Janie Johnson - Character's Narrative

Character's Narrative

During a school lunch break in one of Cooney's books, the character of Janie's life is changed after she picks up a friend's milk carton. She recognizes the "missing person" photo on the back of the milk carton—the photograph is an image of herself as a very young child, dressed in a white polka dot dress. The text on the milk carton explains that Jennie Spring was kidnapped from a mall in New Jersey, United States (US), when she was three-years-old. Janie believes that the carton must be some type of joke because her parents, Mr. and Mrs. Johnson, continue to be very caring parents. Janie tries to forget about the incident, but she begins having flashbacks, or what she calls "daymares," of events and people that do not fit in with her current life. She "remembers" other children and a woman who is not Mrs. Johnson.

Under the burden of her day mares, Janie rummages through the boxes that she finds in the attic of her family home. In the boxes she finds school papers with the name "Hannah" written on them, in addition to the polka dot white dress that appeared on the milk carton. When confronted by Janie, Mr. and Mrs. Johnson explain that Hannah is their daughter, and that Janie is Hannah's daughter, their granddaughter. Hannah was a deeply troubled child, joined a cult at a young age, and was married to one of the men in the cult; one day Hannah returned to her parents' house with Janie. Hannah subsequently returned to the cult and the Johnsons relocated with Janie, fearing that the cult would try to attain custody of the child once again. The Johnsons moved to a different state, even changing their names from "Javensen" to "Johnson." Janie arrives at the conclusion that the memories are of her life in the cult before being brought to the Johnsons. Janie is relieved that the people whom she believed to be her parents, Mr. and Mrs. Johnson, were not kidnappers.

However, Janie cannot erase the picture on the milk carton or the memories of another family out of her mind and proceeds to research the Jennie Spring kidnapping; she arrives at the conclusion that her parents might have actually kidnapped her. However, Janie still feels love towards them and tries to forgive them. Janie and her boyfriend, Reeve, decide to travel to New Jersey, US, to see the Spring family with their own eyes. Upon their arrival at the Spring family home, the pair observe that the entire family, like Janie, has red hair, a trait that neither Mr. or Mrs. Johnson, or even Hannah, have. Even though the evidence that Janie has uncovered is significant, Janie tries to ignore the event.

Janie then writes the Spring family a letter, but she doesn't mail the letter because she is still unsure of what steps to take next. While at school, Janie loses the letter and the decision of whether to tell or not is taken out of her hands, as she realizes that someone might have placed the letter in a post box. She and Reeve then confront Janie's parents with everything that they have learned and Mr. and Mrs. Johnson are consequently shocked. Janie's parents decide that Hannah was probably the one who kidnapped Janie and that the Springs must be called. Janie asserts that the information must remain confidential, as she makes it clear to the Johnsons that she loves them very much and does not want to hurt or leave them. However, Janie's mother is adamant that the Springs have been without their daughter for too long. In the end, Mrs. Johnson calls the Springs and Janie talks to what may be her real mother for the first time.

Janie also discovers that the birthday, May 10, given to her by the Johnsons, is not her real birthday — Janie is actually six months younger than she had previously thought, with her real birthday being November 4.

A month after finding her birth parents, dealing with the media, and consulting with lawyers, Janie is taken from her adoptive parents, the Johnsons, and proceeds to reside with her biological parents and four siblings, Stephen, Jodie, Brian, and Brendan. Although all of the Spring family members are eager to include her, she desperately misses her adoptive parents, whom she is allowed no contact with. Janie becomes emotionally aloof and experiences some trouble adjusting, as she is called "Jennie" by the family and attends a new school where she knows no-one; she also lives in very close quarters with her new brothers and sister. As matters begin to improve and Janie starts to feel more at home, a setback occurs due to the appearance of the FBIm who arrive to question Janie. Finally, Janie asserts her desire to return to her adopted family after talking to her birth mother, by calling Mrs. Johnson her "Mom" for the first time; her biological parents permit Janie's return as an act of love. However, Janie's siblings, Stephen and Jodie, angry and upset that they are once again losing their sister, embark on a journey to New York City to find Hannah, the woman they believe is responsible for the sequence of events. The police discover that Hannah had been arrested in New York City several years previously for engaging in sex work. Stephen and Joide are sent home by a police officer who tells them that, while they may not have exerted justice in relation to Hannah, Hannah's life has clearly been ruined, with charges of prostitution and kidnapping against her name.

Six months after returning to the Johnson family, Janie is relieved that life seems to be settling down, but she misses Reeve, who is away, attending college in Boston, US. As for Reeve, college life seems overwhelming; when the opportunity for fame in the form of a late-night gig at the school radio station proves irresistible, he finds himself disclosing Janie's story over the airwaves. Reeve, confident that Janie will never discover the ensuing success, that continues with the inappropriate divulgence of private information pertaining to his girlfriend.

Meanwhile, Janie has developed a closer relationship with her biological family, the Springs. Her sister, Jodie, has been accepted into college interviews in Boston, including one at Hills College, the college that Reeve attends. Brian, Janie, and Jodie's younger brother tag along, as does Janie; they plan to surprise Reeve by showing up. At the hotel, they tune into Reeve's radio station and hear Reeve doing "a Janie" as it had become known in Hills College, causing Janie, Jodie and Brian to all become very distressed and upset.

During his show, Reeve receives a call from a woman calling herself "Hannah", but rather than face the possibility of talking to Janie's kidnapper, he disconnects the call. "He could destroy all the tapes in all the radio stations in Boston...if Hannah decided she wanted airtime, somebody else would give it to her. He had no control. For the first time in his life, he was standing in the middle of a situation that would do whatever it wanted." Later, Reeve's sister, an attorney who had assisted Reeve and Janie from the beginning, states that her further research into this case had revealed that Hannah died several years previously in California, US, and was therefore not responsible for the phone call to the radio station.

Upon the discovery of Reeve's radio antics, Janie ceases her relationship with Reeve and asks him not to call her or come to her house again. Though Reeve claims he still loves her and merely made a mistake, Janie refuses to forgive him, though she still loves him. Reeve tries to talk to Janie and explain things to her, but Janie maintains her distance from her ex-boyfriend. When Janie is visiting the Spring family during the Thanksgiving holidays, Janie tells Mrs. Spring what happened in Boston and she suggests that Janie forgive Reeve, or at least speaks to him. In the end Janie decides to talk to Reeve about what he had done.

Seven months later, Janie's two families appear to have made peace. Life seems almost normal and Janie has even decided to speak to her former boyfriend, Reeve. However, Janie's adoptive Connecticut father, Frank Johnson, suffers a stroke, and the tragedy leaves her adoptive mother reeling. Janie is then compelled to manage the family finances and emotionally support her mother.

While handling her adoptive father's bills, Janie discovers that he has actually been in contact with Hannah, his real daughter, for a prolonged duration of time. Janie discovers where Hannah is living and it is the same town where Stephen, her older brother, is attending college. Reeve and Brian become aware of Janie's plans and accompany her to Boulder, Colorado, US. During her time in Boulder, Stephen and Janie are able to get past the grudges between them to actually continue with a sibling relationship; this reconciliation occurs despite Stephen's severed relationship with his girlfriend, Kathleen, due to her persistence contact with her ex-FBI father to intervene in Janie's situation; a situation that Kathleen became fixated upon, once referring to Janie as "Jennie-Janie". Reeve and Brian advise Janie to write Hannah one last check and then cease any form of subsequent contact with her on a permanent basis. Janie follows through with the recommendation from Reeve and Brian and on the return plane trip to Connecticut, she finds a letter from Stephen in her purse—the letter implores Janie to join Stephen in finally letting go of what happened when Janie was three-years-old so that they can actually be a regular family. Janie accepts Stephen's offer, while Reeve and Janie also reform their relationship.