Scan barcode
mdevlin923's review
3.0
Claudia, who has grown up in the shadows of genius Janine, is convinced that she is adopted...especially when she can't find any baby photos of herself.
frostbitsky's review against another edition
fast-paced
5.0
Claudia is my favorite so this story is also a favorite. I find it funny that when Claudia is investigating her birth she could con so many strangers into giving her private information. People were so trusting!
In the end the simplest explanation was the answer. I also really liked the parallel story of Claudia helping Kristy's sister Emily learn her colors, shapes and numbers.
5 out of 5 Birth Announcements.
In the end the simplest explanation was the answer. I also really liked the parallel story of Claudia helping Kristy's sister Emily learn her colors, shapes and numbers.
5 out of 5 Birth Announcements.
bibliotequeish's review
As a kid my best friends sister had the whole BSC series on a book shelf in her room. I thought she was so grown up. And I envied this bookshelf. And would often poke my head into that room just to look at it.
And when I read BSC, I felt like such a grown up.
And while I might have still been a little too young to understand some of the issues dealt with in these books, I do appreciated that Ann M. Martin tackled age appropriate issues, some being deeper than others, but still important.
jamietherebelliousreader's review
4.0
4 stars. Loved this. Claudia is one of my favorites and I always seem to enjoy her books a lot. I loved the scenes of her tutoring Emily, those were adorable. And I thought all the work she put into trying to find her “birth parents” was impressive. I completely understood her reasoning and why she felt the way that she did. Everything wrapped up really nicely and this was just a lovely read.
daybreak1012's review against another edition
3.5
Before I get to my actual review, a quick disclaimer: Ever since I learned that Netflix was reimagining one of my favorite childhood book series, I had decided that I would be embarking on a re-read of this series, reliving a series of books that helped to shape me into a voracious reader. I am so excited to embark on this travel back in time. I don't expect to be mentally stimulated -- I mean, I'm not exactly a pre-teen middle-schooler these days -- but I make no apology for choosing to enjoy this series from the perspective of adulthood. Don't expect me to have any sort of psychoanalyst or feminist sermonizing on the appropriateness of the situations or the effects on a young girl reading these books; there's plenty of that to go around already. I'm here for the nostalgia and the meander down memory lane.
*************
Couple of things with this one: I came into it only remembering the very basic premise and I don't usually connect much with the Claudia books.
*************
Couple of things with this one: I came into it only remembering the very basic premise and I don't usually connect much with the Claudia books.
What I liked about Claudia and the Great Search:
Surprisingly, Claudia - As I inidcated in my brief opening, Claudia isn't a character I usually enjoy. She can be a little whiny and dramatic. But in this one, I felt some sympathy for her and, while she was still dramatic, I can see where her insecurities came from this time. I also particularly loved that Claudia got to feel smart when she was working with Emily Michelle and having success with helping her catch up in her skill development.
Janine - This was in part that there weren't any nasty little spats between the sisters, but also Janine was really cute with Emily Michelle. It was nice to see her more humanized and less robotic.
The connection back to Mimi - As someone who was very close to her own Gram, I thought this was a heartwarming touch.
What I didn't care for:
The nerd stereotypes - I mean, for real. Super smart people all lack any ability to dress in even somewhat current fashions or even just casual clothing? And this isn't the 1950s. The smart kids didn't even have pocket protectors and slide rules and protractors in their shirt pockets when I was in school which was pretty much in line with the timing of these books.
More inconsistency - I had thought I remembered Dawn filling in for Kristy at least once, even though a recent book indicated that was the only position for which she had not fulfilled her alternate officer duties. This book, we're back to saying she has, just not very often.
In retrospect, I think three stars wasn't quite enough. Upping to 3.5. And really trying to remember what the deal is with Stacey's health and all these recent references to how tired she's been the last few books.
finesilkflower's review
4.0
Claudia becomes convinced that she was secretly adopted.
Inspired by Kristy’s adopted sister Emily Michelle, Claudia wonders if she, too, was adopted. It would explain her differences in appearance and personality from her parents and Janine, and the suspicious comparative disparity in number of baby pictures between the two daughters. After reading the book [b:Find a Stranger, Say Goodbye|12934|Find a Stranger, Say Goodbye|Lois Lowry|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1386924385s/12934.jpg|2534075], she launches into full Nancy Drew investigation mode. She seeks out medical and birth announcement records, and actually calls some people she thinks might be her birth parents, but meets a lot of dead ends. Finally, she asks her parents, who assure her that she is not adopted and that in fact she looks a lot like Mimi did at her age.
Meanwhile, Emily Michelle is having language difficulties, so Claudia plays games with her, teaching her shapes and colors. Mrs. Thomas is impressed and hires her as a tutor; Claudia realizes may not have Janine’s brains, but she is a patient, understanding teacher.
I actually really like the plot of this book. It ends up being much ado about nothing, but that somehow makes it feel more profound, unlike most "everything has a logical explanation after all" mysteries. An adoption conspiracy is the kind of fantasy a kid might easily blow out of proportion, especially a kid with a strong feeling of alienation from her family. (It’s also, I think, the kind of thing kids just like to daydream about, as evidenced by the popularity of books like "The Face on the Milk Carton.") This is a particularly poignant story placed as it is in the continuity, the first Claudia book after Mimi’s death. Claudia’s attempts to discover the truth are thorough and inventive but still fundamentally flawed in a way that seems realistic for a kid schooled in research by mystery novels. And I do love a good research yarn.
Mild Racism Alert: Claudia supposes she might not even be Japanese; she might be Chinese or even Hawaiian. Even giving her "magical thinking" leeway, does she really think all look same?
Revised Timeline: This is where I figure out how old the baby-sitters would be if they aged. Late spring of ninth grade
Inspired by Kristy’s adopted sister Emily Michelle, Claudia wonders if she, too, was adopted. It would explain her differences in appearance and personality from her parents and Janine, and the suspicious comparative disparity in number of baby pictures between the two daughters. After reading the book [b:Find a Stranger, Say Goodbye|12934|Find a Stranger, Say Goodbye|Lois Lowry|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1386924385s/12934.jpg|2534075], she launches into full Nancy Drew investigation mode. She seeks out medical and birth announcement records, and actually calls some people she thinks might be her birth parents, but meets a lot of dead ends. Finally, she asks her parents, who assure her that she is not adopted and that in fact she looks a lot like Mimi did at her age.
Meanwhile, Emily Michelle is having language difficulties, so Claudia plays games with her, teaching her shapes and colors. Mrs. Thomas is impressed and hires her as a tutor; Claudia realizes may not have Janine’s brains, but she is a patient, understanding teacher.
I actually really like the plot of this book. It ends up being much ado about nothing, but that somehow makes it feel more profound, unlike most "everything has a logical explanation after all" mysteries. An adoption conspiracy is the kind of fantasy a kid might easily blow out of proportion, especially a kid with a strong feeling of alienation from her family. (It’s also, I think, the kind of thing kids just like to daydream about, as evidenced by the popularity of books like "The Face on the Milk Carton.") This is a particularly poignant story placed as it is in the continuity, the first Claudia book after Mimi’s death. Claudia’s attempts to discover the truth are thorough and inventive but still fundamentally flawed in a way that seems realistic for a kid schooled in research by mystery novels. And I do love a good research yarn.
Mild Racism Alert: Claudia supposes she might not even be Japanese; she might be Chinese or even Hawaiian. Even giving her "magical thinking" leeway, does she really think all look same?
Revised Timeline: This is where I figure out how old the baby-sitters would be if they aged. Late spring of ninth grade
sammah's review
3.0
Honestly I can really believe that Claudia would think she's adopted. She's sort of an uber misfit in her family, so really it could have happened. This is the BSC-verse though, so naturally it didn't haha. Oooh the plots! Oh the anxiety!
xtinamorse's review against another edition
Read my recap at A Year with the BSC via Stoneybrook Forever: https://www.livethemovies.com/bsc-blog/claudia-and-the-great-search
pixieauthoress's review against another edition
5.0
Although it was crazy of Claud to think she was adopted - even if she does read a lot of mysteries - this book was fun to read and the story panned out quite well. 9/10