''Left Behind: The Kids'' (stylized as LEFT BEHIND >THE KIDS<) is a series of young adult
speculative fiction novellas based on the ''
Left Behind
''Left Behind'' is a multimedia franchise that started with a series of 16 bestselling religious novels by Tim LaHaye and Jerry B. Jenkins. It focuses on a seven-year conflict between the Tribulation Force, an underground network of converts, a ...
'' series, published by Tyndale House from 1998 to 2005. Written by
Jerry B. Jenkins,
Tim LaHaye
Timothy Francis LaHaye (April 27, 1926 – July 25, 2016) was an American Baptist evangelical Christian minister who wrote more than 85 books, both fiction and non-fiction, including the ''Left Behind'' series of apocalyptic fiction, which he ...
, with uncredited contributions from Chris Fabry, ''The Kids'' follows a group of young
Christians
Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words '' Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρ ...
as they experience the
Rapture and
Great Tribulation
In Christian eschatology, the Great Tribulation ( grc, θλῖψις μεγάλη, thlîpsis megálē) is a period mentioned by Jesus in the Olivet Discourse as a sign that would occur in the time of the end.
At Revelation 7:14, "the Great Tri ...
.
The novellas contain elements of
science fiction
Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel uni ...
,
science fantasy,
utopian and dystopian fiction
Utopian and dystopian fiction are genres of speculative fiction that explore social and political structures. Utopian fiction portrays a setting that agrees with the author's ethos, having various attributes of another reality intended to appeal to ...
,
mystery
Mystery, The Mystery, Mysteries or The Mysteries may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Fictional characters
*Mystery, a cat character in ''Emily the Strange''
Films
* ''Mystery'' (2012 film), a 2012 Chinese drama film
* ''Mystery'' ( ...
, and
horror, woven within an
evangelical
Evangelicalism (), also called evangelical Christianity or evangelical Protestantism, is a worldwide interdenominational movement within Protestant Christianity that affirms the centrality of being " born again", in which an individual expe ...
narrative.
Dramatizations of the novellas were produced for
Christian radio by EarFlix.
The series was conceived as a sequence of 48 novellas, but only forty were published.
Characters
* Judd Thompson Jr. — On the night on the Rapture, Judd had run away using his father's credit card to book a flight to
London
London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
. The same flight Rayford was the pilot for.
*Vicki Byrne Thompson — Vicki grew up in a trailer park, and hated it because people regularly made fun of her and her family by calling them "Trailer Trash".
* Lionel Washington — Son of Buck's editor who was taken in the rapture. Lionel is the only character to also appear in the main ''Left Behind'' novels.
* Ryan Daley — Initially a non-believer, he was the last of the four main characters to become a believer.
''The Kids'' (1998–2004)
''Left Behind: The Kids'' was published in
paperback
A paperback (softcover, softback) book is one with a thick paper or paperboard cover, and often held together with glue rather than stitches or staples. In contrast, hardcover (hardback) books are bound with cardboard covered with cloth, ...
format. Turtleback Books released
library binding
Library binding can be divided into the two major categories of "original" and "after market". The original category is as it says: the book was originally bound with the idea that it would be used in a library setting where the book would receiv ...
editions.
''The Young Trib Force'' (2003–2005)
''Left Behind: The Young Trib Force'' collections contain three or four novellas each. New material written by Chris Fabry linking each collection to a novel in the main series is also included. Several collections include extensive corrections to the original text intended to resolve inconsistent character and place names, and inconsistent dates and times.
See also
*
References
{{Left Behind
Left Behind series
Book series introduced in 1998
Young adult novel series
American young adult novels
Christian children's books
Novels by Jerry B. Jenkins
Novels by Tim LaHaye