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Chirp
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From acclaimed author Kate Messner comes the powerful story of a young girl with the courage to make her voice heard, set against the backdrop of a summertime mystery.
When Mia moves to Vermont the summer after seventh grade, she's recovering from the broken arm she got falling off a balance beam. And packed away in the moving boxes under her clothes and gymnastics trophies ...more
When Mia moves to Vermont the summer after seventh grade, she's recovering from the broken arm she got falling off a balance beam. And packed away in the moving boxes under her clothes and gymnastics trophies ...more
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Hardcover, 227 pages
Published
February 4th 2020
by Bloomsbury Children's Books
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I am going SO hard for middle grade lately, y'all. This book was an absolute delight. It was equal parts light-hearted, scooby doo mystery and earnest/heartfelt life lessons and MY HEART IS VERY FULL.
TW: pedophilia, grooming, sexual harassment ...more
TW: pedophilia, grooming, sexual harassment ...more
It is never too early to teach feminism to a child. I know this but this book certainly effectively executes that idea so well that I think it will absolutely convince people who’s still in doubt with it.
Did you know that only male crickets make noise? Our protagonist Mia sure didn’t know that.
But it got her: “wondering about all those quiet females. Was it that they couldn’t chirp at all, no matter what? Or were the boy crickets so loud that they never got the chance?”
Isn’t that a profoun ...more
Did you know that only male crickets make noise? Our protagonist Mia sure didn’t know that.
But it got her: “wondering about all those quiet females. Was it that they couldn’t chirp at all, no matter what? Or were the boy crickets so loud that they never got the chance?”
Isn’t that a profoun ...more
I love this book for its honesty, heart and tenderness. Keep your eye open for this one!
Mia has just moved back to Vermont from Boston. She and her parents want to be closer to her grandmother who suffered a stroke a few months ago. Mia is really excited to be able to help her grandmother with her cricket farm. Unfortunately, things seem to be going mysteriously wrong left and right at the farm. Mia's grandmother suspects that someone is trying to sabotage the farm so she will be forced to sell it, but so far, there is no way to prove her theory.
Per her mother, Mia has to pick two ...more
Per her mother, Mia has to pick two ...more
The fact that male crickets chirp while female crickets are silent provides an intriguing basis for a book on the #MeToo movement. It’s disappointing, then, that this clever premise receives a one-note execution. I know I am daring to find fault with a book about #MeToo but before I’m drummed out librarianship, note that my comments are on a book, not a movement.
The writing is excellent; Mia’s voice rings true and her anguish is heartfelt and relateable enough to encourage young women to speak u ...more
The writing is excellent; Mia’s voice rings true and her anguish is heartfelt and relateable enough to encourage young women to speak u ...more
Jul 07, 2020
Stephanie Fitzgerald
rated it
really liked it
Recommends it for:
Readers of all ages
Shelves:
reviewed-on-goodreads
Got the munchies? Are you, and your taste buds, feeling adventurous? Then join Mia and Chloe in their “Chirp Challenge”, where you can enjoy samples of barbecue, sea-salt garlic, and maple-roasted...crickets! Yes, crickets, freshly harvested from Mia’s grandmothers’ sustainable cricket farm! At least, it was sustainable until somebody started trying to sabotage everything her grandma, an entomologist, has worked so hard to maintain...
This was an absolutely wonderful read! Mia is a lovable pre-te ...more
This was an absolutely wonderful read! Mia is a lovable pre-te ...more
“Sometimes courage is quiet. Sometimes getting up in the morning and being you, is the bravest most defiant thing a woman can do.” I really wasn’t expecting this middle grade novel to be anything more than friends spending the summer having fun with a little bit of mystery mixed in. While it is friendship and family, it is much more. It is overcoming your own fears, getting back in the ring, and speaking up when things don’t feel quite right. I think this book is going to open up a lot of conver
...more
3.5 - The summer after 7th grade Mia and her family move to Vermont to help her grandmother take care of her cricket farm. Mia is determined to help the farm thrive and figure out who might be sabotaging it. Meanwhile she’s also dealing with the fact that something inappropriate happened with her gymnastics coach back in Boston that she hasn’t told anyone about yet.
The grooming behavior of her old coach and how that impacted her was tough to read about. There were a couple great conversations t ...more
The grooming behavior of her old coach and how that impacted her was tough to read about. There were a couple great conversations t ...more
Chirp by Kate Messner, 240 pages. Bloomsbury, 2020. $17.
Language: G (0 swears 0 'f'); Mature Content: PG (sexual harassment); Violence: PG (mild self harm).
BUYING ADVISORY: EL, MS - ESSENTIAL
AUDIENCE APPEAL: AVERAGE
12yo Mia has moved back to Vermont with her parents so they will be closer to her aging grandma. Mia has recently recovered from a broken arm and has spent the last several months watching television, so she is not thrilled that her parents are making her enroll in 2 different summer ...more
Language: G (0 swears 0 'f'); Mature Content: PG (sexual harassment); Violence: PG (mild self harm).
BUYING ADVISORY: EL, MS - ESSENTIAL
AUDIENCE APPEAL: AVERAGE
12yo Mia has moved back to Vermont with her parents so they will be closer to her aging grandma. Mia has recently recovered from a broken arm and has spent the last several months watching television, so she is not thrilled that her parents are making her enroll in 2 different summer ...more
Kate Messner has an uncanny sense of what kids need and how to reach them through books. When a book ends, and I'm sad to say goodbye to the characters, I know it was a good one! This is true with Chirp, a book that includes a cricket farm, an aging parent, and a girl carrying a serious secret.
...more
I was a little biased toward this book because it takes place right near my hometown and also written by one of my favorite authors. But it lives up to the hype. Messner has a real knack for writing books that are really solidly middle school - not too mature/ya but not so elementary that middle schoolers who are ready for more complex themes and slightly more mature concepts are bored.
7th grader Mia moves back to Vermont with her family to be closer to her grandmother who recently had a stroke ...more
7th grader Mia moves back to Vermont with her family to be closer to her grandmother who recently had a stroke ...more
Kirkus review says..
Sometime courage is quiet.”
Mia’s life turned upside down a year ago when she broke her arm during a gymnastics routine. After her grandmother suffered a mild stroke, the family moves back to Vermont, where she lives. Gram farms crickets as an alternative food source, and Mia is eager to help out during the summer. But strange things begin to occur at the farm. Gram is certain that someone is sabotaging her operation.
This is a family mystery combined with Mia’s fear and confu ...more
Sometime courage is quiet.”
Mia’s life turned upside down a year ago when she broke her arm during a gymnastics routine. After her grandmother suffered a mild stroke, the family moves back to Vermont, where she lives. Gram farms crickets as an alternative food source, and Mia is eager to help out during the summer. But strange things begin to occur at the farm. Gram is certain that someone is sabotaging her operation.
This is a family mystery combined with Mia’s fear and confu ...more
“Sometimes getting up in the morning and being you, no matter what’s happened to you and no matter what anybody says, is the bravest, most defiant thing a woman can do.” Loved this book so much. I had planned to read it over several evenings but ended up finishing it one sitting; I couldn't put it down! This book needs to be in every school library. I wish it had been in mine. (Also, I am now dying to try all the yummy-sounding cricket recipes mentioned in the book. Never thought I'd use "yummy"
...more
Mar 07, 2020
DaNae
rated it
really liked it
Shelves:
friendship,
grandparent,
z150-in2020,
grade-5-reading-list,
mystery,
stem,
z20-new,
z20-favorite
A fun mystery with a bit social conscienceless thrown in. Messner is a master of presenting difficult material to middle-grade readers. Also, I'd try a garlic and sea-salt cricket.
(view spoiler) ...more
(view spoiler) ...more
"Did every woman she knew have some awful secret story?" p. 131
"Once you got in the habit of being small, it was hard to feel safe being your normal size anymore." p. 137
"Just because somebody acts friendly doesn't mean he's a good guy." p. 157
"Sometimes getting up in the morning and being you, no matter what's happened to you and no matter what anybody says, is the bravest, most defiant thing a woman can do." p. 178
...more
"Once you got in the habit of being small, it was hard to feel safe being your normal size anymore." p. 137
"Just because somebody acts friendly doesn't mean he's a good guy." p. 157
"Sometimes getting up in the morning and being you, no matter what's happened to you and no matter what anybody says, is the bravest, most defiant thing a woman can do." p. 178
...more
This is a must-read for everyone who’s ever had their voice quieted, everyone who’s gotten an icky feeling from someone, everyone who’s struggled to speak up. Thank you Kate Messner for CHIRP. It’s going to inspire so many conversations! 🦗💚
Due to a truly horrible digital ARC, I stopped trying to read this one. I think it will be a good middle grades choice for those that like a come back story with heart and a little mystery. With Kate Messner being the author, it’s a safe bet that it will be!
Honest and courageous. Kate has written a story that is timely in its nature, and something I am so grateful is out in the middle grade world. What a profound story wrapped up in good hearted friendship and fun mystery as well. I can’t wait to share with students.
This is an important book about finding the courage to speak up even when you feel scared and unsure about what is happening. Kate Messner takes an important topic and weaves it into an interesting story that is appropriate for middle grade children.
I read this months ago and loved it! Today’s Chirp’s release date.
This was SO GOOD - a perfect mix of fun mystery hijinks with serious important themes.
Mia’s family is moving to Vermont at the end of her 7th grade year where she'll be closer to her aging grandmother who runs a cricket farm. Once an accomplished gymnast, Mia isn’t sure where her new interests lie now that she is healing from a balance beam injury (which required surgery on her arm). So she agrees to attend two summer camp opportunities in her new city — launch camp (a maker space for kids) and Warrior camp. At the maker space camp she makes a new set of friends and builds a team
...more
This new middle grade novel by Kate Messner covers two relevant issues in one book and in such a comprehensive way. Mia begins the book as a girl who feels damaged and far from the brave, accomplished gymnast she was before her injury. As her past is revealed, the #me too movement is very much factor in her restoration. Part of that healing involves the ways Mia can help her grandmother market and improve the operation of her cricket farm. We learn many facts about raising/harvesting crickets an
...more
Kate Messner's new book combines a solid mystery with information about entomophagy and entrepreneurship. This is a perfect pick for kids who like to learn something while they read. The secret of Mia's past and the inappropriate relationship her former coach forced on her blends seamlessly into the story, and it is handled perfectly. Mia's broken arm removes her from his efforts to groom her before things get more physical. It's helpful for Mia, and young readers, to know they aren't alone, and
...more
What an excellent, fun, and powerful story! I love how the author addressed a serious issue like Me Too in a way that kids can understand and relate to, but also made this book so much fun at the same time. This book feels like Harriet the Spy meets Shark Tank plus American Ninja Warrior with a cricket farm, and I can’t wait to read this with my kids!
Who is sabotaging Gram's cricket farm? Mia and her new friends Clover and Ana set out to find the answers in this mystery which is also about the #metoo movement. As Helen Reddy would sing, "I am woman, hear me roar."
...more
The book was good, but the story line did not propel me to really want to read the story.
Thanks to Netgalley for an e-ARC in exchange for my honest review.
Mia's family is moving back to Vermont to help out her grandmother, a retired entomology professor, who has started a cricket farm. However, mysterious things begin happening such as the power suddenly going out, an abundance of fruit flies, and the sprinkler system suddenly coming, causing Mia and her grandmother to suspect someone is trying to sabotage the cricket farm. In addition, Mia has an internal conflict about an inapprop ...more
Mia's family is moving back to Vermont to help out her grandmother, a retired entomology professor, who has started a cricket farm. However, mysterious things begin happening such as the power suddenly going out, an abundance of fruit flies, and the sprinkler system suddenly coming, causing Mia and her grandmother to suspect someone is trying to sabotage the cricket farm. In addition, Mia has an internal conflict about an inapprop ...more
Jun 08, 2020
Alex Baugh
rated it
really liked it
Shelves:
friendship,
family,
grandmothers-and-granddaughters,
mystery,
mg-ya,
realistic-fiction,
metoo
It's the beginning of summer and twelve-year-old Mia Barnes couldn't be happier about moving away from Boston with her family. Mia had been a talented gymnast until she fell off the balance beam, broke her arm, and lost interest in gymnastics. While on the mend, Mia had binged on American Warrior, a reality TV show to avoid thinking about gymnastics. Now, there would be her beloved Gram and her Green Mountain Cricket Farm, the dream business she had begun a few years ago as an alternative source
...more
Empowering & entertaining
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Kate Messner is an award-winning author, TED 2012 speaker, and former middle school English teacher. Her books for kids include THE BRILLIANT FALL OF GIANNA Z.,SUGAR AND ICE, and EYE OF THE STORM (Walker/Bloomsbury Dec. 2010) the MARTY MCGUIRE series (Scholastic), SEA MONSTER'S FIRST DAY, and OVER AND UNDER THE SNOW (Chronicle, Books). Kate also wrote SPITFIRE and CHAMPLAIN AND THE SILENT ONE, bot
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