Heidi Heckelbeck Has a Secret

February 1, 2012
Homeschooled Heidi Heckelbeck is about to be a brand-new second grader at Brewster Elementary, and she is none too happy about it. She would much prefer to continue learning at home with her younger brother Henry, where she doesn't have to worry about whom she will sit next to at lunch or how she will find her way to the bathroom. Once at school, Heidi meets two girls. Lucy has a "warm fuzzy smile" and invites Heidi to play with her at recess, but Melanie says Heidi is smelly and scribbles on her picture during art. Though Burris' line drawings add a nice layer of whimsy, for most of the book, Heidi seems to be just another ordinary kid dealing with the same humdrum, starting-a-new-school issues as countless other ordinary kids in countless other books. Though there are hints at what Heidi's "secret" might be--she has her own special book, and instead of wearing "friendly" colors like pink, Heidi opts for outfits that, according to Henry, look like Halloween costumes--they are too subtle and sporadic to convincingly plant the seed that there is more to Heidi than meets the eye, leaving readers to wait for the big reveal at the end and then continue on with the series. Heidi Heckelbeck may have a secret, but in the end it is too little, too late. (Fiction. 5-7)

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June 1, 2012

Gr 1-3-After being homeschooled, Heidi Heckelbeck is not happy about starting second grade at Brewster Elementary. Her bad attitude shines through hilariously in dialogue and details, such as a math problem she makes up: "Heidi + School = Yuck." Quickly, mean Melanie and nice new friend Lucy emerge as Heidi makes her way through class, lunch in the cafeteria, and rehearsal for the school play. Much of the plot centers on Melanie's nasty antics. Don't worry; Heidi gets even, thanks to the fact that she is a witch and she consults her Book of Spells in the cliff-hanger ending. It's this secret about her identity, and Heidi's relatable personality, that will keep readers coming back for more. Large font, an engaging story, and frequent illustrations make this a good choice for new chapter-book readers.-Amanda Moss Struckmeyer, Middleton Public Library, WI

Copyright 2012 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

February 15, 2012
Grades 1-3 Heidi has always been taught at home, and she is nervous and grumpy about starting second grade at Brewster Elementary. And it's a not-so-promising beginning when mean-queen Melanie puts Heidi on her radar, taunting her, vandalizing her art project for Mr. Doodlebee, and suggesting she play a tree in the class production of The Wizard of Oz (while Melanie is Dorothy, of course)and all on the first day! Even though Heidi meets a nice girl named Lucy, she feels she doesn't fit in at school and wishes she never had to return. But sudden inspiration leads her to conjure up a plan for payback and her secret is revealed in the teaser ending. Geared towards new readers, this series opener features simple vocabulary, large and well-spaced text, short chapters, and interspersed black-and-white cartoon-style drawings while sympathetically depicting Heidi's challenges, from dealing with bullies to finding friends. Assorted charactersincluding Heidi's supportive mom, soda popformula inventor dad, and peppy younger brotheradd lively touches, and the ending hints of more mischief to come.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2012, American Library Association.)

July 1, 2012
Frequent illustrations punctuate zippy early chapter books about spunky eight-year-old Heidi Heckelbeck. Lucy Lancaster befriends the formerly homeschooled Heidi, but Melanie Maplethorpe is inexplicably mean toward Heidi. Heidi's big secret is that she and her mother are actually witches, but this twist comes late in the first story ([cf2]Secret[cf1]) and seems almost superfluous.

(Copyright 2012 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)