Running Out of Time

Haddix, M. (1995). Running out of time. New York: Simon & Schuster

Books for Young Readers.

Jessie Keyser is a 13-year-old girl from the village of Clifton, Indiana, in the 1840s. During a village-wide outbreak of diphtheria, Jessie's mother reveals it is actually the year 1996, and Clifton Village is a tourist attraction. She secretly sends Jessie out of the village to retrieve a cure for the disease from a man, Isaac Neeley, who did not think Clifton should be a tourist attraction. As Jessie escapes underground, she is almost caught by guards and almost loses the package of food and money her mother gave her. She stays overnight in a restroom until she is able to leave the tourist area. Once she makes it to town, Jessie is frequently confused by the technological advancements of the modern world. After meeting with Neeley at a KFC, she returns with him to his apartment, where Jessie is faced with a dangerous situation.

Later, Jessie convinces local newspapers and radio stations to attend a press conference on the steps of the Capitol building so she can tell them the truth. Jessie begins to explain the situation but faints due to diphtheria, which infected her before she left Clifton. At the press conference, she learns the man she thought was Isaac Neeley is actually Frank Lyle, a scientist and business partner of Miles Clifton, the founder of Clifton Village. The real Isaac Neeley is dead! After it is revealed that Clifton had allowed Lyle and others to use his village to try to create a stronger human gene pool that would be able to resist disease without the aid of medicine, Clifton Village is closed.

When Jessie wakes up, she leaves her bedroom and finds Miles Clifton talking about the diphtheria outbreak in Clifton Village to news repeaters on TV. She discovers that several other members of the Clifton Village have been brought to the hospital. Her parents are not among those who were arrested, but they will have to convince the authorities that they did not put any of their six children in danger. Jessie's mother is allowed to visit Jessie in the hospital, and she explains that Jessie's father still rejects life in the 20th century. After Clifton Village closes, Jessie lives in the year 1996.

This story is one of my absolute favorites. There are so many lessons and mini lessons that can come out of this book, including language arts, literacy components, and social studies. This book is perfect for a novel study connected with a social studies unit focused on colonial times.