Publishers Weekly Review
| After her father takes a marketing job in Asia and the city newspaper employing her journalist parents folds, 11-year-old Nellie and her mother move to small-town Maine, much to Nellie's dismay. Even worse, they take up residence next door to her mom's best friend and daughter, Min; while gifted, bossy Nellie has always struggled to bond with her peers, she's not interested in hanging out with Min, who believes the two are fast friends. When the town park is closed after a series of thefts and incidents, and the underresourced local newspaper won't cover the story, determined Nellie starts her own outlet, The Cub Report, to launch an investigation. Together, the paper's diverse team--including Thom, who carries around a "bag of smells," and Min--look into the incidents. En route to the first issue, Nellie learns valuable and well-wrought lessons about cooperation, letting people in, and navigating new circumstances. In this heartwarming series kick-off, Vrabel (The Humiliations of Pipi McGee) offers journalistic hints while shining a light on the plight of the newspaper industry, and prickly Nellie's grudging willingness to embrace others over the course of the story is earnestly portrayed. Ages 8--12. Agent: Nicole Rescinitti, the Seymour Agency. (Mar.) |
School Library Journal Review
| Gr 4--6--Nellie Murrow spent the first 11 years of her life surrounded by the bustling world of journalism and newsrooms. But when the newspaper both her parents worked for folds, Nellie finds herself in the last place she ever imagined--the tiny town of Bear Creek, where nothing interesting ever happens. To make matters worse, her mom has ensconced herself in the attic to write a romance novel and her dad has gone to Asia, leaving Nellie to her own devices. All she really wants to do is talk to her dad, but instead she is saddled with an assigned and quite babyish "best friend" who follows her everywhere. When strange reports of vandalism and mischief are linked to the only place Nellie can talk to her dad, it is up to the kids in town to cover the story. But will they be able to figure out what is going on? And will socially awkward Nellie be able to make friends with people her own age? This refreshingly poignant story deftly weaves topics such as grieving, making friends, and moving with highly relevant discussions about bias and opinion in journalism. It is inspiring and informative for young people who are interested in the craft of news reporting, without being overly technical. Readers will be as eager as Nellie to unearth the truth and will discover a deeper understanding of humanity along the way. VERDICT A captivating and touching story that addresses issues in news media and life effortlessly, while engaging readers with a fast-paced mystery.--Emily Beasley, Omaha Public Schools |
Booklist Review
| Nellie Murrow, 11, has left the big city, moving with her mother to Bear Creek, Maine. Her father, a former reporter, has taken a job in Asia. Or has he? The bulk of the story is about Nellie's attempt to follow in her parent's footsteps. She stumbles across a mystery in the town park: someone seems to be committing vandalism, even attacking park goers, yet no one has seen the perpetrator. The local newspaper, which has had to lay off employees, doesn't have the staff to pursue the story, so Nellie decides to start a paper of her own. Nellie considers herself someone who doesn't easily make friends, but the lure of cracking the case and getting it out in print attracts a rather motley crew of kids who become not just fellow newshounds but also pals. Their support, along with that of others in Bear Creek, allows Nellie to finally face the truth about her dad. A solid mix of personal story and intriguing mystery, along with the fun of starting a new enterprise.--Ilene Cooper Copyright 2019 Booklist |
Kirkus Review
| Eleven-year-old Nellie's investigative reporting leads her to solve a mystery, start a newspaper, and learn key lessons about growing up.Nellie's voice is frank and often funnyand always full of information about newspapers. She tells readers of the first meeting of her newspaper club and then says, "But maybe I'm burying the ledewhat Dad calls it when a reporter puts the most interesting partin the middle or toward the end." (This and other journalism vocabulary is formally defined in a closing glossary.) She backtracks to earlier that summer, when she and her mother were newly moved into a house next to her mother's best friend in rural Bear Creek, Maine. Nellie explains that the newspaper that employed both of her parents in "the city" had folded soon after her father left for business in Asia. When Bear Creek Park gets closed due to mysterious, petty crimes, Nellie feels compelled to investigate. She feels closest to her dad when on the park's swings, and she is more comfortable interviewing adults than befriending peers. Getting to know a plethora of characters through Nellie's eyes is as much fun as watching Nellie blossom. Although astute readers will have guessed the park's vandalizers, they are rewarded by observing Nellie's fact-checking process. A late revelation about Nellie's father does not significantly detract from this fully realized story of a young girl adjusting admirably to new circumstances. Nellie and her mother present white; secondary characters are diverse.Nellie Bly's contemporary namesake does her proud. (Fiction. 8-12) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission. |
