Millicent Marie Is Not My Name by Karen Pokras Toz
Genre: EVERYONE! but mostly MG
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Summary:
Twelve-year-old Millicent Marie does not like her name. After all, she was named for a woman who died more than fifty years ago and was not the most loveable member of the Harris family. Her friends call her Millie, but when she writes in her diary she refers to herself as Amanda – the name she always wished she had.
When Millie’s younger brother finds her diary on her computer, he decides to publish it as a blog for the entire world to see, including the boy Millie has a crush on. In the midst of all the mayhem, Millie/Amanda discovers she is suddenly Springside Elementary’s most sought after sixth-grade mystery gossip and advice columnist.
But not all is fun and games, as Millie quickly learns, once she realizes feelings are at stake. Nobody, least of all Millie, expects things to turn out as they do in this tale of friendship and respect.
Twelve-year-old Millicent Marie does not like her name. After all, she was named for a woman who died more than fifty years ago and was not the most loveable member of the Harris family. Her friends call her Millie, but when she writes in her diary she refers to herself as Amanda – the name she always wished she had.
When Millie’s younger brother finds her diary on her computer, he decides to publish it as a blog for the entire world to see, including the boy Millie has a crush on. In the midst of all the mayhem, Millie/Amanda discovers she is suddenly Springside Elementary’s most sought after sixth-grade mystery gossip and advice columnist.
But not all is fun and games, as Millie quickly learns, once she realizes feelings are at stake. Nobody, least of all Millie, expects things to turn out as they do in this tale of friendship and respect.
OH MY GOODNESS! This was such a great read! I thoroughly enjoyed myself!
This is one of those books that everyone and anyone, of all ages, can relate to. Within these pages you will find the unique and funny voice of a girl who is trying to figure things out like all kids do. Millicent Marie is a good kid and just gets caught up with the intrigue and freedom anonymity gifts you, when all you really want to do is let it all out there, even if no one is out there listening. She obviously wasn’t expecting there to be someone “listening” or reading. She soon realized that the blog gave her power because words can be powerful. The good news is that although Millicent Marie was venting and the way she was going about things was pretty mild (IMO), she realized that her blog was still a form of bullying. She also realized that just maybe not all bullies were bad people but just people that had a lot going on and didn’t know how to deal with all that was going on.
This is a book that EVERYONE should pick up and read. It is definitely a book I will have my son, nieces and nephew read because of its wonderful approach in addressing so many issues they are currently experiencing. Adults can find this book useful too...some need a friendly reminder about the effects of what they say and do...Just saying. This book is empowering in every sense of the word. It teaches kids to be proactive, that it’s ok to have thoughts and to voice them, to rally together and make changes. It teaches that words have power but use that power responsibly because it can totally backfire and cause a good intention to turn bad within seconds. It teaches to think about the other person and that perhaps there is something more to what people see. It speaks of second chances and forgiveness along with that understanding. Kudos to Karen Pokras Toz on a wonderfully written book that flows so well, has fantastic characters and is bursting with positive energy!
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Karen Pokras Toz is a writer, wife and mom. Karen grew up in Connecticut and currently lives outside of Philadelphia with her husband and three children. In June 2011, Karen published her first middle grade children’s novel for 7-12 year olds called Nate Rocks the World, which won First Place for Children’s Chapter Books and the Grand Prize Overall in the 2012 Purple Dragonfly Book Awards, as well as placing first for a Global E-Book Award for Pre-Teen Literature. In 2012, Karen published the second in the Nate Rocks series, Nate Rocks the Boat, followed by middle grade novel, Millicent Marie Is Not My Name. Karen is a member of the Society of Children’s Book Writers & Illustrators (SCBWI).
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Thank you for your review!! I'm so happy to hear you love Millicent Marie. Thanks for being a part of the tour!
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