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Jennifer-the-Jerk Is Missing

 Jennifer-the-Jerk Is Missing
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TVTItem
 Jennifer-the-Jerk Is Missing
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Jennifer-the-Jerk Is Missing
 Jennifer-the-Jerk Is Missing
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JenniferTheJerkIsMissing
 Jennifer-the-Jerk Is Missing
comment
Jennifer-the-Jerk Is Missing is a children's novel by Carol Gorman. Thirteen-year-old Amy Whipple is baby-sitting Malcolm Wylie, an 8-year-old prone to telling tall tales. So naturally, she doesn't believe him when he claims that he saw the kidnapping of a bratty 8-year-old classmate, Jennifer Smith, known also as Jennifer-the-Jerk. Malcolm insists on proving it, but unfortunately, everything he says sounds very improbable, and his story keeps changing some of the details. The kidnappers' notes written with childlike handwriting don't help, as Malcolm could have written them himself. And a Jennifer Smith actually did arrive at the camp that Jennifer-the-Jerk is supposed to be away at. Amy and Malcolm's attempts to get their parents' help only gets them in trouble for telling tall tales, and the cops don't believe them either due to Malcolm's past and their spotty evidence.Once she sees the kidnappers themselves, however, Amy realizes that Malcolm is indeed telling the truth. Now, with no help from the cynical adults, Amy tries to rescue Jennifer with Malcolm's help, as they chase after the kidnappers on a moped, driven by Malcolm. Once Amy and Malcolm reach the kidnappers' house, they find both Jennifer and Clifford, the limo driver hired to take her to the camp, who was taken prisoner as well.The first half of the book is very suspenseful, which is why what happens next is totally unexpected.Tied to a chair and gagged, Jennifer is so bratty that she mocks Amy and Malcolm's first rescue attempt under her gag, leaving a pretty bad first impression that doesn't get much better. Once freed, Jennifer constantly makes fun of Malcolm, frequently insults Amy and Malcolm's rescue plans, repeatedly tells Amy unflattering facts about Malcolm, makes fun of Clifford (who was knocked on the head when kidnapped, and is acting silly as a result), complains about everything she can, and acts like a colossal brat to the Nth degree. She's so ungrateful for their help that she outright refuses to cooperate and says so — "I didn't ask for your help, anyway." Plus, she and Malcolm quickly take to bickering and making fun of each other.As for the kidnappers, they're whiny, cartoonishly argumentative, and stupid (which explains the childlike handwriting on the ransom notes — the kidnappers themselves have terrible handwriting). Even their threat level is questionable: one even points a finger through his pocket to pretend he has a gun. Even Jennifer, though still scared of him, suspects he isn't really armed. The sudden increase in humor and change of mood comes totally unexpected, transforming a suspense story with tidbits of humor into a silly comedy that still has suspense.Eventually, Amy is able to thwart the kidnappers and escape, rescuing Jennifer along the way. And in the end, Jennifer's bratty personality does not change. You're welcome, Jennifer.
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2024-03-01T00:52:01Z
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2024-03-01T00:52:01Z
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Dropped link to Blackmail: Not a Feature - ITEM
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 Jennifer-the-Jerk Is Missing / int_19209d54
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Sibling Rivalry
 Jennifer-the-Jerk Is Missing / int_19209d54
comment
Sibling Rivalry: The kidnappers are brothers. They don't get along. And they even bring up their childhoods when arguing with each other.
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Kid Hero
 Jennifer-the-Jerk Is Missing / int_2673425b
comment
Kid Hero: Thirteen-year-old Amy and 8-year-old Malcolm.
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Tomboy and Girly Girl
 Jennifer-the-Jerk Is Missing / int_2d364c81
comment
Tomboy and Girly Girl: Brave babysitter Amy and Spoiled Brat Damsel in Distress Jennifer, respectively.
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Kid Detective
 Jennifer-the-Jerk Is Missing / int_31e2ad94
comment
Kid Detective: Amy and Malcolm have to do actual investigating and asking questions to find out whether Jennifer really was kidnapped or not, and they have to do some spying to find out who could have done it.
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Lethal Chef
 Jennifer-the-Jerk Is Missing / int_35ae6a23
comment
Lethal Chef: Let's just say that kidnappers shouldn't force their prisoners to cook food for them. Although Amy is actually upset since she didn't literally mean to poison the guy.
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Ungrateful Bastard
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Ungrateful Bastard: No thanks from Jennifer for being rescued, and she's quick to insult her rescuers.
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Non Sequitur, *Thud*
 Jennifer-the-Jerk Is Missing / int_41feb209
comment
Non Sequitur, *Thud*: Clifford acts loopy for a long time as a result of having been knocked out by the kidnappers via a Tap on the Head, and essentially turns into a Useless Adult as a result. Jennifer of course makes fun of him for this.
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Volleying Insults
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Volleying Insults: Don't put Jennifer and Malcolm in the same room together, unless Jennifer is bound and gagged.
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Wise Beyond Their Years
 Jennifer-the-Jerk Is Missing / int_4f773434
comment
Wise Beyond Their Years: Malcolm's vocabulary is advanced for his age, as are some of the things he says, though he Hand Waves this by saying that he's smart for his age. Oh yeah, and he knows how to drive a moped. His explanation was that he drove it all the time at the farm, but he still gets to keep it at home.
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Sliding Scale of Silliness vs. Seriousness
 Jennifer-the-Jerk Is Missing / int_553c27bb
comment
Sliding Scale of Silliness vs. Seriousness: Probably the only book to start mostly on the serious end of the scale, then at one point quickly slide to the silly side and stay there. The suspense remains even while it's being silly.
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Rich Bitch
 Jennifer-the-Jerk Is Missing / int_644eca71
comment
Rich Bitch: Jennifer, easily. "Jennifer-the-Jerk" is the nickname her classmates gave her, for good reason.
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In-Series Nickname
 Jennifer-the-Jerk Is Missing / int_7360806f
comment
In-Series Nickname: "Jennifer-The-Jerk" (hyphens included) Smith. She gets called this a lot more often than her plain name.
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You Have to Believe Me!
 Jennifer-the-Jerk Is Missing / int_77315f4f
comment
You Have to Believe Me!: Malcolm's cry to Amy, then hers to her parents and the police once she's convinced. Unfortunately, no-one does believe them.
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Out-of-Character Alert
 Jennifer-the-Jerk Is Missing / int_777baed3
comment
Out-of-Character Alert: When Amy calls the camp Jennifer is supposed to arrive at to see if she was actually kidnapped, she's told that not only did a kid named Jennifer Smith arrive, but she's very sweet and likable. This instantly tips Malcolm off to the fact that it's not the same Jennifer Smith as the one they're looking for — Jennifer-the-Jerk Smith is a rude spoiled brat.
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Crying Wolf
 Jennifer-the-Jerk Is Missing / int_78d0ebcf
comment
Crying Wolf: Malcolm's history. The cops don't believe his story when Amy takes him to the station to report Jennifer's kidnapping, due to his reputation for reporting horrible crimes that turned out to be simple misunderstandings.
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Bratty Half-Pint
 Jennifer-the-Jerk Is Missing / int_82fc5bdf
comment
Bratty Half-Pint: Malcolm and Jennifer. Malcolm is quite the brat as he asserts his independence and claims he's going to do what he wants to do whether Amy likes it or not. He becomes more sympathetic over the course of the story, but then we meet Jennifer...
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Harmless Villain
 Jennifer-the-Jerk Is Missing / int_8c23b321
comment
Harmless Villain: Yes and no. They did kidnap a kid and her driver, but on the other hand, these kidnappers are pretty easy to foil. The "pretend your finger in your pocket is a gun" thing takes the cake. Also, who would be dumb enough to make your kidnap victim cook a meal for you?
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Asshole Victim
 Jennifer-the-Jerk Is Missing / int_8ed5c6e4
comment
Asshole Victim: Subverted. Jennifer-the-Jerk is a colossal Jerkass but Malcolm does not thinks she deserves being abducted. The adults of the cast dismiss Malcolm's claims she was abducted because of a comedy of errors, not because they think she deserves it.
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Mood Whiplash
 Jennifer-the-Jerk Is Missing / int_a4c37cbe
comment
Mood Whiplash: Midway through the book. Just when things are heating up, they suddenly get silly. The suspense remains, and even increases, but the book pretty much becomes a comedy.
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Adults Are Useless
 Jennifer-the-Jerk Is Missing / int_a939d96a
comment
Adults Are Useless: Justified in that they don't believe Malcolm due to his overactive imagination, nor Amy for "falling for" it. Even the police refuse to help, saying they don't believe anything Malcolm says, due to his past. And when they do reach Jennifer and her kidnapped limo driver, Clifford, he turns out to be useless because he was bonked on the head so hard during his kidnapping that he's been knocked silly and is acting like a Cloud Cuckoolander.
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Deadpan Snarker
 Jennifer-the-Jerk Is Missing / int_ae3d6438
comment
Deadpan Snarker: In a cast full of characters who occasionally let go of a deadpan line, Jennifer-the-Jerk reigns supreme. Malcolm trails far behind on second place, and is a lot less insulting.
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Everyone Has Standards
 Jennifer-the-Jerk Is Missing / int_b4a6ae4c
comment
Everyone Has Standards: Jennifer Smith, a.k.a. "Jennifer-The-Jerk�, is prime Asshole Victim material even if she's a kid. A grade-A-Plus Jerkass Bratty Half-Pint who does not even shows the smallest iota of gratefulness for being rescued and every single line that spews out of her mouth is an insult to someone else in the cast. Malcolm still thinks rescuing her is the right thing to do.
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Concussions Get You High
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comment
Concussions Get You High: Clifford spends the whole book acting like a Cloud Cuckoolander because of the concussion he received.
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Freudian Excuse
 Jennifer-the-Jerk Is Missing / int_c868a42a
comment
Freudian Excuse: Malcolm's brattiness and paranoia may or may not be caused by the death of his older brother three years ago. Malcolm even had to see a shrink for a year. Amy takes pity on him for this, and wonders if this had any effect on making him the way he is.
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Spoiled Brat
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comment
Spoiled Brat: Jennifer, of course. She expects too much even of her captors.
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We Need to Get Proof
 Jennifer-the-Jerk Is Missing / int_d1a69ab2
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We Need to Get Proof: The first half of the book. Unfortunately, no-one believes the proof, so they abandon that step and just go for the rescue themselves.
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Sarcasm Failure
 Jennifer-the-Jerk Is Missing / int_d4689f3
comment
Sarcasm Failure: Jennifer has one when one of the kidnappers actually threatens to hurt her.
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Bound and Gagged
 Jennifer-the-Jerk Is Missing / int_eb28ab57
comment
Bound and Gagged: Happens to Jennifer, then later Amy, Malcolm and Clifford, the driver originally hired to take Jennifer to camp. At one point, all four of them are left tied up overnight.
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One-Steve Limit
 Jennifer-the-Jerk Is Missing / int_ee7a60e9
comment
One-Steve Limit: Subverted. The police does not catches wise to the fact Jennifer-The-Jerk has been abducted because there is another "Jennifer Smith" at the camp she was meant to go. The police does not bothers asking further details to make sure it's the Jennifer they are looking for, the camp counselors don't mention that there is more than one "Jennifer Smith" in the camper roster, and Malcolm immediately figures out that it's the wrong Jennifer Smith because this one is not a jerk.
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Pity the Kidnapper
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Pity the Kidnapper: Even tied up, Jennifer is a nuisance to her captors, prompting the quote at the top of the page.
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Jennifer-the-Jerk Is Missing

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