Amber Brown Is on the Move

Amber Brown #11

by Bruce Coville, Elizabeth Levy, Tre Lewis (Illustrations)

Fun and not-so-fun changes are keeping Amber Brown, the most colorful chapter-book character, hopping!

Now that Amber’s mom and Max are married, the three of them are moving to a new house and Amber is worried about more than just packing. How can she leave the home her dad used to live in? And with her dad dating again, how will they ever find time for just the two of them, like they used to? All of these changes make Amber's head spin, but with standardized tests coming up at school as well as a dance competition, she needs to focus more than ever.…Sometimes, Amber realizes, moving on means taking one step at a time.

Bruce Coville and Elizabeth Levy perfectly capture the magic, heart, and delightfully punny humor of Paula Danziger’s Amber Brown.

Genres: Childrens, Middle Grade, Contemporary, Fiction, Juvenile, Divorce

176 pages, Hardcover

First published September 12, 2013

Reviews

[Jen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Coville and Levy continue to keep the spirit of these books alive. In this volume, Amber Brown has to not only move to a new house but also practice new dance moves for school. She also has to deal with the idea of her father dating and her new stepfather being upset with her.

I loved the way in which the situation between Amber and Max was resolved—made me tear up. As someone who has moved a few times as a child, I could emphasize with Amber on that one. Another fine addition to the series.

[Liz · Rating 3 out of 5]

Bruce Coville did a good job of continuing the Amber Brown series. The parents treatment of how Amber feels about having to move though really irritated me. While I support her mom and new stepdad's right to move, they really should have worked harder to help Amber transition.

[Lexish · Rating 3 out of 5]

I gather this book was created by a ghost writer after Paula Danzinger’s passing. I’m going to go back and read the originals before deciding what I really think of this one! It was fine, but I always have reservations when an author’s legacy is continued by ghostwriters.

[Kathy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another good read in the Amber Brown series.

[Tory · Rating 5 out of 5]

amazing book

[Anna Salvesen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Amber and her mom and Max move to a new house. She still goes to the same school thankfully!

[Lady Bouse II · Rating 2 out of 5]

Spoilers beyond this point 👉




Really? You're not gonna tell us if she passed? Lol

[Katie Fitzgerald · Rating 4 out of 5]

Amber Brown’s mother has just gotten remarried, and her new stepdad really wants a fresh start for his new family. Thus, Amber and her mom are packing up their belongings - and their memories of life with Amber’s dad - and moving to a new house. While Amber procrastinates on packing her boxes and deciding on things to give away, she also struggles to focus on practice exams for the upcoming standardized tests and she learns ballroom dancing at school, from a woman who has attracted her father’s romantic interests.

Amber Brown has been a household name in children’s books for years, and though I am sometimes skeptical when new authors take over a beloved series, I think Elizabeth Levy and Bruce Coville truly understand how Paula Danziger would have wanted Amber’s story to continue. Though nothing could replace Danziger’s trademark writing style, these two authors (who were her best friends) come as close as possible and in the two books they have written for the series so far, they have recaptured Amber’s voice, personality, and worldview in such a way that young readers may not even realize they are not reading one of the original books. Truly, the only marked change I noticed in this book is that, for the first time, Tony Ross is not the illustrator. Kids might not notice this either, but I could tell that something was different and I was a bit disappointed to note the change.

There is lots to like about this story. I have often felt that the original books focus almost too much on Amber’s parents’ divorce, so it was a relief for me to see things shifting away from that a little bit. Amber’s dad is finally improving his relationship with his daughter, and Amber’s new stepdad is a real positive influence on both Amber and her mom. There are bumps in the road, but for the most part, the tone of this story is more hopeful than in some of the early books. Amber’s voice also continues to be strong, and her observations about her classmates, her dad’s budding romance, and her experiences learning to dance with a boy as her partner are both dead-on for her age, and laugh-out-loud funny. Indeed, every character in every scene is written with such precision that it’s hard to find a flaw in the writing. Even when the most mundane things are happening, the characters are so interesting, the pages just keep turning.

While I still think it’s too bad that Amber is always going through something difficult rather than just enjoying her life, I can’t fault the series too much for its negativity, as Amber takes it on with such humor and joie de vivre. It might be kind of a bummer to read about standardized tests in a fiction book, as this is already such a part of many kids’ realities, but Amber does provide kids with a helpful approach to getting through each question and doing one’s best. Amber also seems young for a fourth grader in this particular story, but this isn’t truly a problem, either, as I think the audience for these books tends to skew pretty young, maybe even to kindergarten in some cases.

Amber Brown is on the Move will appeal first and foremost to fans of the previous books in the series, and to fans of similar long-running chapter book series. Along with Where I Live by Eileen Spinelli, The Moffats by Eleanor Estes, and Starting with Alice by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor, it’s also a great story to share with kids who face an upcoming move to a new place.

[Brianna Craft · Rating 4 out of 5]

Amber Brown is a 9, almost 10, year-old girl who is moving to a new house with a new step-dad, and has to make a new best friend since Justin Daniels moved away. She is too busy being distracted by all of this and the fact that her class is having a dance competition; and in return, she is not doing so well on her state practice tests. She has to spend her Saturdays at school, along with Bobby Clifford (her dance partner that she despises) to help her scores. Her father starts dating her dance teacher, she ruins the ceiling of her new house, and her test scores are still struggling.

This is a great book for kids in 3rd or 4th grade to read. It talks about problems that a lot of children go through during elementary school, and also is relate-able for kids going through changes like divorce, moving, or making new friends. The end of the book is very optimistic and lets the readers know that even though you can have a ton of stress and problems, as long as you keep your focus, you'll be just fine.

[Katt Hansen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Yay, more Amber Brown! I was so happy when the series continued after the author passed away. Amber still is Amber, and still is going through an awful lot. I felt the stress of her life easily in this book and almost want every parent to read this series who is going through a divorce / move / whatever. Simply because I think that as parents we tend to forget just how stressed out kids get in this big life-changing events that us adults tend to go through.

Loved how everything came together. Loved seeing Amber again. Excellent book all the way around.

[Yapha · Rating 4 out of 5]

It is the end of fourth grade and Amber Brown has a lot going on. She, her mom, and Max are moving into a new house together. The state standardized tests are coming up, and she hasn't been doing well on the practice tests. And now there is a ball room dancing at school. Amber makes it through these difficult situations in ways that will be reassuring to others facing them as well. Recommended for grades 2-4.

[Christine Grant · Rating 5 out of 5]

Coville and Levy have captured the voice Danziger's Amber Brown perfectly. In this book, Amber and her mother and new stepfather are moving out of the home that Amber grew up in and into a new house for their "new family." Amber's father starts dating Amber's new dance teacher and Amber's not quite sure how she feels about it. It's another book about the changes a girl from a divorced family faces and the authors handle the situations with sensitivity and honesty. Another great read.

[Michelle Bridges · Rating 4 out of 5]

A cute book, maybe for upper 2nd grade and 3rd , maybe 4th? Amber brown is a spunky 4th grader dealing with lots of real life issues, her parents are divorced and now her mom and new husband are moving, her dad is dating her dance teacher and she is in danger of failing her end of grade tests because she can't focus. I liked all of the real life issues in this book, it would be great for students dealing with these issues.

[Amber the Human · Rating 3 out of 5]

Definitely weird continuing to read a series after the author has passed away. But I think they've done a good job with the character. She's not perfect, and she shouldn't be. Reading about the frustrations of a fourth grader takes me back to that time of feeling helpless and like no one would listen. Rough, but humbling.

[Jami Dutcher · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great story for young chapter book readers. Gives lots of messages about how to handle different things that come up in life. Talks about feelings, making mistakes, forgiving and more.

[Mary Goldermann · Rating 4 out of 5]

Amber Brown is on the move is my audiobook! This audiobook was copyrighted in 2016.

Amber Brown is about a nine year old girl who has a lot on her mind. She got called into the principal's office along with her mom, dad, and Mark. Mark is now Amber's stepfather and all of them are currently moving into a new home. This is one of the many reasons's why Amber has a so much going on. Her standarized test scores are low and she has to spend her Saturday's studying for the upcoming test. There are two characteristics that I found listening to this audiobook. One of them is there was introdution music before they began the story and the second characteristic is there's only one narrator reading the story. I chose this audio for my shelf because as I was listening to this story I thought this audiobook would be perfect for a second grader to listen to it and follow along with the words written with the story.