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Summary
Summary
Felicity's glamorous parents don't tell her anything when they drop her off at the Bathburn house in Maine. They don't tell her why Uncle Gideon acts so strangely. They don't tell her why Derek, the only other kid in the house, refuses to come out of his room. Worst of all, Felicity's parents don't tell her where they are going, and won't say when they'll return.
And then the letters start coming, in slim blue Air Mail envelopes. Felicity is sure they're from her parents, but if so, why are they in code? Will Felicity discover just what the Bathburns are hiding? Can one person heal an entire family-all while in the throes of her first big crush? It's a tall order for a small girl, but Felicity is determined to crack the Romeo and Juliet code.
Author Notes
Phoebe Stone 's first novel, All the Blue Moons at the Wallace Hotel , was hailed as "haunting and poetic" by The New York Times . The Boston Globe said of her second novel, Sonata #1 for Riley Red , "literature doesn't get much better than this." Her third novel, Deep Down Popular,/i> , received a starred review in Booklist. Phoebe lives in Middlebury, Vermont.
Reviews (5)
Publisher's Weekly Review
Stone's (Deep Down Popular) intricate and lyrical novel, set during WWII, resembles The Secret Garden in all the best ways. Bright and bold Felicity Bathburn Budwig's parents leave her with her father's family in Maine, without an explanation, far from her beloved and endangered home in England. In addition to culture shock, 11-year-old Felicity is frustrated with her quirky and closed-mouthed relatives, including secretive Uncle Gideon and Shakespeare-obsessed Aunt Miami. When Uncle Gideon begins receiving letters from Portugal in her father's handwriting, Felicity and Captain Derek, a 12-year-old recovering from polio, set out to find answers and solve the many mysteries of the "large, dark house full of rifts and lies." Felicity is a deeply empathetic heroine, and as she informs readers of the ways of British children ("British children are usually very brave. I saw many, many of them getting on trains in London... going alone to the countryside to get away from the bombs"), she reveals much about the hardships facing young Londoners during the war. Stone's accomplished tale provides a romantic yet realistic perspective on family, perseverance, and adaptation. Ages 8-12. (Jan.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
Horn Book Review
Eleven-year-old Felicity Bathburn Budwig, a Londoner to her core, is deposited in coastal Maine to escape the Blitz; her glamorous parents, Winnie and Danny, drive away in a convertible, leaving her alone with Danny's family, with no word about when they'll return. Where they've gone -- and why -- are just two of the many secrets held close by the Bathburn clan. Felicity's new caretakers include imposing matriarch The Gram, who promptly nicknames her "Flissy," and The Gram's two adult children: kindhearted Aunt Miami, who swoons over Romeo and Juliet, and well-meaning but awkward Uncle Gideon, who pines over Winnie, his first love. Also lurking in the household is Derek, an adopted child who lost the use of his arm to polio and refuses to exit his room. Flissy makes short work of his resolve, though, coaxing him out with a puzzle to solve: Uncle Gideon is receiving mysterious letters from Portugal, and Flissy suspects they're from her parents. The story's strands satisfyingly come together in a plot full of intrigue, with well-integrated historical and literary references. On top of all that, Flissy is a kick, her ever-so-proper manners and stuffy Briticisms belied by her abundant curiosity and consequent meddling. Disregard the misleading contemporary-looking book jacket and pass the volume along to middle-graders seeking a suspenseful, accessible, and not-too-dangerous World War II spy story. elissa gershowitz (c) Copyright 2011. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Booklist Review
Because of the bombing of London, 11-year-old Felicity is taken by her parents to live with relatives in Maine in 1941. She slowly adjusts to her new family, including Uncle Gideon, who teaches sixth grade at the local school; Aunt Miami, who lives and breathes Shakespeare; The Gram, Felicity's grandmother; and Derek, a 12-year-old adopted orphan whose dreams of military service have been dashed by a bout with polio. Felicity's engaging personality and curiosity about letters arriving from Portugal written in code stir up the soup of life in the Bathburn household, but only time will tell if that's a good thing. In lyrical prose, Stone conjures up America on the brink of WWII through the eyes of a delightful British girl. The apprehensions of impending war are intermittently broken up by humor, mystery, romance, and literary allusions. Truly charming, this coming-of-age historical novel has an old-fashioned feel and will resonate with fans of Frances Hodgson Burnett and Jeanne Birdsall's Penderwicks books.--Moore, Melissa Copyright 2010 Booklist
School Library Journal Review
Gr 4-6-Eleven-year-old Felicity Bathburn Budwig does not appreciate being deposited in Bottlebay, ME, by her parents, but she understands the necessity as it is 1941 and London is under constant bombardment by the Germans. She is welcomed into her father's family's Victorian house populated by The Gram, Aunt Miami, Uncle Gideon, and the reclusive "Captain Derek," who turns out to be a boy recovering from polio. Felicity and Derek team up to discover why Gideon receives letters from her father that she is not supposed to see and to puzzle out the code they contain. In doing so, the girl uncovers family secrets surrounding her parents' estrangement from the Bathburn clan. Felicity's internal observations propel this mystery forward with good effect. She rather resembles a combination of Noel Streatfeild's English waifs and Polly Horvath's Primrose from Everything on a Waffle (Farrar, 2001). Her insecure whisperings to her bear, Wink, show her private feelings in an endearing flashback to childhood, and readers will identify with the protagonist in all her schemes. The girl's thoughts articulate clues for readers to notice, making this a story truly told through the eyes of its narrator. Her perspective is not necessarily accurate, yet just like the codes she deciphers, it allows readers to uncover the truth. Pair this up with Noel Streatfeild's "Shoes" books (Random) or Kate DiCamillo's Because of Winn Dixie (Candlewick, 2000) as a quietly touching story of finding one's place in the world.-Caitlin Augusta, Stratford Library Association, CT (c) Copyright 2011. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Kirkus Review
Eleven-year-old Londoner Felicity has been left by her parents, Danny and Winnie, for the duration of World War II at the mansion her grandmother, uncle and aunt share on a Maine bluff overlooking the sea. Secrets abound, and adults are strangely, sometimes even bizarrely wary of informing her about any of them, although that leaves her feeling isolated and abandoned. Why is Uncle Gideon receiving encoded messages from Dannyall postmarked from Portugal? Who is the mysterious Captain Derek locked away in the upstairs bedroom? What caused the estrangement between Gideon and Danny, and what role did Winnie play? After she joins forces with her 12-year-old male cousin, the two begin to solve the mysteries, one at a time, leaving Felicityand astute readerswith some astonishing surprises. She is endearingly portrayed, and the back story, so gradually revealed, provides a peek into the depths of the souls of some of the adults. The pacing is deliberately slow, yet Felicity's growing awareness of how she can help heal the troubled adults makes this an eminently satisfying read. (Historical fiction. 9-13)]] Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Excerpts
Excerpts
From The Romeo and Juliet Code I barely heard them. I was watching that letter halfway under the door. And then just as I was about to turn round and go downstairs, the letter moved. Someone pulled it under the door and picked it up. My heart started racing and thumping and spinning, carrying on inside me like a tiny bird in a new cage. I was scared and nervous and pleased all at once. It was a nice feeling to realize that I had run a test and it had worked. I had proved that Derek existed. He was in there. It made me think that I can be a clever girl, even though I can't do long division. Excerpted from The Romeo and Juliet Code by Phoebe Stone All rights reserved by the original copyright owners. Excerpts are provided for display purposes only and may not be reproduced, reprinted or distributed without the written permission of the publisher.