Secrets at Sea

Review

Common Sense Media says

Great story, characters make mouse journey instant classic.
greenON: Content is age-appropriate for kids this age.
yellowPAUSE: Know your child; some content
may not be right for some kids.
redOFF: Not age-appropriate for kids this age.
not for kidsNOT FOR KIDS: Not appropriate for kids any age.

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Quality
 
Sometimes media can be age appropriate but a real waste of time. Our star rating assesses the media's overall quality.

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Parents say

Not yet rated

Kids say

AGE
8
QUALITY
 

What parents need to know

Parents need to know that the latest from Newbery Award winner Peck is another gem. Its cute characters will appeal to younger kids, but there's enough substance and whimsy to the plot and characters to keep older kids amused and interested, as well. It's a good, lighthearted intro to Victoriania and some of the more arcane customs of the era.

  • Educational value4
    Secrets at Sea is lots of fun, but in the course of following its tale, young readers will pick up quite a bit of incidental knowledge about 19th century British and American society, not to mention shipboard life and a mouse's-eye view of Queen Victoria's royal court. Along the way they'll also be exposed to sophisticated vocabulary words such as "reticule."
  • Positive messages5
    Bravery, cleverness, and family devotion conquer all in this tale of four 19th-century mouse siblings who face many perils in the course of an Atlantic crossing when their human family suddenly heads for Europe on a husband-hunting expedition. Helena, the oldest, must not only keep her own brother and sisters safe, which requires much ingenuity, wisdom, and social grace, but must also work with them to avert the social disasters waiting to befall their people.
  • Positive role models5
    As the responsible, resourceful oldest sister who gathers all her courage to take her siblings across the ocean to save both them and their human family, Helena is a good role model with remarkable grace under pressure. Her sister Louise, whose friendship with the human girl Camilla causes Helena much anxiety, proves to be both a loyal friend and a quick thinker. And Camilla herself, in contrast to her embarrassingly gauche family, is graceful, kind, and sweet.
  • Violence1
    Since the protagonists are mice, they face mouse dangers, especially from predators such as cats and snakes, and have several narrow escapes. Some of their late family members have not been so lucky: Their mother and two sisters have drowned (causing the rest of the family to be terrified of water), while their father was devoured by a cat, all before the beginning of the book's events. Early on, brother Lamont loses half his tail to a snake. In a moment of turnabout, Helena's child benefactor saves her by bashing the pursuing cat on the head with a soldier-shaped nutcracker.
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What's the story?

Helena and her three siblings are the current representatives of a very old mouse family inhabiting the Cranston home in the Hudson River Valley. Sudden change looms when the Upstairs Cranstons (the humans), having failed to find a suitable young man for older daughter Olive, take the notion to sail for Europe in search of husband prospects willing to overlook her deficiencies in favor of Papa's money.  As the oldest, Helena has other worries -- sister Louise insists on being friends with human Cranston Camilla (perilous, in the centuries-old relationship in which the human family tends not to know about its rodent counterpart), sister Beatrice is sneaking out at night to meet an undesirable boy, and brother Lamont is forever getting into life-threatening scrapes. After consulting the local mouse granny, she realizes there's nothing to be done but to pack up her little family in Camilla's trunk and stow away on the transatlantic voyage -- even though they're all mortally terrified of water -- in search of a better future for themselves and the human Cranstons, as well.

Is it any good?

 

SECRETS AT SEA is a great novel, with an inventive plot and ingenious characters who, despite being mice, are easy to relate to as they deal with their sibling issues. Younger kids who aren't quite at this reading level will still enjoy the characters, the story, and the cute illustrations, even though some nuances of the narration will go right by them. Older kids will love these details, from snarks at the boy-crazy Beatrice to the complicated protocols of being a faithful mouse retainer in the royal palace, unbeknownst to the actual royals involved.

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What families can talk about

  • Families can talk about taking a voyage on an ocean liner. Does it sound like fun? What do you think would be the best part?

  • From a 21st century perspective, the notion of sailing to Europe to marry off one's daughter because of a lack of local prospects -- the impetus of the entire adventure -- may seem peculiar. Can you imagine your parents deciding who you should marry? Or going to another country to find a husband?

  • Do you think you'd like to go to a royal reception, or does it sound like way too much good behavior?

  • If Helena and her family lived now instead of in the time of Queen Victoria, how might their lives be different?

  • Helena and her family are constantly challenged to help their humans while dealing with the undeniable fact that most humans perceive them as vermin. Discuss the difficulties, psychological and otherwise.

This review was written by Mary Eisenhart
Kid, 10 years old
December 11, 2011
AGE
7
 
Interesting Review
I haven't attended this book yet....... but, it looks very interesting and so to my concluison i think this book is probably recond for a 7 year old or older.
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Helped me decide (9) | Had useful details (16) | Read my mind (9)
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Kid, 10 years old
January 30, 2012
AGE
10
 
Very Imaginative and Creative book for kids!
I really like how Helena, the oldest, is correcting not only Lamont on language but the readers of the book. This book is very educational on behalf the journey and how it's like to live on a ship back in the olden days.
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Helped me decide (3) | Had useful details (3) | Read my mind (2)
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Kid, 11 years old
January 22, 2012
AGE
8
 
An amazing book, that is very exciting!
Awesome! I think this book is good for kids 8 and up. A great book, with lots of positive role models. Girls might like it better than boys though. It's about mice that accompany the family they live with on a ship. The mice have many adventures on the ship. The mice are good role models, and become independent on their journey. I think this is a book that people should read.
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Helped me decide (3) | Had useful details (2) | Read my mind (3)
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This review was written by Mary Eisenhart
Topics:magic and fantasy
Author:Richard Peck
Illustrator:Kelly Murphy
Book type:Fiction
Genre:Adventure
Publisher:Dial Books
Publication date:October 13, 2011
Number of pages:256
Hardcover price:$16.99
Publisher's recommended age(s):8 - 12
Read aloud:12
Read alone:12
This review was written by Mary Eisenhart
 

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About our rating system
ON: Content is age-appropriate for kids this age.
PAUSE: Know your child; some content may not be right for some kids.
OFF: Not age-appropriate for kids this age.
Learning ratings
BEST: Really engaging, great learning approach.
GOOD: Pretty engaging, good learning approach.
FAIR: Somewhat engaging, OK learning approach.
NOT FOR LEARNING: Not recommended for learning.
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