of the disappearances. There is also a glossary which helps with more complicated vocabulary.
In view of these considerations, I can only give the book one star. While the topic is likely to have much interest, the overall handling of the material as well as its inaccuracies do not commend this book for use. (Reviewed by Charles Ross Hughes)
The writing style of this book attempts to be conversational, interspersing narrative with facts. Nevertheless, the tone of the book seems muddled. In addition to this, the author makes his narrative needlessly dramatic by adding cinematic-like scenes to what has no need for embellishment.
While having few (if any) grammatical errors, Weird Disappearances was rife with punctuation errors. There was a profusion of commas, even in places where they weren’t needed. The construction of a few sentences was awkward—for example, the author describes Amelia Earhart’s urge to fly solo as “It was time to feel flying for herself” (30).
Furthermore, the book had (at least) two historical errors. Firstly, the John White, the leader of the Roanoke colony, is quoted as saying that the settlers “were ready for the untapped riches that North Carolina offered” (11-12). Although the casual reader might overlook this detail, North Carolina didn’t exist at the time—all of England’s claims in that area were all called Virginia. Therefore, John White couldn’t have said that. The second error is that the book places Rasputin’s death in 1915 (54), when he was in fact murdered in 1916.
These flaws more than obscure the positive aspects of the book. At the end of the chapter, there is a section that discusses important events in the times of the disappearances. There is also a glossary which helps with more complicated vocabulary.
In view of these considerations, I can only give the book one star. While the topic is likely to have much interest, the overall handling of the material as well as its inaccuracies do not commend this book for use. (Reviewed by Charles Ross Hughes)
July 14, 2023
A good introduction to five fairly famous mysteries for 3rd grade and up. The kind of book I would have devoured as a kid.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews