Willey, Margaret. Four Secrets. Carolrhoda Books see Lerner 277p $17.95 978-0-7613-8535-6 2012 ms/jr E-BN Conflict
Three
friends in a juvenile lockup tell their story in three formats: drawings, narrative in the form of a
medieval story, and play format. The events leading up to and including their
kidnapping and imprisonment of a school bully are suspensefully revealed. Gr
6+. This is the haunting tale about secrets and those who are bullied taking
action against a bully with unpredictable results. A bond has formed between three talented, high-achieving students who are all being bullied by Chase, the most
popular boy in school. Together they formulate a plan to shut down the bully. But Chase throws the plan into chaos, and the end result is that the
three who were bullied are now in a juvenile detention facility vowing to never
reveal what actually happened. An astute, caring social worker sets
out to find the truth. In journal entries, each character
writes in an authentic voice: Nate in a fictional story set in times where
gallant men and steadfast friends fight the true fight, Katie in a dialogue
suitable for a play, and Renata in exquisite drawings full of hidden meanings. Readers are slowly allowed to glimpse their
family life and secrets. There is so much tension and
anticipation of what may be revealed next that the book is impossible to put
down. The pacing is taut, with just enough revealed to keep the reader guessing about what secrets are held by each young
person and how quickly the social worker will piece together the events that
led to the kidnapping charges. There is one grammatical error on page 196: “I wanted
approach the school”. The novel includes outstanding writing and plot development, and should be a first choice for middle-school libraries.
Bullying-Fiction,
Secrets-Fiction --Lois McNicol
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