viragsflowerygarden's review
5.0
This is a great book to see coding is about having fun, solving problems, and teamwork. (: This is a really sweet story about it!
jenniferclaire's review
5.0
I read this throughout one day - while my kids were playing and waiting at the doctors office. This book is super cute for middle school girls. It talks about some girl issues as well as learning some basics of coding. Highly recommend for middle school girls!
raethereviewer's review
funny
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
This was so much fun! It gave me major Baby Sitters Club vibes so if you enjoy that series you’ll love this too.
nicolemhewitt's review
4.0
This review and many more can be found on my blog: Feed Your Fiction Addiction
This first book in the series introduces us to Lucy, who is super excited to start the coding club at her school. Lucy wants to learn to code for a very personal reason—she wants to create an app that will help her uncle, who has cancer. But she finds that learning to code isn’t nearly as simple as she thought and she gets frustrated when coding club moves way too slow for her. When she starts to receive mysterious notes with cryptic instructions that insist they will help her learn to code, she’s hesitant at first. But she soon discovers that following the mystery is fun and she just might be learning more along the way than she thought.
This was a great introduction to the series and to all of the girls in coding club. The book explores dynamics between middle school girls in a fun and interesting way. First off, there’s Lucy, who is enthusiastic about coding and really wants to use it to help people. Then there’s her sporty ex-best friend Sophia. Lucy is less than thrilled to be paired with Sophia—things are awkward between them since they drifted apart a year earlier. Maya is cool and fashionable, and Lucy is intimidated by her. And then there’s Erin, the new girl who seems quiet and maybe a little sad.
All of the girls have their own reasons for joining the coding club, and they all end up helping Lucy in her quest to solve the mysteries of the strange clue-filled envelopes that Lucy receives. These books are cute middle grade reads. They’re written relatively simplistically, so some advanced middle-grade readers might think they feel too “young” for them, but my 13-year-old actually likes to read some books that are a little simpler and lighter now and again, so this book was perfect for her. She’s eager to read the second book (she didn’t have time to get to it before this review went up). Both she and I figured out early on who was sending the notes to Lucy, but it was still fun to see where they would lead and how each note related to something having to do with coding (even though they didn’t seem to at first). I felt like the book was a great introduction to some coding concepts, but it didn’t feel too technical. My daughter isn’t all that interested in coding, unfortunately, but she really enjoyed this book anyway, and maybe it will spark a new interest in her!
I give the book 4/5 Stars.
This first book in the series introduces us to Lucy, who is super excited to start the coding club at her school. Lucy wants to learn to code for a very personal reason—she wants to create an app that will help her uncle, who has cancer. But she finds that learning to code isn’t nearly as simple as she thought and she gets frustrated when coding club moves way too slow for her. When she starts to receive mysterious notes with cryptic instructions that insist they will help her learn to code, she’s hesitant at first. But she soon discovers that following the mystery is fun and she just might be learning more along the way than she thought.
This was a great introduction to the series and to all of the girls in coding club. The book explores dynamics between middle school girls in a fun and interesting way. First off, there’s Lucy, who is enthusiastic about coding and really wants to use it to help people. Then there’s her sporty ex-best friend Sophia. Lucy is less than thrilled to be paired with Sophia—things are awkward between them since they drifted apart a year earlier. Maya is cool and fashionable, and Lucy is intimidated by her. And then there’s Erin, the new girl who seems quiet and maybe a little sad.
All of the girls have their own reasons for joining the coding club, and they all end up helping Lucy in her quest to solve the mysteries of the strange clue-filled envelopes that Lucy receives. These books are cute middle grade reads. They’re written relatively simplistically, so some advanced middle-grade readers might think they feel too “young” for them, but my 13-year-old actually likes to read some books that are a little simpler and lighter now and again, so this book was perfect for her. She’s eager to read the second book (she didn’t have time to get to it before this review went up). Both she and I figured out early on who was sending the notes to Lucy, but it was still fun to see where they would lead and how each note related to something having to do with coding (even though they didn’t seem to at first). I felt like the book was a great introduction to some coding concepts, but it didn’t feel too technical. My daughter isn’t all that interested in coding, unfortunately, but she really enjoyed this book anyway, and maybe it will spark a new interest in her!
I give the book 4/5 Stars.
dylancampbell's review
4.0
When I first saw this ARC I was excited and my interest was piqued: a novel for young readers about coding? Great idea...but, would it really work? The answer: yes.
This book works but not because it is a book about coding. Rather, it is a book about friendship and teamwork with a mystery that drives the plot that has a little bit of coding which frames the story.
I'm excited to give this to parents and children who are interested in stories about middle-school that are smart and well executed.
This book works but not because it is a book about coding. Rather, it is a book about friendship and teamwork with a mystery that drives the plot that has a little bit of coding which frames the story.
I'm excited to give this to parents and children who are interested in stories about middle-school that are smart and well executed.
reader_fictions's review
2.0
2.5 stars
I feel like I start about half my audiobook reviews with “I picked this up on a whim even though it’s not really my thing,” and I guess I’m going to keep doing that, because I picked The Friendship Code up on a whim even thought it’s not really my thing. It’s okay for the intended audience and its intended goal, but it’s less a novel than an educational tool. You know how there are novels that teach SAT words? This is kind of like that, only with coding.
The story’s rather silly, and the resolution of the plot is incredibly obvious from the beginning, though the girls don’t figure it out. This might not be the case for younger readers who haven’t read as much. Narratively, though, this story wasn’t particularly impressive, and there’s no reason middle grade can’t be impressive. However, it does teach the most basic elements of coding and some principles that apply to it. So, considering that this is the goal of the book, rather than a good novel, I’d say it’s probably fairly successful within those parameters.
I will note, however, that, though I liked the narration itself, this book does not lend itself well to the audiobook format. Emojis lose something in translation, as do strings of code, which are painful to hear read out over and over again.
I feel like I start about half my audiobook reviews with “I picked this up on a whim even though it’s not really my thing,” and I guess I’m going to keep doing that, because I picked The Friendship Code up on a whim even thought it’s not really my thing. It’s okay for the intended audience and its intended goal, but it’s less a novel than an educational tool. You know how there are novels that teach SAT words? This is kind of like that, only with coding.
The story’s rather silly, and the resolution of the plot is incredibly obvious from the beginning, though the girls don’t figure it out. This might not be the case for younger readers who haven’t read as much. Narratively, though, this story wasn’t particularly impressive, and there’s no reason middle grade can’t be impressive. However, it does teach the most basic elements of coding and some principles that apply to it. So, considering that this is the goal of the book, rather than a good novel, I’d say it’s probably fairly successful within those parameters.
I will note, however, that, though I liked the narration itself, this book does not lend itself well to the audiobook format. Emojis lose something in translation, as do strings of code, which are painful to hear read out over and over again.
merceec's review
4.0
Middle grade girls will love this!
It might also be suitable for elementary school. I am an art minded programming student, and I definitely would have loved a cute story like this to teach me some basics of coding ! Well done!
It might also be suitable for elementary school. I am an art minded programming student, and I definitely would have loved a cute story like this to teach me some basics of coding ! Well done!