The Firefly Code

In this gripping novel, Blakemore (The Friendship Riddle) creates a disturbingly ordered world in which questions about friendship and family offer courageous and heartwarming testaments to the human spirit. Publishers Weekly This creepy, memorable novel is a welcome addition to the relative few utopian/ dystopian books for pre-YA readers ... An ending that will have readers eagerly anticipating the next installment. BCCB The themes are strong, and the depiction of a tightly controlled world at the expense of individuality will surely fascinate fans of Lois Lowry's The Giver ... A very good selection for middle grade readers drawn to high-concept science fiction. School Library Journal Will have children turning pages and thinking about important questions. An excellent choice for those who love Lois Lowry's The Giver or Margaret Peterson Haddix's sci-fi adventures. Booklist Less stark than The Giver (1993), this welcome addition to the dystopic utopia genre is a young cousin of Ally Condie's Matched (2010) and Mary Pearson's The Adoration of Jenna Fox (2008). Kirkus Science, history and literature references glow ... With keen intelligence and bits of humor, the prose slips calmly between narrative perspectives, trusting readers to pick up a revelation that Ephraim and Mallory don't see--and it's a doozy. This one is special. -- starred review Kirkus Reviews on THE WATER CASTLE What shines through ... is Blakemore's tender understanding of how these children--and all children--feel about their lives and the adults who control them. New York Times on THE WATER CASTLE It is no mystery that readers will come to love Hazel Kaplansky. -- Kirby Larson, Newbery Honor-winning author of HATTIE BIG SKY, on THE SPY CATCHERS OF MAPLE HILL Thought provoking ... a tribute to the great girl detectives of children's literature. New York Times Book Review on THE SPY CATCHERS OF MAPLE HILL