Sofia runs a blog on the school computers. She listens in the girls' room to get her gossip. Naturally she only hears part of the story then adds what she wants to make it sound juicy. She is upset when Mia, the most popular girl in school, likes Andrew, Sofia's crush. Then just when she thinks it cannot get any worse, her mother starts substituting at her school. What will she do?

I found Sofia a hoot. She is exactly like the girls who aren't popular but want to be and since she has access to blogging she hopes that she will pick up more followers for it. She also has a lot of gossip about Mia. She practices for her blog with a notebook which she loses at times. Not good because who has it, who sees it, who reads it! Fortunately she finds it but who has read it? She hopes no one but she does not know for sure. I remember Mias from my school days and it was no different back then as now.

This is fun. I enjoyed the format of a notebook as she tells her story. I also enjoyed her artwork, especially the snarky comments. They are the most truthful and school is still the same.

Philippa's parents work on a cruise ship. She helps them with their jobs. A new captain and his son are coming aboard for this trip. A Duchess and her nephews also are on this cruise. Philippa does not trust them especially as she notices how much they all watch her. She also likes mysteries. So she decides she will find out about them and about the captain's son who is a mass of contradictions.

I enjoyed this story. Philippa is very determined to solve the mystery even if it means she runs afoul of the cruise director and the captain. I wanted to slap the Duchess and her nephews. They were pains in the behind. I liked Philip but I wanted to know his story as much as Philippa did. We do find out in the end what it is.

This is a good story for 8-12 years old. The mystery is enough to keep one engaged and rooting for Philippa.

What a beautiful story!
I love reading about animals, but to read it from the animals perspective is way cooler! It was a bit of an emotional rollercoaster though. Not every chapter had a happy ending. That's what made this story brilliant though. It captured everything you could imagine for that space and time. Once, I got choked up, had to put the book aside for a few minutes before finishing.
I look forward to The One and Only Bob.  So much so, in fact.