Customer Reviews

Solving Zoe

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Gold Star Award Winner!

Zoe is eleven years old and has been going to the same school all of her life, Hubbard School.

This school isn't a regular school, but one for extraordinary students. Zoe's older sister and brother both go there, as well. Her sister is an amazing actress/singer and her brother is a math champion. Ever her little brother, Spencer, goes to pre-school there.

Zoe is having problems figuring out how she fits into the scheme of things at the school. Her grades are slipping and she and her best friend, Dara, are growing apart. Enter in a new student named Lucas. Lucas is weird, but he's also a code-reading genius. He takes a liking to Zoe and through some time spent together, Zoe finds out that she has a
code-reading gift, too.

I really loved this story about growing up and finding where you belong. I actually believe that we go through this process many times in our lives. Even when you get older you may find yourself at loose ends and have to find yourself all over again. I have been going through that process recently since I now have an empty nest.

Anyway, this story is great. The characters are very lovable and you wish they were your friends. Zoe's family is supportive and loving but can be annoying also, especially the two brothers. I found that to be very realistic.

If you want a good book that will both interest you and entertain you, then pick up SOLVING ZOE by Barbara Dee.

Reviewed by: Marta Morrison

As a the mother of a middle school student, I like to read what my daughter is reading. I read Solving Zoe, and I absolutely loved it! I thought the characters were terrific, and I raced through the book the first time because I had to know how things were going to turn out for them. I loved the ending, but I don't want to write too much about it because it was very original and imaginative and I don't want to spoil it for anyone else. Then I read the book a second time, much more slowly, figuring out the codes that are found throughout the text -- fascinating! I think this book would make a fabulous gift for a middle schooler, and I very much recommend it!

Although this book is for teenagers I found it fascinating as an adult.
Barbara Dee's descriptions of her characters and their motives and thoughts were quite insightful and beautifully written.

The subject of the origin of codes and cyphers and the behavior of lizards was extremely interesting.

I think it is wonderful to be able to recommend this book to my teenaged grandchildren because is entertaining and educational.

Solving Zoe by Barbara Dee is an entertaining look at middle school life through the eyes of Zoe, a 12 year old girl who is in 6th grade at a private gifted school in New York. Zoe follows in the footsteps of her gifted sister who is is the drama queen of the family and usually gets the main parts in the school plays and her brother who is a math Olympiad genius. Zoe is figuring out how she fits in to the school and amongst the other kids including a distancing relationship with her long time best friend Dana. A new friendship develops with a boy new to the school, Lucas. He is different and many of the other kids don't like him. Lucas is a cryptanalyst and is able to decipher ciphers and hieroglyphics. Zoe finds his private notebook and is able to decipher some of the ciphers Lucas has written. This takes the story down a different path in which Zoe in which Lucas challenges her to be real and true to herself. He may go about it in a way that causes Zoe even more trouble at school and with her classmates. Zoe is responsible for pet sitting lizards and she learns that she must follow her own instincts when problems arise. There are many lessons Zoe learns along the way and I like that she learned that being different and not fitting in has its benefits. Zoe learns that it's important to be true to yourself and follow your instincts even when other kids challenge you to be the same as they are so that they will accept you. It takes a lot of maturity and strength to stand up to the "popular" crowd.

Solving Zoe is a wonderful example of middle school fiction at its best. The story is funny, entertaining and the characters are drawn with a depth and complexity that don't make them just superficial characters. The story itself is one that the reader can learn about ciphers and cryptanalysis in which the author presents in an interesting fashion. There are examples throughout the book of ciphers and in the back of the book there is an answer key with explanations and background information. Ms. Dee also includes a list of sources to explore books about codes and ciphers that is a great resource that complements the book.

Every girl (and maybe even boy) should read this amazing book. It gives you a very accurate view of a middleschoolers life, and you can even try to crack the codes along with Zoe. Zoe is a very unique character that is easy to relate to, and she has the coolest quirks!!

If you've ever had a very best friend in the whole wide world whose name came to be synonymous with your own but from whom you have grown apart, then you will be able to understand Zoe.
Zoe gets temporarily suspended from school because the mundaness of her classes leaves her so bored and disengaged that she spends her time doodling and developing her own color-number theory instead of paying attention. Then, to make things even worse a pet she was entrusted with watching almost dies.
Zoe is devastated. She feels that no one understands her -- not her family, or the kind but eccentric teachers at her school for gifted children -- only her best friend Dara could help. But where is Dara now that it's the worst day in Zoe's life. Where is Dara?
Dara's interests have broadened. She has landed an important part in a school play and has consequently developed other interests and friendships.
Zoe is left feeling jealous, betrayed and lost, like she has waded out from the shallow comfortable usualness of her life into the deep waters of change where she has been abandoned: unable to stay afloat on her own.
But out of hardship there is growth. By learning to trust in her own intuition, Zoe discovers herself. In an unsuspected relationship with another sixth grader, a brilliant boy who she at first thinks is just weird, Zoe realizes that she has superhuman powers of perception. She can see patterns in all sorts of things allowing her to decode cipers, codes and even an ancient Mayan glyph that has heretofore never been translated. And it is by trusting her own intuition despite being scolded by the animal's owner for having hyper pre-teenage sensational feelings that she realizes that she must act immediately and take this animal to the vet and in so doing she saves its life.

SOLVING ZOE by Barbara Dee is another example of entertaining middle-grade fiction that also contains some very valuable lessons. As a mother of a middle-grade daughter, I love that there are so many terrific and fun books out there for her. I thought SOLVING ZOE had a very interesting plot, great characters, and even some codes/ciphers for the reader to solve. I really liked the book, and I think middle-grade kids are going to love it too. It's one of those books that both parents and their kids will appreciate (although it might be for very different reasons.)

I really liked the character of Zoe; and while she definitely marched to her own beat, she still seemed to embody so many of the traits of young teens. In many ways, Zoe is a typical teenager -- she has issues with her friends and her school, she's not quite sure where she fits in, and she is very insecure. However, Zoe isn't exactly like normal teens that I know because she has the amazing skill to solve ciphers almost effortlessly. Lucas, the new boy in school who is considered a genius at solving codes, discovers Zoe's talent and tries to befriend her. Zoe isn't really interested in being friends with Lucas; but when she finds herself being left out of her best friend's life, she starts hanging out with him and discovering her "new" talent.

This book has so many valuable lessons for young kids in today's society. I like that this book encourages children to discover that makes them special and to embrace it. I also like that the book teaches children some important things about life, family, and friends. I really appreciated how Zoe matured throughout this book. She not only learned things about herself and her talents, but she learned a great deal about responsibility. While Zoe was taking care of Isaac's pets, she was forced to make a few very important decisions. I liked how Zoe felt empowered by being in charge of something and handling problems by herself.

Another thing I really enjoyed about SOLVING ZOE were the parts about ciphers and codes. I didn't take the time to try to figure out any of them, but I'm sure some kids will definitely want to give it a shot. (My daughter actually said that the codes hurt her head.) I liked that the author included an answer key to the codes in the back of the book; and I really enjoyed reading the history behind a lot of the ciphers. Ms. Dee also included some further resources about codes, ciphers, and the Mayan civilization.

I think SOLVING ZOE would make an ideal selection for our mother-daughter book club. There are some wonderful topics to discuss like not fitting in, recognizing your special talent, and making friends. I was so impressed that Ms. Dee has even included some discussion questions for both of her books on her website.

This is a really great book!! It's really funny, has realistic characters and situations, and super fascinating, intriguing codes. I enjoyed reading it, and the language wasn't too hard or too easy. I would definitely recommend it to anyone who wants to read an amazing book.

This book is great! Zoe is a believable character and is really funny. With this book, you learn codes, cyphers, and that fitting in isn't always a piece of cake! Barbara Dee shows the true meaning of friendship. Join Zoe as she tries to discover her talent, a new friend, and where she really belongs...

This is an amazing book with a great plot and fabulous charactors. It has cool facts about codes and cyphers, plus cool insights into middle school life.