Book Review: Claire, Darling by Callie Kazumi

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Claire, Darling by Callie Kazumi  was published on March 11, 2025 by Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine / Bantam. It opens with Claire finding out that her fiancé, Noah, isn't working where he said he was and is now ghosting her. Claire must find out why. Book Review: Claire, Darling by Callie Kazumi Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine / Bantam for providing me with an Advanced Readers Copy (ARC) of Claire Darling by Callie Kazumi for free in exchange for my honest review. I was absolutely thrilled when my request for a copy was approved because the synopsis was so good. From the beginning, I absolutely loved the main character of Claire and her work friend named Sukhi. Throughout the novel, we learn about Claire's past and how terrible her mother was towards her. I kept hoping that somehow we would learn who Claire's father was and would eventually connect with him. It's really no wonder Claire had no self confidence as an ad...
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Book Review: The Secret Sisters by Avi

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book review the secret sisters avi

The Secret Sisters by Newberry Medal-Winning Author Avi opens with Ida Bidson on her way to live her biggest dream thus far in her life . . . to go to high school so she can eventually become a teacher.  The Roaring Twenties is in it's hey day, and Ida is learning a lot of new things from using a telephone for the first time to seeing her first moving picture to learning how to speak "flapper".  But, when she corrects the principal in front of her class, she worries that she may not last long at the high school.

A huge thank you to Net Galley and HarperCollins Children's Books for the Advanced Readers Copy (ARC) of The Secret Sisters by Avi.  Having heard of the author, but having never reading any of his books, I was intrigued by the synopsis of his latest middle grade book and requested to read it.  When I was approved, I was absolutely delighted.

Although I'm not the target audience, I found The Secret Sisters to be fun and engaging . . . and even educational!  I loved the fact that Ida and her friends were learning how to speak "flapper" from one of their more modern friends and learned how to dance the Charleston.  What was fascinating was that these things were frowned upon by some people in the town.  This story was a great reminder that this time in history was vastly different than it is now.  Even though I knew that many people in the twenties and thirties didn't get their high school education, especially those who lived on a farm, it was a great reminder to me, and I'm sure a new lesson to kids nowadays.  This book is a great historical fiction novel for children between the ages of eight and twelve.  I enjoyed reading this story immensely and now want to read its predecessor.

Four out of five stars is what I gave The Secret Sisters by Avi.  The expected publication date is August 29, 2023.  It's sure to be a winner with kids and adults alike.

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