Phoebe Stone

children fiction (middlegrade/tween girls--romance, grief, and bullying). Louise (Thumbelina)'s mom committed suicide after her father left them for a new wife and stepdaughter (whose name, apparently, is "Dearie"); Louise has blocked out her memories for that entire year though her grandparents try to facilitate her grieving process. Meanwhile, death threats have caused Louise to quit gymnastics--the thing that she loves and shows extreme talent for. Add to this some mysterious notes from a secret admirer (the true author becomes obvious to the reader but not to Louise, or even to the sister of the admirer) and you've got a recipe for some significant tween drama. Characters are sweet and charming if painfully tragic (you may want to keep tissues handy); a few logical gaps in the plot can be easily ignored. Though Louise does eventually report her bully's activities to her coach, the incident is unusually easy to resolve--Louise's best friend Reni (overweight to the point of being borderline diabetic) suffers not from teasing but from her unrequited letters to Justin Bieber.… (mehr)

Felicity comes to Maine to live with her father's family while her parents go back to Europe during WWII. She waits for letters from them which never come. She wonders what is going on. There are a lot of secrets in her father's family home and she slowly discovers what they are.

I loved this book. I had a hard time putting it down. It is so well written and Felicity is a wonderful character--curious, child-like but growing up, lively, bringing others out of their shells. She gets Captain Derek out of his room. I liked Derek. The secondary characters were different and were hard to know through most of the story until Felicity dug out their secrets. I hope I can find other stories in this series to see what happens at WWII comes to the United States.… (mehr)

Felicity Bathburn Budwig is only eleven years old when she must leave England in the dark of night to travel with her parents, Winnie and Danny, across the sea to America. It is 1941, bombs are dropping in England, and the journey on the boat is just as scary. Felicity has never known any other family besides Winnie and Danny. As a matter of fact, Felicity has spent much of her eleven years raising herself. She meets her family in Bottlebay, Maine and they're like nothing she could have ever imagined. The Gram, Uncle Gideon, Aunt Miami, and Captain Derek are a cast of characters she will have to get to know on her own, no matter how hard it is. What choice does she have when her parents leave her there all alone, with nothing but a letter to give to Uncle Gideon if they are not back by Christmas? It is so hard for Felicity to keep that letter sealed, but she knows that good English girls are trustworthy. Everything feels so different from England, and she's very happy to have her bear, Wink, to keep her company when no one else seems to understand her. As the days go by Felicity, now nicknamed Flissy, longs for a letter from Danny and Winnie, but none seem to arrive for her, only for Uncle Gideon and they are all in some kind of code. When she finally discovers that Captain Derek is really a boy about her age, things really begin to change. Is it possible to have a crush on a sea captain? Will she ever hear from Winnie and Danny again? After they sneak in to Gideon’s room to read the letters, will she and Derek figure out what the coded letters say? Why is Aunt Miami always quoting Romeo and Juliet? What surprises will be discovered during the Christmas holiday season? You will have to travel back in time to Maine with Flissy and family to find out for yourself!

The Romeo and Juliet Code by Phoebe Stone seemed to lull me into another world. The house by the sea in Maine became a favorite of mine as Derek, Gideon and the rest of the Bathburns became comfortable to me in the cozy setting. I felt for Flissy and how much she missed her parents. Even though no one else is scared about the war, she can’t help it after all that she experienced in England, and she still looks at her surroundings through nervous eyes. My heart went out to Flissy as she longs to hear from her parents and she worried about their safety every day. When Flissy and Derek tried to crack the code I felt nervous and stressed out for them. I was also impressed with their detective work! Flissy is someone I would most definitely want to be friends with, not only would it be fun to be friends with someone from another country, but I loved the way she spoke, and I connected to what was in her heart. All she really tries to do is help people and make their lives better. Being a child abandoned during the war would be very difficult, and it was so refreshing to see the way Flissy learned to trust herself and depend on those around her. She always had to be an adult, and now she finally gets to be a child. I can't wait to read the next book by this fantastic author! I think this book will be enjoyed by kids and adults from fourth grade and up. Journey back to Maine in 1941 and you will discover more than you ever expected!… (mehr)