Girl, Stolen

We all face our troubles through life, make our strange little bonds and somehow get through the worst of it. However, there is a disability faced throughout many nations that sometimes that can seem rare in some cases; blindness.The book Girl, Stolen by April Henry is about a blind girl named Cheyenne who is accidentally kidnapped by a guy named Griffin in which over the course of the story they form a strange bond. Switching perspectives between the two main characters, Henry represents the reality of being blind and the importance of the people around us who we call family. Cheyenne represents a true character of strength and a great example of today's blind people.

When it comes to backgrounds, Cheyenne and Griffin are two totally different people. Cheyenne, daughter of Nike's president and blind for only 3 years comes from a loving family and is cared for. Griffin, son of a drug addict and criminal, his mother was the only one who truly cared for him yet was left to his father, in which he assisted him in his criminal career. One moment in the story where family plays a big role, is when Cheyenne is listening to her dad on the radio stating how he wants to get her back and will do everything in his power to regain her. This brang Cheyenne down to tears and to leave Griffin to think on what his own father would do. Griffin already knew the answer but wanted in all cases to deny it. Henry subtly shows the differences between the two families without having to compare them. Another moment in the story is when Cheyenne is talking to Griffin about the time she was blinded and lost her mother in a horrible accident. She describes how she felt with her mother and what her mother meant to her. At this moment, Griffin could relate and refer back to his past when he was with his own mother even though he always tried his best to forget about her but he knew he felt the same feeling as she did. Another part where April Henry shows how important family is, is when Cheyenne also refers back to when she met her step mom ( Danielle) who was hired to take special care of her when she was first blinded. Cheyenne was stubborn at the fact she was blind and didn't want to get out of bed to face the world in her new found "darkness". However, Danielle taking the responsibility to take care of her was even more frustrated at how she wasn't trying. So Danielle did everything in her power to get her up and moving and eventually Cheyenne broke, and was being held in Danielle's arms for her Dad to catch them in the bond. This shows the immense power love and persistence can hold and even find new found love.


I feel a book on the experience of being blind is great new experience to read as well as switching perspectives so we always know what is really going on. I've always been interested about what being blind must be like and have tried many times to navigate that way. Only difference between me and them is I can always open my eyes in the end. Maybe it's not about opening up my eyes, but opening up my mind. In the end, Cheyenne never truly complained about her disability, just took use of what she had and used it to her advantage. However, the character relationships and family just bonded the whole book together and showed that life isn't meant to be lived alone. We all need help at some point.