Honey

December 22, 2014
In spite of never having known her mother, 10-year-old Melody Bishop leads a pleasant small-town life in Royal, Ind., playing word games with her good-natured father (a humanities teacher) and hanging around with her best friend, Nick Woo. When Melody begins to suspect her father has fallen in love, she determines to find out who it is. Interwoven with Melody's story are two others: that of Bee-Bee Churchill, the owner of the town's new beauty salon, the Bee Hive, and Bee-Bee's 10-year-old French bulldog, Mo, who has his own significant backstory; the three threads eventually intersect in predictable but pleasing ways. Minor intrigue and misunderstandings drive the slender plot, but Weeks (Pie) succeeds in creating an emotionally credible and moving resolution, as well as a small cast of realistic and engaging characters to flesh out the town of Royal. Readers who like words will enjoy the list of 100 nail-polish names Melody creates for the Bee Hive, which concludes this straightforward, affecting read. Ages 8â12. Agent: Holly McGhee, Pippin Properties.

November 15, 2014
Melody Bishop's peaceful life with her widower father is upset when the annoying 6-year-old next door comes home from the beauty parlor with some gossip.The 10-year-old has already noticed her father's increased distraction and a new tendency to whistle, so when Teeny Nelson reports that "Henry's been bitten by the love bug," Melody is avid to know more. With her best friend, biracial Nick Woo, at her side, she goes to the Bee Hive beauty salon to investigate. What she discovers there rocks her world not once but twice, as salon owner Bee-Bee has information about Melody's mother, who died in childbirth and about whom her father never speaks. Weeks gets the small moments right: Melody's exasperation with Teeny and the way it turns to sympathy when the little girl's mother threatens a spanking; her affectionate resignation when her grandfather, who has emphysema, sneaks out to the garage for a smoke. And Melody's close relationship with her loving father is sweetly evoked. But other elements fail to cohere. Obvious misdirection leads Melody to a critical misunderstanding that never amounts to more than a plot contrivance, and the mystical visions of Bee-Bee's dog, Mo, who has an unknown connection to Melody, strain credulity. In all, it's an unsuccessful follow-up to Weeks' Pie (2011), but word-loving Melody is appealing, and her appended list of nail-polish colors is somewhat amusing. (Fiction. 7-10)

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January 1, 2015

Gr 3-5-At the center of Weeks's sweetly titled novel, is Melody, a 10-year-old girl whose mother died when she was born and who has spent her whole life with her father in Royal, IN. As the book opens, Melody notices that her father is distracted-burning food, whistling "You Are My Sunshine," and, most concerning, calling someone "Honey." A visit from Teeny Nelson, her six-year-old neighbor, confirms Melody's suspicion that her father has, in Teeny's words, "been bitten by the love bug." Along with her friend, Nick Woo, and a cast of winning supporting characters, Melody sets out to discover "Honey's" identity. At the same time, in passages that may be confusing to younger readers, a dog named Mo has a mystery of his own to solve. He dreams about a girl he knows he's supposed to be with, but first he has to find her. Much of the novel's action takes place in the Bee Hive, a local salon owned by a woman named Bee-Bee Churchill who can fill in the missing pieces of Melody's story-and is known for her homemade nail polish. Weeks has a good eye for the details of Melody's life-her anxiety about school, her love for her father and grandfather, and her need to learn more about her mother. Recommend this warm and good-hearted novel to fans of Kate Dicamillo's Because of Winn-Dixie (Candlewick, 2000).-Shelley Sommer, Inly School, Scituate, MA

Copyright 2015 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

July 1, 2015
Melody falsely interprets a rumor and fears her single dad may secretly be dating her least favorite teacher. Melody's investigation reveals his girlfriend's identity, but, more importantly, Melody learns about her mother, who died in childbirth. With a sprinkling of explanatory proverbs and idioms, a cast of amicable characters, and a happy reunion, Honey is a sweet affirmation of family and friendship.

(Copyright 2015 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)