Flight #116 is Down!

by Caroline B. Cooney

Book Overview

5:10 p.m.: 16-year-old Heidi Landseth is in her home near New York City. Her parents are away on business and she is lonely and bored. 5:15 p.m.: Across town, 17-year-old Patrick Farquhar, a volunteer rescue worker, longs for an emergency. 5:30 p.m.: Flight #116, a 747 jumbo jet, is nearing the New York area.5:41 p.m.: Suddenly, a deafening roar fills the air and a violent wind sucks Heidi's breath from her body. A huge plane has crashed in the woods...

• Format: Mass Market Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0590444794
• ISBN13: 9780590444798
• Release Date: July 1997
• Publisher: Scholastic Paperbacks
• Length: 208 Pages
• Weight: 0.27 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.6" x 4.3" x 6.8"
• Age Range: 12 to 15 years
• Grade Range: Grades 7 to 10

Customer Reviews

Flight 116 Is Down Is Awesome!!!

Flight 116 Is Down is the best book ever!! I am an extremely avid reader, and this is the only book that I can read front to back and 2 minutes after reading the last page start it all over!! I love this book because it's soooooooo descripitive!! Most kids that hate to read and are forced to for school read the first chapter and the last chapter. This is impossible with her books!!

Great book! shouldn't miss this one!

I started reading this book last sunday, and I finished it by Monday evening. This book really touched me, it had good combination of emotion and thrill. It was a story about 16 year old Heidi and a drastic day that changed her life. What would you do if an airplane crashed in your backyard? Heidi had to face this question as she is sitting alone one saturday night feeling sorry for herself. A jumbo jet crashes into the woods behind her house. Heidi discovers that she has depths of strength and valor that she didn't know about. She along with 17 years old Patrick, and other volunteer workers, struggles to save the lives of passengers and crew of flight #116. This book is packed with action and emotion which makes it a powerful combination for readers.

Great Book!

This book was awesome , it was very real seeming. I would have totally flipped out if a plane landed in my back yard .. I wouldn't know what to do , But the main character in this book did , she may have paused for a minute , but she got right with it .. can you imagine how it would feel having strangers in your house , and your parents were not home . And losing your family and not being aware of it . once again this book was truly awesome , and I recommend everyone read it . Thank You

one of the best books I've ever read

I've always been into planes and plane crashes, and when I saw Flight #116 is down, just by looking at it I knew it was a great book. When I started reading, I got more interested in the peoples stories then in the plane, how Patrick wants so much for something excitingto happen in his life, how Hiedi dosen't do very well in school and how her life is kinda blah, and Daniels parents have split up, and life dosen't really matter to him anymore, and how his brother, Tuck, isn't the same without thier parents being together, and how Teddie worries too much about things( she's only 5 ), and how the snotty Darienne is wrapped up with her own silly life, and can't(and won't)care about anything else, and Carly just wants to do something with her life. All of these things are reality, and the book taught me so much of how life can be crucial, and give gifts. In other words, it has its ups and downs. And when the plane crashed, it gave a wonderful view of how life has bravery and emmotions. Its sad but I think what Caroline B. Cooney is trying to tell people, and not only entertain them, but to tell them that this is reality. How a plane crash can do so much to a persons life, when there are people dying out there in that world, and all people can think about is themselves. I've got to hand it to her, she's a wonderful author.

Teenage Terror & Triumph

This is my favorite of Cooney's novels, and my students(grades 6th - 8th) love it as well. Cooney places her characters in the most traumatic situations(in this book, a plane crash) and then Mrs. Cooney reminds us, as the drama unfolds, that these are still young adults with the usual teen years' concerns. Kids love this book because it holds the suspense and contains some (decently depictedt); "blood & guts"; yet it keeps its listeners' attention more through the audience's identification with the book's characters. The only "challenge" with this book and young readers is the continuous switch in point of views. Cooney's style allows the reader to know the fears, thoughts, and also flaws of all these individuals brought together by this tragedy. Much like it would be in a crisis situation, all these points of views are going at once. I found that reading this book out loud was more effective with my overall class of diverse readers. I would love to hear from other teachers especially who have read this book with their students. P.S. - This book is so realistic that if I had experienced a plane crash...I don't think I could read it.