Skip to main content
PBS logo
 
 

Book Reviews of The Face on the Milk Carton

The Face on the Milk Carton
The Face on the Milk Carton
Author: Caroline B. Cooney
ISBN-13: 9780385323284
ISBN-10: 038532328X
Publication Date: 4/13/1996
Pages: 192
Reading Level: Young Adult
Rating:
  • Currently 3.9/5 Stars.
 23

3.9 stars, based on 23 ratings
Publisher: Delacorte Books for Young Readers
Book Type: Hardcover
Reviews: Amazon | Write a Review

43 Book Reviews submitted by our Members...sorted by voted most helpful

reviewed The Face on the Milk Carton on + 287 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 4
I've seen the movie based on this book and the sequel. The book was a fast read but well-written. And it leaves off on a cliffhanger, so you might want to make sure you have the next book before starting this one.
reviewed The Face on the Milk Carton on
Helpful Score: 4
I haven't found a child that didn't like this book :) It is a suspenseful read that isn't too difficult.

Some of us are old enough to remember when the pictures of missing children were featured on milk cartons.
reviewed The Face on the Milk Carton on + 377 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 3
This is the first book in the Janie series, and the only one of the 4 I really enjoyed, although it does leave you with more questions than answers.
reviewed The Face on the Milk Carton on + 2 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 2
great suspense for young preteens.
reviewed The Face on the Milk Carton on
Helpful Score: 2
I loved this book, was very good throughout, but I was just a little disappointed by the ending. Keeps building up thru the whole book, but then the ending was not as good as I thought it would have been. Im glad I read it.
reviewed The Face on the Milk Carton on + 3 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 2
I started reading all four books when I was 15 and been reading them over and over again eversince (I'm 23 know), but this one is my favorite. I wish more books put you on the edge like this one. Also Coroline B. Cooney is a great writer. For all ages.
reviewed The Face on the Milk Carton on + 21 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 1
Great book!!! read the sequals as well!
reviewed The Face on the Milk Carton on
Helpful Score: 1
I liked the book, my 8th grader didn't care for it too much.
It definitely makes you want to read the next book.
cloverluv avatar reviewed The Face on the Milk Carton on + 129 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 1
Suspenceful and extremely good.
reviewed The Face on the Milk Carton on + 14 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 1
classic. a contemporary 'mystery' with a very personal side. i loved the janie series as a younger girl.
magoosey06 avatar reviewed The Face on the Milk Carton on + 17 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 1
The story was interesting, but the author leaves a lot to be desired. Many points are brought up, but never filled out. Still a good quick read though.
reviewed The Face on the Milk Carton on + 31 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 1
Simply a classic. Finding your own face on a milk carton and trying to find all the answers to the hidden secrets..
stargazer00 avatar reviewed The Face on the Milk Carton on + 151 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 1
"No one ever really paid close attention to the faces of the missing children on the milk cartons. But as Janie Johnson glanced at the face of the ordinary little girl--hair in tight pigtails, a dress with a narrow white collar, a three-year-old who had been kidnapped twelve years ago from a shopping mall in New Jersey--she felt overcome with shock. She recognized that little girl--it was herself. How could it possibly be true?
Janie can't believe that her loving parents kidnapped her, but as she begins to piece things together, nothing makes sense. Something is terribly wrong and Janie is afaid to find out what happened more than twelve years ago. Are Mr. and Mrs. Johnson really Janie's parents? And if not, who is Janie Johnson, and what really happened?"
reviewed The Face on the Milk Carton on + 60 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 1
I remember really enjoying this book as a young teen. This is the story of a young lady who recognizes her own face as a missing child on a milk carton years later and her reaction.
lladybug avatar reviewed The Face on the Milk Carton on + 5 more book reviews
Liked this book when I read it as a teen. It was a good read, they also made a movie about this book. I would recomend this book for a teen.
reviewed The Face on the Milk Carton on + 12 more book reviews
A good book, suspenseful. i would recommend it for young adults
Dimples avatar reviewed The Face on the Milk Carton on + 47 more book reviews
From the cover:
No one ever really paid close attention to faces of the missing children on the milk cartons. Janie Johnson glanced at the face of the ordinary little girl - she felt overcome with shock. It was herself.
reviewed The Face on the Milk Carton on + 8 more book reviews
this book kept me reading. i didn't stop reading this. along with the other books. Caroline B. Cooney, her books are awsome and great for teenagers.
reviewed The Face on the Milk Carton on
Excellent pre-teen and teenager book; sometimes the face of the milk carton is familiar . ..
mommytsunami avatar reviewed The Face on the Milk Carton on
A quick read, very interesting story line.
reviewed The Face on the Milk Carton on + 52 more book reviews
As Janie glanced at the face on the milk carton she is overcome with shock. She recognizes the little girl - it's herself. How could this be true? Follow this teenagers story as she discovers what happened many years ago.
reviewed The Face on the Milk Carton on + 23 more book reviews
A girl suddenly finds her face on the back of a Milk Carton- revealing that she was kidnapped at a young age by her "parents"
reviewed The Face on the Milk Carton on + 65 more book reviews
Young adult novel about the realization that your family may not be who they appear...
reviewed The Face on the Milk Carton on + 142 more book reviews
The companion to "Whatever Happened to Janie?"
reviewed The Face on the Milk Carton on + 4 more book reviews
This was not what I was looking for or expecting after having read a basic summary. First there is a whole romantic aspect that I would not have guessed was there. Secondly this is a four part series which according to others goes down hill but in order to reach a some what satisfying you have to read. Thirdly the ending to this book is definetly a cliff hanger. Fourthly it is definetly a young adult book in terms of writing style (e.i. descriptions, length ect) which as a teen I found not to be enough. It does have a good build up and decent plot line but overall I would not have picked it had I known what I was getting into.
reviewed The Face on the Milk Carton on + 3152 more book reviews
Maybe a good story for teens but I got bored quickly, I won't pass this copy along as it very old and not what I consider good shape.
staceyreader avatar reviewed The Face on the Milk Carton on + 56 more book reviews
This was a short book that I really enjoyed reading. It was a very quick read. The only thing I didn't care for was the ending...a little neat and tidy for the subject matter.
reviewed The Face on the Milk Carton on + 4 more book reviews
This was not what I was looking for or expecting after having read a basic summary. First there is a whole romantic aspect that I would not have guessed was there. Secondly this is a four part series which according to others goes down hill but in order to reach a some what satisfying you have to read. Thirdly the ending to this book is definetly a cliff hanger. Fourthly it is definetly a young adult book in terms of writing style (e.i. descriptions, length ect) which as a teen I found not to be enough. It does have a good build up and decent plot line but overall I would not have picked it had I known what I was getting into.
reviewed The Face on the Milk Carton on + 1452 more book reviews
This is the second in this series about child abduction. Telling the story from the child's viewpoint at 16 is quite interesting. When a teenager finds her face on a milk carton she begins to remember her lost childhood. She was abducted at age three and the memories come back slowly, stimulated at first by the dress the little girl is wearing that she remembered. The vacillating emotions seem natural as she wonders what her parents were like but still she loves the parents she now has. Did her current parents taker her from her original family? I think the author caught the emotions quite well - so well that at times I felt like crying with this young woman. How the story is resolved continues in following books.
reviewed The Face on the Milk Carton on + 2 more book reviews
I have read this book over 5 times, it is very intersting and I just could not put it down. I also shared the books with my coworkers and they also agreed that out of the 4 books this is the best.
mom2desi1999 avatar reviewed The Face on the Milk Carton on + 25 more book reviews
I remember reading this book as a young teenager and loved it! Great story that keeps young readers engaged.
darkcoffeeclouds avatar reviewed The Face on the Milk Carton on + 114 more book reviews
I really enjoyed this book and could not put it down. I read it in one evening. Now I want to read the other books in the series.
reviewed The Face on the Milk Carton on + 76 more book reviews
Interesting pre-teen book.
reviewed The Face on the Milk Carton on + 116 more book reviews
I liked this book. I read it a long time ago, but when I did, it had me on the edge of my seat.
reviewed The Face on the Milk Carton on + 212 more book reviews
Like many women of my generation, I originally read this book when I was in middle school, not too long after it came out. Along with Sweet Valley High and The Babysitters Club, this was one of my favorite go to reads. It was always easy to pick up, and seemed light hearted at the time. At this point, I probably havent read this book in at least sixteen years, so I was curious to see how it would hold up when I compared it to my memories.

As a kid, I was fascinated by Janies life and the disaster that was crashing down around her. I was the oldest of six kids and Id be lying if I said I didnt envy Janie. It always seemed like a nice idea, to go from a huge family to a small one. Except, of course, Janie didnt know where she had come from, so she wasnt exactly relishing in it like I imagined I would have been. So to an extent, this was a fun escape fantasy for me when I was younger.

To read the rest of my review, please visit my blog.
reviewed The Face on the Milk Carton on + 48 more book reviews
This was a quick read and a good book. It was hard to put it down but in the end it was life changing or earth shattering.
reviewed The Face on the Milk Carton on + 330 more book reviews
daughter loves this series
englishrose7 avatar reviewed The Face on the Milk Carton on + 115 more book reviews
No one ever really paid close attention to the faces of the missing children on the milk cartons. But as Janie Johnson glanced at the face of the ordinary little girl with her hair in tight pigtails, wearing a dress with a narrow white collar - a three-year-old who had been kidnapped twelve years before from a shopping mail in New Jersey - she felt overcome with shock. She recognized that little girl - it was she. How could it possibly be true?

Janie can't believe that her loving parents kidnapped her, but as she begins to piece things together, nothing makes sense. Something is terribly wrong. Are Mr. and Mrs. Johnson really Janie's parents? And if not, who is Janie Johnson, and what really happened?
reviewed The Face on the Milk Carton on
From the back cover
No one ever really paid lose attention to the fac4es of the missing children on the milk cartons, But as Janie Johnson glanced at the face of the ordinary little girl wiht her hair in tight pigtails, wearing a dresw with a narrow white collar -- a three year old who had been kidnapped twelve years before from a shopping mall in New Jersey, she felt overcome with shock. She recognized that little girl -- it was she. How could it possibly be true?
reviewed The Face on the Milk Carton on
This was a very good book. Well written...
reviewed The Face on the Milk Carton on + 412 more book reviews
It's a good book
reviewed The Face on the Milk Carton on + 302 more book reviews
a woman recognizes herself as the face on the milk carton
reviewed The Face on the Milk Carton on + 42 more book reviews
On my Mt. Toobie Read pile.