When the Wind Blows (James Patterson novel)

infobox Book |
name = When the Wind Blows
title_orig =
translator =


image_caption = Cover art for "When the Wind Blows"
author = James Patterson
illustrator =
cover_artist =
country = United States
language = English
series =
genre = Science fiction novel
publisher = Little, Brown and Company
release_date = 28 October, 1998
media_type = Print (Hardback & Paperback)
pages =
isbn = ISBN 0-316-69332-4
preceded_by =
followed_by = The Lake House

"When the Wind Blows" is a novel by James Patterson.It is the prequel to "The Lake House" and inspired the Maximum Ride series.

The novel is currently set to be adapted into a movie. [http://imdb.com/title/tt0892436/ When the Wind Blows at IMDb]

Plot summary

The book centers on Frannie O'Neill, a veterinarian, whose husband was killed a few years before the story takes place. The action takes place in Bear Bluff, Colorado. She meets Kit Harrison, an FBI agent, when he rents out her cabin in the woods behind her house. One night, after driving home after a friend's mysterious death, Frannie sees a small girl with wings, running in the forest. She thought she must be dreaming, but a few days later she sees her again. Eventually, with the help of Kit, they capture her in a net, and help her. Her name is Max, and they learn about Max's missing brother, Matthew, and the sinister place where they grew up at, called the "School" or "Flight School" (called that as a joke, since the children were never allowed to fly, even though they had wings). Kit, Frannie, and Max find and break into the School, which is mostly empty since the staff are searching for Max in the woods. They see the "Mickey Mouse Room", where there are dead mice that were experimented on, a lab room where Max had helped to work at, a nursery-type room with dead or dying human babies that were experimented on, and a room where they find the rest of Max's "flock", two Chinese siblings named Wendy and Peter, a blind boy named Icarus, and Oz, all of whom have wings. The group leaves the school and Kit calls the FBI for help. They try to go back to Frannie's vet clinic, the Inn Patient, but they find it burnt down. They are caught by the "whitecoats" (who work at the School) and the flock's previous Keeper, a cruel man named Harding Thomas (also known as "Uncle Tom"). The whitecoats force Kit and Frannie to come with them at the threat of shooting the children and they agree. Max, however, manages to escape. The whitecoats take the adults and the rest of the flock to the home of Gillian, Frannie's friend who turns out to work at the School as well. The flock becomes excited when they see Gillian's son, Michael. It is revealed that Michael is one of the School's experiments, designed in such a way that he cannot die of natural causes and has a life span of 200 years. At the School, he and his sister were called Adam and Eve and were assumed to have been killed, however they were actually adopted by Gillian. Gillian and Thomas try to get Frannie and Kit to tell what they've found out about the School, but neither cooperate. The FBI agent that Kit contacts finds them, but it was revealed that he, and some of the US government, was actually supporting the School and was purposefully keeping it all quiet. Kit knocks out the agent and he and Frannie have Michael guide them to where the flock is being kept. They find the flock, along with Matthew, and escape while Gillian holds an auction to sell the bird children to major corporations. Max, meanwhile, guides news helicopters to Gillian's house and they report on the bird kids and expose the whitecoats. Kit is shot nonfatally. Frannie, Max, and Matthew notice Gillian, Michael, Thomas, and Anthony Peyser (Gillian's husband and the leader of the School) escaping in a car. Max and Matthew fly after, with Frannie following in her car. The siblings dive-bomb the car and cause it to crash, killing everyone inside. During the explosion, however, Max is badly hurt. Frannie operates on Max at a hospital and she recovers, as does Kit. Kit and Frannie take the bird kids into hiding, however eventually they help the children find their parents.

Characters

Max

Max is an eleven-year-old girl with long blond hair and bright blue eyes. She is the older sister of Matthew. Her codename is 'Tinkerbell'. She has white wings with silver-blue markings. Her wingspan is nine feet, twice as wide as she is tall. Her full name is Maximum. Frannie states that she has an IQ in the 180's. Max herself says that she only tested 149 on the Stanford-Binet test. It is said that she reproduces by laying eggs. Her name is short for "Maximum", which she chose because she always tries her hardest.

Frannie

Frannie is a veterinarian who lives in Bear Bluff, Colorado. Her husband was murdered several years ago. It was hinted that her husband also worked for the School and was possibly killed because he began to feel guilt over his actions. She owns a cabin in the woods where she and her husband used to live, but now rents it out to Kit because she moved to the veterinary hospital to live. She has brown hair and blue-green eyes.

Kit

He is an FBI agent who is supposed to be on vacation in Nantucket after a horrible tragedy killed his wife and his kids. He lives in the cabin in the woods behind the veterinary hospital. He has blonde hair.

Ozymandias

Oz is second born, the alpha male. He would be the leader of the flock if Max died, and Max is glad that he is there. He is not much younger than Max, and he appears to be, in some ways, stronger than her. He has brown hair and wings. When Frannie first sees him, she believes him to be about seven. He was named after Ozymandias, a powerful Egyptian king. In "The Lake House", Oz says that he was given that name to remind him not to be vain, as even King Ramses Ozymandias died and turned to dust eventually, no matter how powerful he was.

Icarus

Ic is a blind kid who Max rescues from the School. The flock communicates with him with chirps and whistles so that he doesn't get lost when he is flying. He has fine long ash-blonde hair. He is named after the Icarus from the Greek legend.

Peter

Peter is Wendy's twin. They are four years old, and therefore classified as "the young ones" by Oz and Max. They are of Chinese descent, with black bowl-cut hair. They are in the 'high genius' IQ range. He is named after Peter from "Peter Pan".

Wendy

Wendy is Peter's twin. She has white wings, tipped with blue. According to Max, she calls all older women "Mama". She was named after Wendy from "Peter Pan".

Matthew

Matthew is Max's younger brother. He loves his older sister and tries to keep her away from the whitecoats after she escapes. He is codenamed 'Peter Pan'. His wings are white, with silver and dark-blue markings.

Thomas

Harding Thomas works with the white-coats. He is possibly codenamed 'Uncle Thomas'. He pretends to be kind to Mathew, Max, and Kit to try to find out information or lure them back to the school, but is cruel if they refuse to cooperate.

Eve

She is Adam's sister. The flock believed they were 'put to sleep' when they were babies, but they survived. According to Max, their IQ is 'off the planet'. She was named after Eve, the first woman from the Bible.

Adam

Adam is Eve's brother. He was adopted by Gillian, Frannie's best friend, who renamed him Michael. He has blonde hair. His life expectancy is 200 years, however he dies in a car crash at age four. When the flock is being held captive in Gillian's house, he helps Kit and Frannie escape to find them. He was born in the same year as Peter and Wendy, 1994 and was their closest friend. Like his sister, he was believed to have been 'put to sleep'. He was named after Adam, the first man from the Bible.

Gillian Puris

Frannie's best friend as well as Michael (and Eve's) mother, although it is uncertain as to whether they are biologically related or adopted. Although she seems smart and sympathetic, she is actually closely related to the School and was keeping an eye on Frannie after her husband's death. Gillian later holds Frannie, Kit, and the flock hostage at her house and tries to sell the bird children to rich companies. When that plan fails, she, her husband, and Michael try to escape but are killed in a car wreck.

Dr. Peyser

He is the head of the School that Max and the others came from. He is Gillian's husband and was believed to have died of a heart attack years ago. He is killed in a car wreck with Gillian, Michael, and Harding Thomas.

References

External links

* [http://www.jamespatterson.com James Patterson's official website]
* [http://www.maximumride.com Maximum Ride website]