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The Secret Olivia Told Me
Olivia has a secret - a BIG secret. It's a secret that she tells only to her very best friend. And her friend promises she won't say a word. But the secret is really BIG and really Juicy. What happens when a trusted friend slips and the secret gets out?
32 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2007
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 144 reviews
July 24, 2010
The premise is, Olivia tells her friend a secret, and the friend accidentally spills it, and it keeps getting spread -- and getting distorted as it spreads -- until the friend confesses to Olivia that she screwed up. The nameless friend narrates the book. It's a Coretta Scott King honor book for the illustrations.
So I really liked the book as it went along -- in particular, I REALLY liked the art -- even though it's all silhouettes, it's very obviously about African Americans, and I dug the concept of the balloon to represent secrets -- the way it slips away from you, the way it gets bigger and bigger as the story goes on.
But the final two pages read:
Together we both learned a lesson.
Of this we're very sure.
"Don't tell a *single* person a secret.
Or it won't be a secret *anymore!*"
And it's a picture of Olivia and the narrator whispering to each other with a big NO symbol. So... the message is not that you should keep your friends' confidences? The message is not, don't screw up and be a bad friend? OLIVIA is the one at fault here? I know the message applies to both Olivia and the narrator -- who both shared it with one person -- but the image is of Olivia whispering to the friend. I was really on board right until the final message was "you were wrong to assume your friend was trustworthy."
So I really liked the book as it went along -- in particular, I REALLY liked the art -- even though it's all silhouettes, it's very obviously about African Americans, and I dug the concept of the balloon to represent secrets -- the way it slips away from you, the way it gets bigger and bigger as the story goes on.
But the final two pages read:
Together we both learned a lesson.
Of this we're very sure.
"Don't tell a *single* person a secret.
Or it won't be a secret *anymore!*"
And it's a picture of Olivia and the narrator whispering to each other with a big NO symbol. So... the message is not that you should keep your friends' confidences? The message is not, don't screw up and be a bad friend? OLIVIA is the one at fault here? I know the message applies to both Olivia and the narrator -- who both shared it with one person -- but the image is of Olivia whispering to the friend. I was really on board right until the final message was "you were wrong to assume your friend was trustworthy."
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 26, 2010
As a primary teacher, I can not tell you how many times I have heard, so and so told a secret about me. So you can imagine how happy I am to have come across a book that shows the effects of gossip and telling secrets. This story begins with the narrators best friend telling her a secret. Immediately after hearing the secret she feels the need to tell someone else, but she does not want Olivia to stop being her friend. However the pressure proves to much as she accidently slips to her friend Ayanna. That would be bad enough but Ayanna tells Stephanie, and Stephanie tells Tony, and so on. As the secret is told to more and more people, and the truth becomes less and less the narrator feels the need to tell her friend Olivia. Thankfully Olivia forgives her and both girls learn their lesson to keep secrets to themselves.
Nancy Devard does a beautiful job of illustrating this story through simple black and white outline drawings, with the exception being the red balloon. The red balloon is used as a metaphor for the secret as it travels from person to person. It provides a picture for the reader of the effects of spreading gossip, until the narrator tells her friend the truth and the balloon pops.
I would use this story to teach my students the importance of not spreading gossip, and keeping a promise to a friend. It is important to remember that although we have a rigorous curriculum to follow we also need to prepare our students to have successful relationships with their friends.
Nancy Devard does a beautiful job of illustrating this story through simple black and white outline drawings, with the exception being the red balloon. The red balloon is used as a metaphor for the secret as it travels from person to person. It provides a picture for the reader of the effects of spreading gossip, until the narrator tells her friend the truth and the balloon pops.
I would use this story to teach my students the importance of not spreading gossip, and keeping a promise to a friend. It is important to remember that although we have a rigorous curriculum to follow we also need to prepare our students to have successful relationships with their friends.
February 19, 2017
The Secret Oliva Told Me is about a two little girls who learn a lesson about secrets. Olivia tells her friend a secret and asks her not to tell anyone else. However, her friend has trouble keeping it to herself and lets it accidently slip when playing with another friend, Ayanna. Ayanna spreads the secret to another girl and the chain goes on where one person leaks the secret to the next. Eventually the secret becomes filled with details that aren’t true. Olivia knows the secret has spread widely and worries that Olivia will end their friendship. Wanting to do the right thing, she tells Olivia about her mistake. How will Olivia react?
The setting takes place on a school playground. The reader can infer this because throughout the book, children are shown playing with each other and on one page two kids are holding a book and a notebook. Also, there are illustrations of a soccer ball, basketball, monkey bars, hop scotch, and a jump rope. This contributes to the story because it demonstrates a common belief that children alter and spread secrets around. Eventually, the gossip reaches almost everyone. Therefore, showing small children in a schoolyard, adds to the story’s main idea of spreading secrets. The setting also helps to create the theme: if you tell a secret, it won’t be a secret for long. This theme is prevalent in the story through the text informing the reader that each child tells the secret to another. The illustrations also add to this theme by the balloon highlighted in each opening. The balloon symbolizes the secret and each time the balloon gets bigger, the secret changes with new added details. Olivia and her friend learn that once a secret is out, it spreads out more and eventually everyone knows.
The ninth opening bleeds on both pages. The picture shows three girls on the left standing close to each other and looking towards each other. The girl to the left has her mouth open and right next to her mouth is the string of a balloon which extends past the other two girls and leads into a huge red balloon. To the right of the opening is another girl standing behind a brick wall with her hand covering her mouth. The girl is looking in the direction of the other three girls. All four girls are depicted as black silhouettes. The text is above the girls on each page in white space.
Viewing the ninth opening with an ideological perspective, it displays the norm of schoolgirls gossiping. The illustrations depict a cultural assumption that little girls can’t keep a secret. Four schoolgirls are represented in this picture. One is telling the secret, two are listening, and the other is Olivia’s friend, who is astonished that the secret is spreading and changing so much. The characters are represented this way in order to depict the common situation of children spreading secrets. Missing from the picture is a possible school teacher who could stop the children from gossiping and spreading unreliable information. There could be intended to show that there is not always someone who can stop this from happening and that it is inevitable for secrets to spread.
Overall, the book was okay. I didn’t think it had the most exciting storyline because it was very repetitive. One kid told a secret to another kid who spread it to another kid who told another kid and so on. This made the story a bit boring, but the repetition did create the message. The message explains to children that secrets can spread, however, it also asserts that they will always spread, which I disagree with.
The setting takes place on a school playground. The reader can infer this because throughout the book, children are shown playing with each other and on one page two kids are holding a book and a notebook. Also, there are illustrations of a soccer ball, basketball, monkey bars, hop scotch, and a jump rope. This contributes to the story because it demonstrates a common belief that children alter and spread secrets around. Eventually, the gossip reaches almost everyone. Therefore, showing small children in a schoolyard, adds to the story’s main idea of spreading secrets. The setting also helps to create the theme: if you tell a secret, it won’t be a secret for long. This theme is prevalent in the story through the text informing the reader that each child tells the secret to another. The illustrations also add to this theme by the balloon highlighted in each opening. The balloon symbolizes the secret and each time the balloon gets bigger, the secret changes with new added details. Olivia and her friend learn that once a secret is out, it spreads out more and eventually everyone knows.
The ninth opening bleeds on both pages. The picture shows three girls on the left standing close to each other and looking towards each other. The girl to the left has her mouth open and right next to her mouth is the string of a balloon which extends past the other two girls and leads into a huge red balloon. To the right of the opening is another girl standing behind a brick wall with her hand covering her mouth. The girl is looking in the direction of the other three girls. All four girls are depicted as black silhouettes. The text is above the girls on each page in white space.
Viewing the ninth opening with an ideological perspective, it displays the norm of schoolgirls gossiping. The illustrations depict a cultural assumption that little girls can’t keep a secret. Four schoolgirls are represented in this picture. One is telling the secret, two are listening, and the other is Olivia’s friend, who is astonished that the secret is spreading and changing so much. The characters are represented this way in order to depict the common situation of children spreading secrets. Missing from the picture is a possible school teacher who could stop the children from gossiping and spreading unreliable information. There could be intended to show that there is not always someone who can stop this from happening and that it is inevitable for secrets to spread.
Overall, the book was okay. I didn’t think it had the most exciting storyline because it was very repetitive. One kid told a secret to another kid who spread it to another kid who told another kid and so on. This made the story a bit boring, but the repetition did create the message. The message explains to children that secrets can spread, however, it also asserts that they will always spread, which I disagree with.
February 9, 2017
The Secret Olivia Told Me
Review by Anastasia Hutson
The Secret Olivia Told Me is a story that follows the sequence of events after a little girl’s friend, Olivia, tells her a secret. The book opens with Olivia telling the main character her secret, which is unknown to the audience. As the little girl promises Olivia she won’t tell anyone her secret to keep her friendship, it starts to spiral out of control. While playing with a fellow classmate the secret slipped right from her lips causing a domino effect. After that one person knew, she told another classmate and another until the secret grew so big it wasn’t even true anymore. The little girl was in fear of losing her friendship with Olivia.
When first reading “The Secret Olivia Told Me” the piece that caught my eye the most was the illustration. The entire picture book is in black and white and the only piece of color is a red balloon. The characters were depicted as with a black silhouette so there were no detailed features on the children but that drew me in for some reason. The author uses rhythm throughout the whole book, this story is meant for a younger audience, the rhyming helps the reader connect to the book and helps develop them as a young reader. The rhythm of the story also keeps the reader more engaged and with rhythm there is some predictability, this causes the audience to think more as the story moves along.
The author presented a story that is very relatable for most kids at that targeted age. Many children understand the concept of a secret or have maybe even had a secret told about them that they didn’t like. This book illustrates the consequences of a secret spiraling out of control. The illustrations complemented the story but with the illustrations being so simple it gave more noticed to the lesson being learned in the book. Throughout the story this red balloon is shown as a metaphor for the secret, on every page the balloon gets bigger and bigger as the secret gets passed along from person to person, just like the balloon. This illustration gives a visual idea to the audience on the effects of spreading gossip to others. The illustrations aided in the understanding of the lesson.
This text is an engaging way to teach an important life lesson to young readers while also making the story relatable through setting and illustration. N. Joy and Nancy Devard made a beautiful collaboration of words and pictures with a light hearted feel for their audience to enjoy.
Review by Anastasia Hutson
The Secret Olivia Told Me is a story that follows the sequence of events after a little girl’s friend, Olivia, tells her a secret. The book opens with Olivia telling the main character her secret, which is unknown to the audience. As the little girl promises Olivia she won’t tell anyone her secret to keep her friendship, it starts to spiral out of control. While playing with a fellow classmate the secret slipped right from her lips causing a domino effect. After that one person knew, she told another classmate and another until the secret grew so big it wasn’t even true anymore. The little girl was in fear of losing her friendship with Olivia.
When first reading “The Secret Olivia Told Me” the piece that caught my eye the most was the illustration. The entire picture book is in black and white and the only piece of color is a red balloon. The characters were depicted as with a black silhouette so there were no detailed features on the children but that drew me in for some reason. The author uses rhythm throughout the whole book, this story is meant for a younger audience, the rhyming helps the reader connect to the book and helps develop them as a young reader. The rhythm of the story also keeps the reader more engaged and with rhythm there is some predictability, this causes the audience to think more as the story moves along.
The author presented a story that is very relatable for most kids at that targeted age. Many children understand the concept of a secret or have maybe even had a secret told about them that they didn’t like. This book illustrates the consequences of a secret spiraling out of control. The illustrations complemented the story but with the illustrations being so simple it gave more noticed to the lesson being learned in the book. Throughout the story this red balloon is shown as a metaphor for the secret, on every page the balloon gets bigger and bigger as the secret gets passed along from person to person, just like the balloon. This illustration gives a visual idea to the audience on the effects of spreading gossip to others. The illustrations aided in the understanding of the lesson.
This text is an engaging way to teach an important life lesson to young readers while also making the story relatable through setting and illustration. N. Joy and Nancy Devard made a beautiful collaboration of words and pictures with a light hearted feel for their audience to enjoy.
October 9, 2009
N.Joy’s The Secret Olivia Told Me is a simple story about a young girl who learns a secret from her friend Olivia. She tries but cannot resist telling the secret to another classmate Ayanna. From there the secret spreads and even gets bigger as untrue parts are added to it. In the end, Olivia decides that honesty is the best policy and she tells Olivia what she has done. N. Joy offers a story with a lesson for any elementary student. She even includes questions at the end to encourage discussions about telling secrets.
Nancy Devard won a 2008 Coretta Scott King Illustrator Honor for this book. The background is black and white and all of the characters are colored in solid black. This allows the focus to be the one red balloon on every page. The balloon represents the secret that Olivia told. With each new person, the balloon string now comes out of their mouth and the red balloon gets bigger as the truth of the secret gets stretched. This is a clever way to show what happens with gossip and how it can start as something simple, get passed along, and soon expand into something out of control. In the end, when the narrator decides to tell the truth, the balloon is popped as the girls learn an important lesson. This book would be an excellent read aloud to teach an important social lesson. The language is simple and direct and the illustrations really make a point in a unique way.
Nancy Devard won a 2008 Coretta Scott King Illustrator Honor for this book. The background is black and white and all of the characters are colored in solid black. This allows the focus to be the one red balloon on every page. The balloon represents the secret that Olivia told. With each new person, the balloon string now comes out of their mouth and the red balloon gets bigger as the truth of the secret gets stretched. This is a clever way to show what happens with gossip and how it can start as something simple, get passed along, and soon expand into something out of control. In the end, when the narrator decides to tell the truth, the balloon is popped as the girls learn an important lesson. This book would be an excellent read aloud to teach an important social lesson. The language is simple and direct and the illustrations really make a point in a unique way.
March 28, 2015
This book is a great book for children who may gossip or spreading rumors. This can also open for discussion a time that someone has told a secret that they may have regretted.
Class Activity: Teacher will stand in a circle and play the game telephone. This is where the teacher will begin to say a phrase and will whisper it to the student beside her and it will be a continuation until it is to the last person.
Class Activity: Teacher will stand in a circle and play the game telephone. This is where the teacher will begin to say a phrase and will whisper it to the student beside her and it will be a continuation until it is to the last person.
June 29, 2021
A rhyming story with very clever illustrations that would be a super prompt for discussing secrets with children. The questions at the end were great too to help guide the discussion and explore the potential consequences of sharing secrets.
*available on Epic*
*available on Epic*
May 9, 2018
symbolism, friendship, consequences
April 1, 2017
Summary：One day, Olivia tells her best friend a secret, and her friend promises she will not say a word to others. However, when Olivia’s best friend plays with another girl, the secret accidentally slipped. Oh, no! More students know this secret. Will Olivia end their friendship?
impression/opinion：I like this story because this is about a secret spread. This is very close with young kids’ lives. Young kids always have some secret to tell with their friend, and let them to promise they will not tell others again. However, to keep others’ secret is a different thing. Everyone like to share. For this story, the author want to the reader know when they share a secret to others, the secret will have a risk to slip. This is important to know because slipped secret can influence the friendship.
color: In this story, everyone is black, looks like shadows. This story is about a secret is slipping, so the black shadows can make everyone looks secret. No one can see their face, so a secret is slipping in some secret students. The black shadows can let the read has a mysterious feeling, and think this is big secret. The secret need to conceal, so someone conceal in the clack shadows.
POV: This is first- person. For this story, the writer uses “I” to tell this story. For example, in the 2nd opening, I promised I would not tell. I think this first- person can help the reads to put their self in the story. Also, the first- person can conceal their characters’ thinking, so the reader will feel the secrets are in everywhere.
Salience: The salience is a red air balloon because everything is black and white without the red air balloon. The balloon implies the secret. When more people know this secret, the air balloon changes to be bigger. The air balloon line comes from someone’s mouth, and other one hold this line. The mean is someone slip this secret to other. The reader always subconsciously look at the air balloon, and the air balloon hint the salience’s condition.
Setting: The story is happening in school because the reader can see the playground. Some students play with the ball, and some paly with the rope skipping. Their hair and clothing show they are young kids. The story is happening in school playground between the young kids. School is a good place to diffuse secrets for students.
This is a problem story because the secret is diffusing in the school, and this is a big problem for friendship between Olivia and her best friend. Olivia may end their friendship because her best friend slip the secret.
impression/opinion：I like this story because this is about a secret spread. This is very close with young kids’ lives. Young kids always have some secret to tell with their friend, and let them to promise they will not tell others again. However, to keep others’ secret is a different thing. Everyone like to share. For this story, the author want to the reader know when they share a secret to others, the secret will have a risk to slip. This is important to know because slipped secret can influence the friendship.
color: In this story, everyone is black, looks like shadows. This story is about a secret is slipping, so the black shadows can make everyone looks secret. No one can see their face, so a secret is slipping in some secret students. The black shadows can let the read has a mysterious feeling, and think this is big secret. The secret need to conceal, so someone conceal in the clack shadows.
POV: This is first- person. For this story, the writer uses “I” to tell this story. For example, in the 2nd opening, I promised I would not tell. I think this first- person can help the reads to put their self in the story. Also, the first- person can conceal their characters’ thinking, so the reader will feel the secrets are in everywhere.
Salience: The salience is a red air balloon because everything is black and white without the red air balloon. The balloon implies the secret. When more people know this secret, the air balloon changes to be bigger. The air balloon line comes from someone’s mouth, and other one hold this line. The mean is someone slip this secret to other. The reader always subconsciously look at the air balloon, and the air balloon hint the salience’s condition.
Setting: The story is happening in school because the reader can see the playground. Some students play with the ball, and some paly with the rope skipping. Their hair and clothing show they are young kids. The story is happening in school playground between the young kids. School is a good place to diffuse secrets for students.
This is a problem story because the secret is diffusing in the school, and this is a big problem for friendship between Olivia and her best friend. Olivia may end their friendship because her best friend slip the secret.
April 28, 2018
This story describes a young girl who has a secret she has a hard time keeping to herself. Her best friend Olivia told her this secret and she has promised not to say anything. She promised her their friendship that this would not get out but before long, she spills the secret to Aryanna and the wildfire spreads. This book received a Coretta Scott King honor for its illustrations. These are interesting black and white pictures that draw upon the African American culture by just portraying these types of images. Though the pictures are black and white, the illustrator is able to grasp the diversity of the characters which I found very interesting in their hair styles, jewelry, and clothing. In the end no matter what cultural background one comes from, the story leaves you with a life lesson that applies to anyone and everyone: "Don't tell a single person a secret or it won't be a secret anymore."
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April 30, 2018When using this book in a classroom, I would recommend using it with a lesson about rumors and making sure students have permission to tell someone else's personal business.
December 9, 2014
The Secret Olivia Told Me, by N. Joy is about a young girl and her best friend Olivia, who go to school together. Olivia tells her a secret she has that’s very big and very important, and her friend tries as hard as she can to keep the secret, until one day, she accidently tells one of her other friends Olivia’s secret. From there, the secret is told around the school, until everyone knows. Olivia’s friend feels terrible about leaking her secret, so she confronts Olivia and tells her the truth, teaching them both a very valuable lesson. Secrets aren’t secrets if you tell anyone. The illustrations in the book really stood out to me as a reader because they were different from any other book I have ever read. There are a lot of people in the book, but they are just silhouettes. There is a background of a school on most pages, and there is a red balloon on each page. As Olivia’s secret gets told to more and more people, the red balloon gets bigger and bigger, which is showing that the secret is getting bigger and bigger. I really liked this book because I think it portrays a very valuable lesson for both children and adults about telling the truth and being honest to the people that you care about. Olivia trusted her friend with her secret, and her friend betrayed Olivia by telling her secret. Even though she only told one person, the secret got around to the whole school because it was spread from one person to another, and eventually got back to Olivia.
A classroom activity that could be used related to this book could be to write a paper on a time that the student shared something that they should not have, or a time that they told a lie.
Genre: Realistic Fiction
Format: Picture Book
Reading Level: Beginner
Theme/Topic: Loyalty, Trust, Friendship
Gender: All
Race: All
Socioeconomic Status: All
Joy, N. (2007) The secret olivia told me. Orange, NJ: JustUs Books
A classroom activity that could be used related to this book could be to write a paper on a time that the student shared something that they should not have, or a time that they told a lie.
Genre: Realistic Fiction
Format: Picture Book
Reading Level: Beginner
Theme/Topic: Loyalty, Trust, Friendship
Gender: All
Race: All
Socioeconomic Status: All
Joy, N. (2007) The secret olivia told me. Orange, NJ: JustUs Books
October 6, 2016
Genre: Realistic Fiction
Format: Children's Picture Book
Award: Coretta Scott King Award for Illustrator Honor
Summary: In the story, Olivia has a secret and decides to share it with her friend. The girl tries to keep the secret, however it slips out when she is playing with a classmate. Ayanna, the classmate began to talk to another friend, Stephanie, and soon she knew the secret too. As the story continues, the secret keeps being told from one person to another. The secret begins to grow and the children add more every time that its not even true anymore. So as the friend begins to worry about the secret she spilled she decides to tell Olivia the truth. She apologized to Olivia and they both learned a lesson that day.
Critique: I liked the book because of the illustrations. The characters are depicted in shadows. The children do not have any features or details, it is mainly their outline of their body. The book was in black in white however, the secret was expressed as a red balloon. When the friend spilled the balloon the first time the balloon drifted to the person she told. Every time the secret was told, the balloon drifted to that person and it grew bigger and bigger. At the end of the book when the friend apologized to Olivia the balloon exploded and red confetti was expressed as a powerful message in forgiveness-liberation of one's conscious.
Teaching prompt: The teacher can ask at the end of the book, "Are there any secrets that you shouldn't keep?" The teacher can guide this discussion by explaining how some secrets should not be kept if you are in danger or if you are afraid something bad will happen.
Craft element: The students can write about was the final decision Olivia's friend made a good one, and they are to explain why or why not.
Format: Children's Picture Book
Award: Coretta Scott King Award for Illustrator Honor
Summary: In the story, Olivia has a secret and decides to share it with her friend. The girl tries to keep the secret, however it slips out when she is playing with a classmate. Ayanna, the classmate began to talk to another friend, Stephanie, and soon she knew the secret too. As the story continues, the secret keeps being told from one person to another. The secret begins to grow and the children add more every time that its not even true anymore. So as the friend begins to worry about the secret she spilled she decides to tell Olivia the truth. She apologized to Olivia and they both learned a lesson that day.
Critique: I liked the book because of the illustrations. The characters are depicted in shadows. The children do not have any features or details, it is mainly their outline of their body. The book was in black in white however, the secret was expressed as a red balloon. When the friend spilled the balloon the first time the balloon drifted to the person she told. Every time the secret was told, the balloon drifted to that person and it grew bigger and bigger. At the end of the book when the friend apologized to Olivia the balloon exploded and red confetti was expressed as a powerful message in forgiveness-liberation of one's conscious.
Teaching prompt: The teacher can ask at the end of the book, "Are there any secrets that you shouldn't keep?" The teacher can guide this discussion by explaining how some secrets should not be kept if you are in danger or if you are afraid something bad will happen.
Craft element: The students can write about was the final decision Olivia's friend made a good one, and they are to explain why or why not.
May 24, 2017
"Secrets, secrets are no fun. Secrets, secrets hurt someone." We have all heard this from our parents, school teachers, or friends. In The Secret Olivia Told Me the main character learns this lesson. The Secret Olivia Told me is about a girl who has a very good friend named Olivia. Olivia tells this girl a secret. The girl in the book tries to keep the secret, but she cannot. She lets it slip to a friend, who then tells someone else, who tells someone else, who then tells someone else. The secret grows into something bigger than it began. The girl knows she was wrong and decides to confess to Olivia that she told her secret. The girl is scared to tell Olivia in in feat that their friendship will end.
The illustrations in this book are phenomenal. They are black and white with only the color red. There is a red balloon, and a red brick wall. The red balloon is meant to be a symbol of the secret throughout the book. The balloon gets bigger and bigger as the secret passes from one person to another, symbolizing how a secret can grow into something it is not when we share with people we are not supposed to share with.
I would also use this book in my classroom for a social emotional lesson. I believe it would teach students how telling secrets doesn't just hurt people, but it can effect the secret itself. When we tell someone one thing it can be told to multiple people and that statement can change by the time it gets back to the source. We could play the game Telephone after reading this book as well to reiterate the fact that secrets can change after so many people have heard it, and shared it.
I would recommend this book for students K-5. The book is a simple read, but the intermediate grades could use the lesson on secrets as well.
The illustrations in this book are phenomenal. They are black and white with only the color red. There is a red balloon, and a red brick wall. The red balloon is meant to be a symbol of the secret throughout the book. The balloon gets bigger and bigger as the secret passes from one person to another, symbolizing how a secret can grow into something it is not when we share with people we are not supposed to share with.
I would also use this book in my classroom for a social emotional lesson. I believe it would teach students how telling secrets doesn't just hurt people, but it can effect the secret itself. When we tell someone one thing it can be told to multiple people and that statement can change by the time it gets back to the source. We could play the game Telephone after reading this book as well to reiterate the fact that secrets can change after so many people have heard it, and shared it.
I would recommend this book for students K-5. The book is a simple read, but the intermediate grades could use the lesson on secrets as well.
October 3, 2016
1. The Secret Olivia Told Me won the Coretta Scott King Award for Illustrator Honor in 2008.
2. The appropriate grade level would be second grade and up.
3. Olivia told her friend a big secret and her friend promised not to tell anyone. However, when she was playing with someone, the secret slipped. The secret keeps spreading to many people and the friend finally decided to tell Olivia she broke the promise. Both of the girls decided to not tell secrets anymore because if you share a secret it won't be a secret anymore.
4. I really enjoyed reading this book because it is so relatable. Two people sharing secrets but the secret gets out. Indeed, there is a red balloon as a symbol of the secret and how it is passed to someone else and how much of a problem it is. The balloon gets bigger to show that the secret/ gossiping is out of control. The red color is a great choice because it is a bright color that stands out.
5. a) This book is a great in-class use to demonstrate cause and effect. An activity would be to give children scenarios of a cause and what the effect would be. It would work best if it is personal to the kids. For example, if it is raining outside and you do not have an umbrella, the effect would be that you will get wet.
b) Another use would be to teach the students about symbolism. In this story, the red balloon is a symbol of Olivia's secret.
c) This book will also be great to introduce important life lessons such as friendship, loyalty, and relationships. An activity would be to have a list of what you look for in a friend or how your friends should treat you.
2. The appropriate grade level would be second grade and up.
3. Olivia told her friend a big secret and her friend promised not to tell anyone. However, when she was playing with someone, the secret slipped. The secret keeps spreading to many people and the friend finally decided to tell Olivia she broke the promise. Both of the girls decided to not tell secrets anymore because if you share a secret it won't be a secret anymore.
4. I really enjoyed reading this book because it is so relatable. Two people sharing secrets but the secret gets out. Indeed, there is a red balloon as a symbol of the secret and how it is passed to someone else and how much of a problem it is. The balloon gets bigger to show that the secret/ gossiping is out of control. The red color is a great choice because it is a bright color that stands out.
5. a) This book is a great in-class use to demonstrate cause and effect. An activity would be to give children scenarios of a cause and what the effect would be. It would work best if it is personal to the kids. For example, if it is raining outside and you do not have an umbrella, the effect would be that you will get wet.
b) Another use would be to teach the students about symbolism. In this story, the red balloon is a symbol of Olivia's secret.
c) This book will also be great to introduce important life lessons such as friendship, loyalty, and relationships. An activity would be to have a list of what you look for in a friend or how your friends should treat you.
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October 31, 2016Type: Picture book
Literary genre: Poetry
Awards: Coretta Scott King Award
Summary: The main character's best friend, Olivia, shares a secret with her. She promises not to tell anyone, but the secret accidentally slips out to another friend, Ayanna. She tells someone else, who tells someone else, who tells someone else, until the secret isn't a secret anymore! The main character knows that she made a mistake, and goes to Olivia to tell her, like any good friend would. The friends learn that if you "tell a single person a secret", "it won't be a secret anymore."
Critique: This was a cute book. I like that it teaches a life lesson in a simple way that young students can easily comprehend and relate to. The illustrations are reflective of the theme in the sense that the balloon, included on every page, grows each time the secret is told to another person. The illustrations are also very easy for children to make connections to, as they represent common situations like playing on the playground, doing homework, or talking to a friend.
Questions: Do you think she will keep her word? Pg. 3 Do you notice anything about the balloon? pg. 9 What is a name for a story that isn't all true? Pg18 Have you ever heard a rumor before? pg 18.
Craft Elements: There is a very clear life lesson communicated through this book. A teacher could ask students to write about what they think the lesson from the story is, and if/how it could ever apply to them in real life.
Literary genre: Poetry
Awards: Coretta Scott King Award
Summary: The main character's best friend, Olivia, shares a secret with her. She promises not to tell anyone, but the secret accidentally slips out to another friend, Ayanna. She tells someone else, who tells someone else, who tells someone else, until the secret isn't a secret anymore! The main character knows that she made a mistake, and goes to Olivia to tell her, like any good friend would. The friends learn that if you "tell a single person a secret", "it won't be a secret anymore."
Critique: This was a cute book. I like that it teaches a life lesson in a simple way that young students can easily comprehend and relate to. The illustrations are reflective of the theme in the sense that the balloon, included on every page, grows each time the secret is told to another person. The illustrations are also very easy for children to make connections to, as they represent common situations like playing on the playground, doing homework, or talking to a friend.
Questions: Do you think she will keep her word? Pg. 3 Do you notice anything about the balloon? pg. 9 What is a name for a story that isn't all true? Pg18 Have you ever heard a rumor before? pg 18.
Craft Elements: There is a very clear life lesson communicated through this book. A teacher could ask students to write about what they think the lesson from the story is, and if/how it could ever apply to them in real life.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 25, 2013
The Secret Olivia told me was a very catchy read. The words created a pattern and rhythm from start to finish. Since this children's book is a picture book, the illustrator made a point to tell the story through the movements of the characters body. Olivia told a secret to her friend, which she promised not to tell anyone, but unfortunately her friend did. As the story goes on, more and more people find out about Olivia's big juicy secret. To show how large the secret was getting, the illustrator puts a balloon on each page in the story. As the secret spreads around to more people, the balloon gets larger and larger until it pops! This was one of the many brilliant ways in which the story was creatively told in order to explain the concept of secrets to young readers. The moral of the story was to not tell a secret, because if you do, then do not expect the secret to remain a secret! In the end, Olivia's friend did the right thing by telling her that she had accidentally told her secret to someone else. Because Olivia's friend was honest, she was graciously forgiven by Olivia. I loved the lesson in this! I was overall very impressed with the structure of the story, and how very well organized it was.
November 12, 2010
Published in 2007 by Just Us Books, Inc.
Interest Level: 2nd-6th Grade
This picture book cleverly shows the idea of how a secret can be grown through gossiping. The secret is symbolized by a red balloon while everything else is in black and white. As the secret is held and told to others the balloon gets larger and larger until it pops and then the two friends realize that secrets are not secret if told aloud. At the end of the book there are several discussion items about secrets geared towards younger children.
The style of illustration truly makes the idea of secret stand-out. Through the simple story of a friend telling a secret that is shared with a number of other children, it is apparent the damaging effects of secrets and gossiping. Although it seems somewhat moralistic at the end of the story, I think that the effective illustrations and important theme are enough to push this picture book past the many other picture books out there. In this age of bullies and the Internet, it is important to have picture books that show issues and difficulties that connect to children's everyday lives. Overall, great illustrations displaying the effects of actions and words.
Interest Level: 2nd-6th Grade
This picture book cleverly shows the idea of how a secret can be grown through gossiping. The secret is symbolized by a red balloon while everything else is in black and white. As the secret is held and told to others the balloon gets larger and larger until it pops and then the two friends realize that secrets are not secret if told aloud. At the end of the book there are several discussion items about secrets geared towards younger children.
The style of illustration truly makes the idea of secret stand-out. Through the simple story of a friend telling a secret that is shared with a number of other children, it is apparent the damaging effects of secrets and gossiping. Although it seems somewhat moralistic at the end of the story, I think that the effective illustrations and important theme are enough to push this picture book past the many other picture books out there. In this age of bullies and the Internet, it is important to have picture books that show issues and difficulties that connect to children's everyday lives. Overall, great illustrations displaying the effects of actions and words.
October 20, 2016
This book is a really good read because it depicts a situation that can actually happen between friends. It allows the reader to think "Can I keep a secret that a friend tells me?" and how many people the secret was going to be told to. The Secret Olivia Told Me by N. Joy using language that is simple and able to be understood by a young reader. The illustration in this book do a good job at trying to get a point across. I really like the illustrations and how on each page the balloon, which represented the secret, got bigger and bigger every time it was told to another person. You can also see the secret being told to different people throughout the book even though the characters are all drawn and colored in black. While reading this book it keeps you wondering about who will be the next person to the learn the secret. Even though the book is illustrated in black and white besides the red balloon you can see a diversity in the character the illustrator choose draw. Overall this is a good book to read to student to teach them about social skills and how they should keep a promise with friend to maintain a good relationship.
April 9, 2011
Beautiful black and white silhouette illustrations help tell the story of a young girl who is trusted with a secret from a friend. She struggles with it and eventually the secret slips. Consequences are swift and a valuable lesson is learned.
In the author's note, the author offers some questions for children about secrets. Do you have secrets? Are there secrets you should tell? and others. I was very pleased with the inclusion of the discussion questions as the ending of the book had me a little concerned. The last page says "Don't tell a single person a secret. Or it won't be a secret anymore!"
When I got to the last page, before I saw the discussion questions, alarm bells were going off in my head. There are some situations in life that we definitely want children to tell secrets. For example if they are being abused at home, if the family is homeless and needs help, etc.
However, this is a fabulous book for teaching young children the responsibility and consequences of secrets.
In the author's note, the author offers some questions for children about secrets. Do you have secrets? Are there secrets you should tell? and others. I was very pleased with the inclusion of the discussion questions as the ending of the book had me a little concerned. The last page says "Don't tell a single person a secret. Or it won't be a secret anymore!"
When I got to the last page, before I saw the discussion questions, alarm bells were going off in my head. There are some situations in life that we definitely want children to tell secrets. For example if they are being abused at home, if the family is homeless and needs help, etc.
However, this is a fabulous book for teaching young children the responsibility and consequences of secrets.
Read
May 18, 2013I'm working on creating a booklist for my local public library. This book was one in consideration for this list.
This book is not going on my list, and I'll ya, I don't like it. The illustrations, the story, the layout of the text. Everything is going for this book, except for the ending.
The moral of this book is don't trust anyone, keep all secrets to yourself, including that your uncle touches you. It doesn't say that verbatim, but it might as well. This book teaches the wrong lesson.
So Olivia told a secret, and her friend (main character) accidentally tells someone. Which it then blows into enormous proportions. To keep their friendship, they decide the secret shouldn't have been told in the first place. This confuses me. Is the secret Olivia told not Olivia's secret? Because the assumption of such is there very strongly.
It would have been a great addition, but I can't, in good conscious, put it on my list.
This book is not going on my list, and I'll ya, I don't like it. The illustrations, the story, the layout of the text. Everything is going for this book, except for the ending.
The moral of this book is don't trust anyone, keep all secrets to yourself, including that your uncle touches you. It doesn't say that verbatim, but it might as well. This book teaches the wrong lesson.
So Olivia told a secret, and her friend (main character) accidentally tells someone. Which it then blows into enormous proportions. To keep their friendship, they decide the secret shouldn't have been told in the first place. This confuses me. Is the secret Olivia told not Olivia's secret? Because the assumption of such is there very strongly.
It would have been a great addition, but I can't, in good conscious, put it on my list.
March 10, 2014
In rhyme, a girl relates what happens when she lets slip her best friends secret.
This is a lesson for all to learn from, so the author portrays each child as a silhouette that represents "every child". To this simple structure of black on white, is the red of balloons. These balloons symbolize the secret, with its string issuing forth from whispering children. As is spreads from mouth to mouth, it grows from the lies that become mixed in with the truth. Matters go out of control. Rather than feign ignorance, the girl does the right thing, tells the truth and is able to maintain her friendship with Olivia.
This cautionary tale does not go into the potential repercussions Olivia may face, and because the secret is never revealed it is hard to say if she would be ostracized in any way. Wisely, the author forgoes the subject of bullying as to not interfere with the books central message. A secret should remain a secret.
This is a lesson for all to learn from, so the author portrays each child as a silhouette that represents "every child". To this simple structure of black on white, is the red of balloons. These balloons symbolize the secret, with its string issuing forth from whispering children. As is spreads from mouth to mouth, it grows from the lies that become mixed in with the truth. Matters go out of control. Rather than feign ignorance, the girl does the right thing, tells the truth and is able to maintain her friendship with Olivia.
This cautionary tale does not go into the potential repercussions Olivia may face, and because the secret is never revealed it is hard to say if she would be ostracized in any way. Wisely, the author forgoes the subject of bullying as to not interfere with the books central message. A secret should remain a secret.
Read
February 3, 2015The Secret Olivia Told Me is about a girl who tells a secret to her friend. Although her friend doesn't want to tell anyone else the secret, which would betray Olivia's trust and friendship, the secret "accidentally" slips. Soon everyone knows the secret. Throughout the book, there is a red balloon. The balloon symbolized the secret. Unsure about what to do, but wanting to do the right thing, Olivia's friend tells her that she told someone else the secret. One theme from this book is the way talking about people or secrets can change and grow. If told over and over by more people, the secret changes and can even become untrue. I also think this book could be used to teach about symbolism. It would be a great way to introduce symbolism because the balloon is visible in the book. In books without pictures it may be difficult for students to understand abstract symbolism through text only reading. This book receives the Coretta Scott King Illustrator Honor Award.
April 17, 2009
I needed a book to read aloud to two assemblies - one of K-3rd graders and another 4th-5th graders - for March is Reading Month. This was recommended to me by another librarian and I have to say, it was a total hit. The kids, all ages, as well as the teachers and administrators, all enjoyed the book. While I was reading I could hear murmers of agreement and gasps of "oh no". On top of the simply stated story of a traveling secret, the illustrations are bold and eye-catching. By using black silhouettes for the people and a red balloon representing the growing secret, on a stark white background, the images pop, even in a gym when sharing the book with very large groups!
November 16, 2011
This book is great for teaching lessons on keeping secrets and/or gossip to students. The discussion questions included at the end are a nice bonus. As other reviewers have mentioned it's important to stress to students after reading the books that there are secrets we shouldn't keep. The discussion questions address this, but the story itself does not. When I use this book in class I pair it with a game of "telephone" and the kids love it. The illustrations are beautiful. I love the use of the balloon as a metaphor, however, for some of my students it's a little over their head (my 2nd graders couldn't quite grasp that the balloon represents the secret).
June 6, 2012
The Secret Olivia Told Me, is a book about a girl who shares a secret with her friend. She is told not tell anyone but of course she has to tell. The moral of the story is once you tell someone a secret, it is no longer a secret. This book clearly shows the effects of gossip and telling secrets.The book won Coretta Scott King prize for the illustrations.I really liked the book I think is a good lesson for children to learn the importance of not telling anyone a secret. The last page has a quote that I think is important to remember "Don't tell a single person a secret. Or it won't be a secret anymore!"
September 16, 2014
Joy, N. (2007). The Secret Olivia Told Me. New Jersey: Just Us Books.
Coretta Scott King Award
Free Choice.
The book is about two girls who are friends. One friend tells the other a secret. The friend promises not to tell anyone the secret. But, the secret accidently came out. The secret spread and spread. As the secret spread, some false parts were added to it. The friend felt bad about telling the secret in the first place and went to tell her friend about it.
The book had a good pace, and rhyme. It was fun to read. This book would be good for prek-2nd. I would read this book when I am talking about friendships.
Coretta Scott King Award
Free Choice.
The book is about two girls who are friends. One friend tells the other a secret. The friend promises not to tell anyone the secret. But, the secret accidently came out. The secret spread and spread. As the secret spread, some false parts were added to it. The friend felt bad about telling the secret in the first place and went to tell her friend about it.
The book had a good pace, and rhyme. It was fun to read. This book would be good for prek-2nd. I would read this book when I am talking about friendships.
Read
October 6, 2014Joy, N. (2007). The Secret Olivia Told Me. Just Us Books, Inc.
Starred review Coretta Scott King prize for the illustrations 2008
Choice
Gossip is the topic of this clever story of a secret that travels and travels then grows bigger as to moves on out of control. The book’s illustrator does not use many colors but the pictures are still powerful and engaging. I think the use of black enhance s the story’s plot because the situation in the book could happen to anyone. It was also interesting to see the balloon used to symbolize the secret. This is a great book to share about friendship.
Starred review Coretta Scott King prize for the illustrations 2008
Choice
Gossip is the topic of this clever story of a secret that travels and travels then grows bigger as to moves on out of control. The book’s illustrator does not use many colors but the pictures are still powerful and engaging. I think the use of black enhance s the story’s plot because the situation in the book could happen to anyone. It was also interesting to see the balloon used to symbolize the secret. This is a great book to share about friendship.
November 2, 2016
Loved the illustrations, they were simple just like the story. Which I loved too! Secrets are a big thing in elementary grades and you might have a situation where you need a teaching moment about secrets. And this helps people know what can happen if you tell someone's secret when you said you wouldn't. Shows the importance of saying sorry when you spill someone's secret. Wasn't a big fan of the last sentence being you shouldn't have told them the secret in the first place, because then it isn't a secret anymore. But it is pretty true when younger students don't fully grasp the concept of why things should be a secret.
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March 7, 2017The Secret Olivia Told Me by N. Joy
1.Coretta Scott King Award
2.Age 4-8
3.Olivia told her friend a secret, but her friend could not keep the secret. Secret passed on to her friend’s friend’s friends. More and more people told the secret and it grew and grew. At the end they learned the lesson. “Don't tell a single person a secret. Or it won’t be a secret anymore!”
4.I liked how this book gave good lesson at the end about friendship. I also liked how illustrator described the secret as a red balloon. When the secret grew bigger, red balloon also grew bigger.
5.Lessons about friendships or kindness.
1.Coretta Scott King Award
2.Age 4-8
3.Olivia told her friend a secret, but her friend could not keep the secret. Secret passed on to her friend’s friend’s friends. More and more people told the secret and it grew and grew. At the end they learned the lesson. “Don't tell a single person a secret. Or it won’t be a secret anymore!”
4.I liked how this book gave good lesson at the end about friendship. I also liked how illustrator described the secret as a red balloon. When the secret grew bigger, red balloon also grew bigger.
5.Lessons about friendships or kindness.
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