Phoebe StoneReseñas

{My thoughts} – An innocent story of a young girl with a crush on the popular boy in her class. Jessie Lou seems to have had a crush on Conrad Parker Smith for as long as she can remember. When he loses his popularity she helps him and becomes one of his closest friends.

I really enjoyed this story. It’s about the small town life. It’s about the importance of friends and family. It’s about being yourself, finding your place and showing others how great you are.

I recommend this book for any child trying to find their place in the world. That anyone growing up in a small town surrounded by the same individuals can relate. Any child just looking for a book to pass the day away will likely enjoy reading it as well.

This book is a perfect example of why you shouldn't judge a book by its cover. I didn't think it would be of much interest but its actually well written and touches on a number of subjects, including sibling rivalry, the agonies of war, and the complexities of love. Sure, it's a little sappy at the end, but nevertheless a good read.

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.

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.

I loved the narrator's voice in this book. A fun, beautiful read.

"All the popular kids play piccolos or flutes. I'm not exactly sure why. Maybe it's because they just naturally gravitate towards that high-pitched stuck-up sound."

Genius.

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!

It has been a year since Felicity Bathburn Budwig was dropped off in America to live with family she hadn't met. Flissy, as she came to be known, had a hard time adjusting to Maine, her new family (The Gram, Uncle Gideon, Aunt Miami, and Derek), and being separated from her parents, whom she called Winnie and Danny. But in the past year something amazing happened. Flissy has grown to love Bottlebay, Maine, the eccentric Bathburns, and her buddy and secret crush, Derek. With World War II still in full swing, Flissy can’t help but continue to worry about Winnie and Danny, especially since she hasn’t heard from them in months. Derek has always known that he was taken in by the Bathburns, and has no idea when his real birthday is or who his birth parents are. When Derek starts having secret meetings with a man who claims to be his real father, he makes Flissy promise not to say anything to anyone at the house, because he wants to get to know his dad first. Flissy is torn about what to do. There seems to be something wrong with Derek’s father, and when she overhears conversations about the fact that Uncle Gideon may be going to do something dangerous with the war, she thinks she'll burst. All these secrets are weighing her down, and she isn’t feeling like a child anymore. Is the man claiming to be Derek’s father really who he says he is? Should Flissy keep Derek’s secret? Are Winnie and Danny safe in Europe? Will Uncle Gideon survive his mission? Traveling back in time to Maine with Flissy and family will keep you turning the pages!

Romeo Blue by Phoebe Stone is the sequel to The Romeo and Juliet Code. I had so much fun journeying back to the house by the sea in Maine. My heart went out to Flissy as she waits to hear from her parents and worries about everyone around her. She has a lot on her mind for a young girl, and I felt bad for her that she had to grow up so quickly. I read this book quickly, as I had to find out about Derek’s father and some of the other mysteries that reveal themselves in this book. I loved getting to know more about the characters I have come to adore and can only hope there might be another book involving these characters. I like Flissy’s strong character and the way she really thinks things through and tries to do what is right, even if she isn’t always sure what that is. I know this book will be enjoyed by kids and adults from fourth grade and up. It was such fun to journey back to Maine and learn about life during WWII.

I wasn't thrilled with the writing style, but I also found the plot interesting enough that I couldn't put it down either. I wasn't such a fan that I'll be seeking out the others in this series, but I will confess that I cried (maybe more than once) throughout this novel. So overall, three stars seems just right.

Eleven year old, Felicity Bathborn Budwig, finds herself in the Maine home of relatives she's never met far from the London home and parents she's always known, in the months just before the United States enters World War II. Shy, yet curious, she neverously enters a house filled with a strange sadness about it. As she adjusts to her new surrounding Felicity, or Flissy as she's now nicknamed, discovers her new family is full of secrets just begging to be uncovered.


I enjoyed the story and it was a quick read, my only complaint is the cover art - which does not match the story in any way.

The nonfiction novel, 'Deep Down Popular' by Phoebe Stone is an inspiration story. The book follows the story of Jessie Lou Ferguson, who is deeply in love with Conrad Parker Smith since grade two. Conrad is the most popular boy in the town Virginia, where as Jessie Lou has part-time friends only, but when Conrad is forced to wear a metal leg brace, his popularity goes crossing. Soon Jessie Lou, Conrad and an annoying fourth grader, other wise known as Quentin form a friendship and are on a mission to save the Baileys Hardware store from closing. The main theme of the story is not to judge people by the way they look, but by what they are on the inside. 'Deep Down Popular' is set after school, as Jessie Lou is too shy ti talk to Conrad during school hours and only communicates with him after school, but she slowly grows confident throughout the book. To tell the story, Phoebe Stone uses descriptive language, imagery and colloquial language.

The descriptive language used, helped to create a well written novel. "Inside-out with joy" was one way Jessie Lou had described herself, allowing the readers to understand her emotions. "Lonely old river" had also been another phrase used to explain the Virginia river. There was a lot of descriptive language inside the book, and it was also extremely poetic.

To make the readers feel involved, imagery was used. "Sometimes a poem will wait and hover under the surface, making me feel like I might split into two getting it out" was one of the imagery lines found. This line caused the reader to visualize Jessie Lou splitting in half and shows the difficulty poet have when they write, including herself. Describing the smell with imagery was also common.

The colloquial language set the book. The characters had a southern accent and background. "Y'all have yourself a real nice day Jessie," was spoken by Jessie Lou's part-time friends, Elizabeth and Sarah. Characters had called there mother "mama" and grandfathers "granddaddy." "Y'all" was common throughout the novel as it was part of the colloquial language that helped give an understanding of the characters personality's and how they spoke.

My favorite character was Jessie Lou as she seemed more realistic than most characters and as the story was told from her perspective. The book kept myself guessing and asking questions because it was somebody's life, which could have changed at any second. My favorite event would have to be when Jessie Lou and her sister connected. They understood how each other felt and how alike they were, putting their differences aside for once, instead of rivaling against each other. The novel kept myself, reading its contents and had its grip on me.

'Deep Down Popular' is a well written novel. I didn't dislike the entire book. The only part that I found disappointing was when Jessie Lou would continually go on about being a poet, but there were only two poems, although the description made up for it.

I would suggest this novel to young female children. From the age of nine and up is my recommended age group. I would definitely recommend this to any middle aged school girl, looking for a good read.

five out of five stars
I chose this rating because the book was well thought out and had humor to keep the readers entertained. 'Deep Down Popular' is an extremely descriptive book. The story met my expectations and wen beyond. I thought it was a perfect love story with a twist of inspiration/ Phoebe Stone's book has by far entertained me.

Set in Maine during WWII, the reader is given the perspective of the war from the American front. This book is a sequel to Romeo and Juliet Code which finds our protagonist, Flissy, a year later still living with her "Gram", Uncle Gideon, Aunt Miami and Derek in Bottlebay, ME. Flissy parents are spies and were lastly known to have been in Europe but nobody has heard from them for awhile. This book is full of spies, secrets and young love!

Read other people's reviews and although some loved it, I just could NOT get past the first 20 pages. I tried a couple times but I just couldn't enjoy what I was reading. To be fair, I've read a ton of books in the last two weeks so perhaps I was just too full to handle one more story. I found it heartbreaking to read, at the end of the book, that they author had lost her own father to suicide at an early age.

This was a sweet read. Louise has changed her name to Thumbelina and quit gymnastics. Her grandparents are worried about her and her best friends Reni and Henderson do their best to keep her mind off the terrible thing that no one talks about.

A story about a wounded girl and the boy who won't give up on her.

7th grader Louise should be the captain of her school's gymnastics team - but she isn't. She's fun and cute and should have lots of friends - but she doesn't. And there's a dreamy boy who has a crush on her - but somehow they never connect. Louise has everything going for her - so what is it that's holding her back?

Phoebe Stone tells the winning story of the spring when 7th grader Louise Terrace wakes up, finds the courage to confront the painful family secret she's hiding from - and finally get the boy.

There are some things I really liked about this book, and other things that really bugged me. I liked the setting and the idea of a British girl coming to live with her American relatives during WWII. The characters were intriguing, but I had a hard time liking most of them. The main character, who was supposed to be British, kept rubbing that in our faces so much that it felt more like an American girl who was just trying to be British. And all the "British children do this" stereotypes got old quickly. Since this review is being written by a confirmed Brit-Lit snob, to say that you could tell it was an American author is not a compliment. I also had a hard time liking a mother and father who left their small daughter alone and scared at night. They didn't have any neighbors, friends or family who could have stayed with her? And then the other revelations later in the book about the parents increased that dislike. At the end of the book, the heroine takes something very calmly that should have been completely earth-shattering to her. It was not very realistic at all. So while it was a good story with some tension in it and I read it quickly, there were definitely things that I wish were different. I'm not sure the story is gripping enough to keep middle schoolers moving through it.

Areas of concern:
Adultery is hinted at. I don't remember any bad language.

This book is about Louise Terrace. She lives with their grandparents, but it wasn't always like that. In the beginning of the story Louise can't remember why she now lives with her grandparents on the other side of town. She doesn't talk to her old friends anymore but makes friends with brother and sister, Henderson and Reni. She aslo has a secret admirer (Benny McCartney) whom often leaves her notes. At the end of the book Louise gets sick and starts to remember her past. She remembers it was her mother's traumatic suicide that caused her to lose her memory. She starts to get closer to Henderson and he helps her to find her way back to her old self, all while a romance blossoms between them.

RGG: During WWII, a quirky British girl comes to live with family in Maine. Lots of contextual references, a first person narrator, and a mystery, may make this a difficult read, but the story is sweet if not exactly a thriller. Reading Level: 10-12; FP U-W.

At first I wasn't sure how I felt about this book, seeing as it was written in the seventh grade point of view, and we all know how things go when you were in middle school. It was too much for me to read the girls talking about the boy, completely clueless, yet thinking that they know all about it. However, the story with the mother had caught my attention and I fell in love with Henderson. I wish I had somebody like Henderson in my life. It teaches life values, the true meaning of friendship and overall a very relatable book for many middle schoolers.

After I read Romeo Blue by Phoebe Stone, I wanted to read more of this author’s work. Although appropriate for middle graders, the two books that I have read so far are by no means unappealing for adults.

Louisa Terrace is 13, lives with her grandparents, and is going to a new school this year. At first, we aren’t sure why any of this is the case, except we know she is withdrawn and angry, doesn’t feel anything except resentment toward her grandparents, and has a big blockage in her memory. Even her two best friends, brother and sister Henderson and Reni, don’t know her secret. We gradually find out as the story progresses.

Meanwhile, Louisa (who has such a diminutive stature she calls herself “Thumbelina”) starts getting anonymous love notes from someone. She and Reni think they are from the cute pizza delivery guy, Benny McCartney. But they aren’t sure. It makes Louisa uncomfortable, but Reni tells her:

"You should be happy. I never got a letter from Justin Bieber, and I wrote him five times. I can understand not answering one letter, but five letters? It’s like rejection times five.”

The two girls decide to investigate, and ask for Henderson's help to discover if Benny is actually Louisa's secret admirer.

In spite of the serious underlying problems, there is plenty of humor, plenty of middle-grader-realism, and plenty of heart. And best of all, the book deals with a tough subject that doesn’t get magically fixed. Rather, it shows, as Louisa observes, that “some people in peril don’t get saved… and some people do…”

Evaluation: I can’t recommend this author highly enough. I love the dialogue (a bit of which is “blah blah blah” and “whatever” as it should be, for 13-year-olds!) and I love the characters. They are all imperfect, but most of them are trying hard to do the right thing, and you can’t help but love them, especially Grandma, Grandpa, Henderson and Reni. Okay, especially Henderson.

If you have a tween going through a hard time, this is a great book about dealing with hurt, anger, and loss. Even though nothing can be the way it was before, it ends in an upbeat, positive way.

I don't know how to give 4 and a half stars or I would give it that rating also. This book takes place in America during World War 2. The principle family is deeply involved in the war effort right down to entertaining the troops. Even the 12 and 13 year old main characters can't help but be involved. However, there are also normal family things going on - love, loss, humor, mystery - so the war does not totally consume the plot. What I really like about the book is the respect Ms. Stone has for her characters but also for her readers. There are some important issues being discussed here and she never talks do to her young adult readers. My only slight criticism is that every single principle adult has a role in the war effort which perhaps is a tad much. This is apparently part of a series but I have not read the other book but this works very well as a stand alone novel.

This is a delightful book with such an adorable protagonist that you soon forget she is only 12 (albeit, like many tweens, going on 21). Although it apparently continues a story that began with The Romeo and Juliet Code, I had not read that book and had no trouble following this one. I regret not starting with it though, since I loved this one so much!

The setting is 1942 in Bottlebay, Maine, a fictitious place that sounds a bit like Biddeford Pool. There, the U.S. Government put up an observation tower during World War II to patrol Maine waters for German submarines. Citizens on Maine’s coast also had to keep their windows blackened, observe strict curfews, and were exhorted to keep vigilant. And in fact, on April 23, 1945, a U. S. Navy sub-chaser was torpedoed by a German U-boat just three miles off of Cape Elizabeth. Even before that, others had been sunk, and two German spies had come ashore in Frenchman’s Bay. Fortunately, they turned out to be venal and stupid, and ended up giving themselves away. (You can read about them here).

In the book, Flissy (Felicity) Bathburn is living with family members in Bottlebay a year or so after her parents dropped her off there from Great Britain so they could continue their undercover work in Europe. Flissy has not only not heard from “Winnie and Danny” as she calls her parents, but she just found out that her “Uncle” Gideon, with whom she now lives in Maine, is actually her father: after Flissy was born, Winnie fell in love with Gideon’s brother Danny. Flissy never knew Danny wasn’t her real father. Gideon and Danny’s mother, “The Gram,” hates Winnie for how she disrupted the family, but loves having Flissy with her. The big cozy and historic house is also home to The Gram’s daughter Miami, and Gideon’s almost-adopted son Derek.

Derek is a year older than Flissy, and Flissy has a huge crush on him. They are also good friends, but Flissy adores him:

"He seemed a bit moody today, but I rather liked moody. It could be quite dashing when hovering over someone like Derek. I would have followed Derek to the edge of the world, if he had wanted me to. And then perhaps we would have had to hold hands because it must be quite windy at the edge of the world.”

But Flissy’s life is filled with a lot more than preteen angst. So much is going that causes her to feel all mixed up. Derek is trying to find his real father, and keeping it a secret from Gideon and The Gram. Flissy thinks Gideon and The Gram are, like Winnie and Danny, also involved in spying. Aunt Miami is in love with the mailman, and the mailman may be drafted soon. And somehow, the theme of butterflies keeps recurring in a suspicious manner. Of particular significance is the Mazarine Blue, a primarily European butterfly, the male of which, Flissy avers, is also known as the Romeo blue.

As time goes on and the war heats up, so does the tension, since the war brings big changes to all of their lives. Moreover, Flissy is leaving her childhood behind her, and the ways in which she grows are so heartwarming and lovely!

Evaluation: This story does not sugarcoat what happens in war, but as it takes place in the U.S., it isn’t as harrowing as it might have been if set overseas. It's a great way for kids to get a feel for how a war fought by adults could also have an impact on their own lives, even in the relatively isolated United States.

Flissy is such a winning character that I would love to see the author do a whole series of books on her that take us with her on her journey through life, sort of like Anne of Green Gables, of whom she reminds me a lot!½

Okay, to be fair, this book started off putting a bad taste in my mouth when Louise's best friend, a fat girl, is described as wearing this: "Her T-Shirt is a Gap XL and across the front are the printed words LOVE ME ANYWAY?" (page 24)

This is a powerful story of a girl dealing with trauma that's caused memory loss and the boy who starts her path to recovering her memories and dealing with them. But I got bogged down in details like being confused about whether she used to live in South Pottsville and now lives in North Pottsville or vice versa. Besides the trauma, Louise is also dealing with boys she may or may not have crushes on and the fact that she's quite gymnastics because the girls on the team bullied her. It's just a lot for one book and I wish I felt like I had gotten to know Louise more instead of just watching drama unfold in her life. (Albeit, Louise can't really remember a lot of the stuff from her past, so maybe that's realistic?)

Grades 4-7
In 1941, sailing across the ocean aboard the camouflaged Queen Margaret with her mother and father is quite exciting for 11-year-old Felicity Bathburn Budwig, but the excitement quickly fades when Felicity realizes that her parents mean to leave her in the old house along the Maine coast with the grandmother and aunt and uncle she has just met. She cannot get a straight answer from any of her relatives on when her Winnie and her Danny (as she calls her parents) will return for her, and the house seems full of secrets. Who is this Captain Derek that the three adults refer to? Why the locked doors? And why does Uncle Gideon insist that the air mail letters he receives periodically are not from Danny-- when Felicity knows beyond a doubt that the handwriting is her father's? Felicity is determined to get beyond the secrets the adults want to keep, but when she finally manages to glance at one of the mysterious letters, all she sees are a series of numbers. She and Derek-- the mysterious boy who was locked away in one of the rooms-- figure out that the letters represent some kind of code, but it will take perseverence and creativity to figure out a way to crack the code. Along the way, Felicity, or Flissy, comes to appreciate and love her American relatives. This piece of World War II historical fiction is charming and engaging... it is a shame that the book's cover is so appallingly misleading. The cover, featuring two pairs of intertwined legs and sneaker-covered feet, gives the impression that the story is contemporary, and gives the reader no idea of the true nature of the story.

Enjoyed this--lots of secrets, especially about who is Captain Derek. Lots of direct references to The Secret Garden :-)

Cute.