Secrets

School Library Journal

K-Gr 2-Beginning with a definition of secrets, Senisi explores instances in which they are happy, sad, worrisome, serious, silly, and meant to be shared or kept private. She gleaned much of her information from interviews with a second grade class, and young readers will easily identify with the various situations presented. Although the secret of the teacher's impending birthday told in the beginning is followed up with a surprise party at the end, this is more a series of vignettes than a story. Full-color photographs featuring engaging multiethnic youngsters accompany the brief text. There is an afterword discussing the developmental nature of children and their ability to keep secrets, and when it is or is not appropriate to encourage them to reveal what they know. This is a satisfying presentation of a topic that is sure to strike a chord with the intended audience. Use it with Charlotte Huck's delightful Secret Places (Greenwillow, 1993).-Marianne Saccardi, Norwalk Community-Technical College, CT

Stephanie Zvirin

Secrets. Most children tell them and know what they are in the broadest terms. Senisi adds a new layer of understanding by exploring different kinds of secrets--good and bad, serious, joyful, worrisome, hurtful--the emotions associated with them, and the behavior they prompt. Attractive color photos will help kids visualize some rather complicated feelings while the brief text provides context and examples: "Some secrets make you feel worried. It helps to talk about them" ; "Yesterday I almost went to the park with somebody I didn't know." A few of the examples are simply too subtle, but that can be dealt with during adult-child discussion, an activity that the book almost demands.