The Secret Spiral

by Gillian Neimark

It’s just another boring Wednesday in May for ten-year-old Flor Bernoulli of Brooklyn, New York. As soon as school is out she hurries to the popular Sky High Pie Shop down the block, owned by the wonderfully mysterious Dr. Pi. But when she gets there, her life changes forever. Dr. Pi reveals he is actually an ancient wizard, in charge of a very special cosmic fire that keeps nature in balance. Without him, every single thing that has the shape of a spiral—from seashells to galaxies to the inside of your ear—will cease to exist. Flor wonders if Dr. Pi has lost his mind, but then two tall blond strangers from another planet show up, hoping to steal Dr. Pi’s fire for themselves. The adventure of a lifetime has begun. As she travels in time and travels in space, Flor learns that only she has the magic to help Dr. Pi protect the fire, save the spiral, and keep the world spinning just as it should.

Genres: Fantasy, Fiction, Childrens

193 pages, Hardcover

First published July 26, 2011

Reviews

[Flannery · Rating 3 out of 5]

Before you have kids, you can daydream about how awesome your potential kids could be. I don’t have any kids so I can confidently tell you that my future kids will be the baddest badasses that ever were…that is, until I actually have them and they spend their time being obsessed with Justin Bieber’s successor or watching (upchuck) Two and a Half Men or something equally disgusting. I’ll name them all Flannery like George Foreman named all his kids George regardless of whether they are boys or girls and I will make sure they can identify Paul Simon’s entire catalog (a masterpiece) within the first 15 seconds of hearing it. What? That’s weird? Obviously this is why I’m single—I don’t think there are a lot of guys out there that want to start a mutant race of Paul Simon fanatics. I have a point here (or do I?) and that is that math is important. Why shouldn’t that be where my nonsensical ramblings are leading? I wish more kids were into math. I was so pumped to read this book before I started because it sounded like a Douglas Adams-type whackadoo adventure that taught kids about the importance of math. I guess it sort of still was…it just came off as a little lackluster.

Flor Bernoulli lives in New York City with her single mother. Her neighborhood has a few oddballs including Mrs. Plump, who was once plump but is no longer and who runs a restaurant that serves only tea and toast to devoted ladies intent on weight loss, and Dr. Pi, who wows oodles of customers with his so-called Sky High Pies made from his secret recipe. One day, while visiting the pie shop, Dr. Pi shows Flor a nautilus shell in which a person can peer around the curve of time and see images from the future. In it, Dr. Pi sees two men eating dinner at Flor’s house and Flor meets a girl her age. (Who says she will see Flor again but who never shows up again in the story. Turns out there is a sequel—who knew? Not me until I looked it up.) Dr. Pi also tells her he is the guardian of the secret spiral, to which the Bernoulli family has a special connection. After Dr. Pi thinks someone is after him and the spiral, he gives Flor a special hat that aids her in her travels and several people join her on a journey all over the place. Seriously, all over the place.

The story was interesting but the writing lacked fluidity and it just felt choppily put together. I know children’s and middle grade books cannot be filled with descriptive prose but for heaven’s sake, don’t take it ALL out. This was just action, action, action, and no explanation of why things were the way they were or how anything was happening. Take Madeleine L’Engle for instance—she masterfully told a tale of time and dimensional travel and explained everything well, whilst still describing everything in a way that I still remember over a decade after reading it. Here, I came away with an image of the protagonist wearing funny yet stylish outfits and vague images of the supporting cast. I also thought that a sense of fun was outweighing the importance of actually dealing with serious issues when they arose—namely meeting an absentee father (which was glossed over in a few pages) and allowing strangers into your house, telling them everything about everything, going off with them, and leaving your mom behind with no word of where you are going. I guess I forgave the kids in From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler for disappearing with no word to their parents…only I think they notified their parents they were okay, didn’t they?

I still think this book is somewhere around 2.5 stars for me. Gillian Neimark weaves an interesting story with underlying mathematical concepts that will subversively teach children about the importance of math in the world around us. I learned some fun facts about spirals in nature! (which I’m not going to spoiler—go read the encyclopedia! Or Wikipedia!) Also, I learned who the heck Bernoulli was, after awkwardly asking my sister if she “knew anything about math.”(She informed that her chemical engineering degree, her MD, and her PhD probably qualified her as “knowing something about math.” Jerk.) Incidentally, we were having breakfast in an oldey-timey reproduction town in Washington and if you are still reading this review, you probably read my other ones and know how much I loooove reproduction towns and reenactors. (Sadly, there were no reenactors in this Wild West-type deal) so I was already in a happy mood. I was happy to read this story but I’m also fairly confident that my memories of it will fade rather quickly.

Thanks to S & S Galley Grab for teaching me a thing or two about math! And making me want some pie!

[Michael Hutchison · Rating 5 out of 5]

#

*

As an internationally published author who writes at the intersection of science and spirituality, I can say that The Secret Spiral by Gillian Neimark is truly imaginative and entertaining. Its protagonist, Flor Bernoulli, lives in Brooklyn, next to the Sky-High Pie Shop, whose owner and baker Dr. Pi bakes the most fantastic pies imaginable. One day while Flor is picking out her weekly pie, Dr. Pi tells her she had better buy two pies. Why? Because he has peeked around the curve of time and found she’s going to have two guests. And here they come, crashing into their world, Mr. Bit and Mr. It – odd brothers from another dimension. All the commotion brings Mrs. Plump, who operates Mrs. Plump’s Tea and Toast Shop next door.

Soon everyone has climbed in to Dr. Pi’s magical expanding hat and are traveling through space. When Flor asks Dr. Pi how he can look into the future around the curve of time, he explains to her that he is in charge of The Spiral, which is unique because "It gets bigger and bigger without changing its shape at all. Do you know anything else that can do that?" He reveals to Flor that she too has a very special relationship to The Spiral. The wise Dr. Pi translates and explains "that we are all like the Spiral. Though we change and grow and learn through life, something deep in us remains the same. Just like the Spiral, which gets bigger and bigger, but never changes its proportions. And so, we too are always changed, and ever the same." This is truly a life transforming message, and I applaud the author for making it so visible and understandable to young readers. The narrative is clever and full of constant surprises and adventures. It's an exciting book to read and I recommend it highly.

Though the book is full of the love of math it contains no actual mathematics. However by introducing young readers to important and significant ideas it can only make them more eager to learn the actual use and application of these terms when it comes time for them to learn mathematics in school.

[Katie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think once I finally realized that this book was for kids, it made more sense to me. I thought it was very cute. The chapter titles I think gave a little too much away, but for the most part it was a good read for kids. I will definitely have my nieces and nephews read it :o)

[Aimee McGill · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very good read... fun for the family... I have a son and we read it together he liked it... I had to explain a few parts but hes only 10 and enjoyed it.

[Carolina Colleene · Rating 2 out of 5]

Language - G, Sexual Content - G; Violence - G
Flor has a normal life without her dad. She lives with her mom and goes to school, she dreads math class and loves pie. But this particular Wednesday changes her boring life. Now Flor can see around the curve of time and understand math! Unfortunately, time is not on her side and she must sort all this new information out before her new friend is gone forever.
It was a cute book, but it didn't make much sense. It went too quickly from place to place and some events didn't add up in the end. However, it is a cliffhanger and I suspect everything will come together in the next one, but I won't be reading the sequel.
Reviewed for https://kissthebook.blogspot.com/

[Sara · Rating 2 out of 5]

Math and magic. Not that great.

[Jennifer · Rating 3 out of 5]

Kid story

[Sandy · Rating 2 out of 5]

Too much fantasy for me now.

[Cori Cooper · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such great fun! I'm a sucker for baking and magic, this threw in a little math but I was cool with it! Really fun read!

[Kaity · Rating 1 out of 5]

Review originally posted on Bitten Books and given 1½ stars.

Flor is having an exceptionally odd day. While buying a pie for her mother like she does every day, Dr. Pi tells her to get two since she will be having guests at dinner. He also scolds her for not paying attention during math earlier that day. But how could Dr. Pi know what would happen in the future or what she was doing in school while he was making his fantastic pies? Flor soon becomes immersed in a whole new world of magic when Dr. Pi confides that someone is desperate to steal his formula and needs a favor only she can fulfill.

I don't enjoy writing an unfavorable review for The Secret Spiral. I wanted to enjoy it so much but the book and I just never meshed. Part of the problem, I believe, is that I am older than the target audience (elementary school kids). The rhyming and word play is probably something that will keep kids entertained and interested but all it did was grate on my nerves. There was so much of it that at times I was confused and lost. The storyline was cute but I don't think it will appeal to a very broad age group. I think even middle-grade children will find it to not be their thing.

I love it when media gets kids excited about learning or other things they should be doing. For example Michelle Obama's Let's Move campaign is brilliant, love it and love her. The Secret Spiral shanghaied me with math. I will admit that it was pathetic of me not to pick up on it when reading the summery what with names like Dr. Pi and Flor Bernoulli but kids aren't going to pick that up either. In a time when reading and literacy are struggling movements, I found it difficult to read a book also pushing math. Math, that I have to say, I never learned in school.

So at this point in the book I was a little frustrated but still enjoying the magic and some silliness. And then we met Flor's father. I absolutely had to force myself to continue reading after this point, which was difficult because I didn't connect with any of the characters so nothing that happened to them was something I cared about. Anyway, I did however loathe the father who couldn't be bothered to be a part of any of his daughter's life simply because he missed France and never contacted her even once because he assumed she never thought of him. Is he a complete idiot?! Then Flor is forced to witness his now perfect life. I honestly wanted a meteor to take out all of them and couldn't understand how Flor was accepting it. Maybe it was an overreaction on my part but absentee 'parenting' is a huge pet peeve of mine and I felt the characters were saying it was okay.

Oh, the ending is a ginormous cliffhanger too.

[Danielle · Rating 4 out of 5]

Flor sticks out like a sore thumb in the midst of average everyday rectangle-liking ten year olds and even most adults as well. It's only her beloved Dr. Pi, the owner of Sky High Pies that can see the beauty in her flamboyant style sense and love her even more so because of it. It's Dr. Pi though that may be holding a secret to not only her past, but one that could alter the existence of everyone on the earth if it's discovered. When suddenly Dr. Pi goes missing Flor has but only one choice, save him and protect his secret, the spiral.

So, if you're completely confused by the introduction don't worry, it goes perfectly with the story. That being said, I thought The Secret Spiral by Gillian Neimark was a fantastically written journey filled with magic and mystery that reminded me much of Roald Dahl & Lewis Carroll stories. In the beginning of the story Flor seemed just like any other tween girl with a flare for her own sense of fashion, but as the story continued it turned out she was a bit more like James from James and the Giant Peach or even Alice having fallen down the rabbit hole. What her story made for was a magical adventure young readers will absolutely love.

Incorporated into this whacky tale are a few subtle mentions of mathematics that will possibly even have readers thinking about the universe as well. This is mentioned through the use of shapes and numbers, specifically spirals and often rectangles. In addition to that there are also two characters who are made up entirely of numbers, adding to the magical improbability of the story but making it a fun way of incorporating a small bit of learning along the way.

The Secret Spiral by Gillian Neimark was one of those reads that leaves you feeling a bit like you've fallen down the rabbit hole. It was magical and light mixed with a bit of mathematical education in the form of a spiral. Flor's life growing up with a single mother, abandoned by her father, is a story that many tween readers will most likely relate to on some level and will find comfort in her discoveries & self-confidence. A delightful journey through the magic of the spiral, one that tween readers will love and devour quickly.

Originally reviewed and copyrighted at my site There's A Book.

[Lisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

“The Secret Spiral” is a whimsical, creative and quirky story about an eventful day in the life of Flor Bernoulli, a 10-year-old from Brooklyn Heights, NY.

Flor starts out the story seeming to care about little besides piecing together outrageous outfits to amuse herself and her friends:

“Everybody was definitely looking at her new pink sandals, which contrasted marvelously with her purple argyle knee-high socks, which were way too big and held up with green ribbons. It all clashed perfectly. That girl has fantastic sandals, Flor imagined the taxi driver on the corner saying. Her best friend Helen would see Flor’s new sandals, say that only a fashion dunce would wear anything so pink, along with knee-highs so obviously donated from somebody’s grandmother, and then ask if she could borrow them both.”

On this day though, Flor’s life gets wackier by the minute. Things start to change during a visit to the neighborhood pie shop, run by the kindly Dr. Pi. As usual, the pies smell scrumptious, but Dr. Pi is uncharacteristically preoccupied. He confides to Flor that some of his enemies have caught up with him and entrusts her with some of his magical possessions -- including a seashell that allows people to see around the “curve of time” into the future, a wheel that can make time slow down, and a hat that can serve as a spaceship.

Dr. Pi insists to Flor that she bring home two pies for supper, informing her that she and her mother will be having company. And indeed they do, when two brothers from another planet -- Mr. Bit and Mr. It -- crash through the stained-glass skylight. Joined by the neighbor lady (Mrs. Plump, proprietress of The Tea and Toast Shop), Flor and her guests end up traveling through space and time, to have breakfast in Paris and even raise a man from the dead.

“The future doesn’t always match up with our wishes,” Dr. Pi advises Flor at one point. “Sometimes the future knows where we’re going even when we have plans to go somewhere else.” Fortunately, Flor is mostly a go-with-the-flow type of girl, and she sails through the adventures with aplomb.

In terms of its genre and appeal, “The Secret Spiral” is close to “James and the Giant Peach”: a little bit of science, a whole lot of imagination and a good bit of style. All in all, it’s an enjoyable book.

[Tovah · Rating 4 out of 5]

The SECRET SPRIAL
For ten year old Flor Bernoulli, ordinary life in Brooklyn, New York suddenly is anything but boring. Upon walking into the Sky High Pie shop, which is owned by the charming and mysterious Dr. Pi, her life is suddenly catapulted into a new dimension of time and space.
Upon learning that Dr. Pi is actually an ancient wizard in charge of a cosmic fire they embark on a mystical adventure to preserve and protect the Secret Spiral. Flor encounters a cast of whimsical characters who help her to fulfill her own destiny. Together they learn much more than just the secret of the Spiral, but lessons of selfless love and sacrifice.

The spiral shape is found in seashell, staircases, pine cones and even our ear. Personally, as a former teacher, I am thrilled to see how Gillian Neimark not only transports us to a magical world, but keeps us grounded by the introduction of deep concepts, geography, languages, and most importantly unlocks the secret of balance in the world by dying to “self”, so that others may live.
I can’t wait to read this book out loud to my twin granddaughters who will walk away not just with a thrilling mystical adventure, but lessons that promote personal growth in daily living...

[Gail · Rating 3 out of 5]

When I first started reading the book, I was caught by the fact that the little girl was in class and was having a hard time concentrating on her math lesson because she could smell some pies from the nearby bakery. It captured my interest. The little girl, Flor, goes to the bakery every Wednesday to get the most delicious pies. When she gets there, the owner is acting kind of weird. He seems to know things even if he wasn't there and tells her she is going to have visitors for dinner. Flor does indeed have visitors and they want to visit Dr. Pi. Flor gets involved because Dr. Pi tells her she is involved through her Bernoulli heritage. Flor, the lady who owns the tea and toast shop and one of the visitors go on a trip in a magical hat where Flor finally meets her father and things work out in the end until the last few pages which hints at a terrible disaster that is coming. I felt like the connection to spirals, and math was a little too contrived. It is almost like the author wanted to write something about the math angle so she could introduce spirals in the classroom along with perhaps a science lesson on Bernoulli. The story was good, but a little too set on making it informational inside a fictional story which made it clumsy.

[Teela · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Secret Spiral written by Gillian Neimark and reviewed by Laney Beth. (I asked her if she would like to read it and write a review)

The Secret Spiral is about a girl named Flor Bernoulli who is faced with the task of saving her friend Mr. It from death, while keeping the fire that feeds the spiral and keep it alive and turning. With help from her friends, Dr. Pi, Ms. Plump, and Mr. Bit, they go all over the world (in Dr. Pi's hat) and save both Mr. It and Mr. Bit from death. They also find the true threat to the spiral, which is Square Man. This miraculous adventure is perfect for all ages!

List of Characters:

Flor Bernoulli
Dr. Pi
Ms. Plump
Mr. It
Ms. Bernoulli
Jacques Bernoulli
Aimee Bernoulli
Jeanne Bernoulli
This is the 2nd review written by my 9 yr old grandaughter and I'm extremely proud of her and her love of reading.

[Harley Bennett · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ten-year-old Flor is on the adventure of a lifetime as she searches for a way to save Mr. It and to find her father. The characters are all quirky, but that is okay since the book is for nine and ten-year-olds. The meeting with her father was disappointing. It should have been more emotional either in a positive way or in a negative way. Instead it seemed rather bland.
The 'cliff hanger' at the end should have been omitted. I hate when authors include the beginning of the next book in the one I'm reading. It's like they feel like they have to con me into reading the sequel.
I do not have a problem with indicating to the reader that a sequel is a real possibility, but that should be done without actually starting the next story. The beginning of story two belongs in book two not book one.

[Pat · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved this book. I identified with the main character from the first page. I was able to suspend belief without any effort and it reminded me of the books I liked as a book loving, fantasizing kid. Plus I had an awakened sense of wonder about math and science. Surprise ending made me think.

[Julest · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wonderful magical adventure for pre teens.Ms. Neimark creates a lewis Caroll type world where a young girl from Brooklyn finds her self in an adventure through Time and Space. The Secret Spiral teaches about the mystery of nature while entertaining. Through Imaginative characters. lots of pies, and even a trip to Paris in a hat, The Secret Spiral is both imaginative , fun and memorable

[Shaylene · Rating 3 out of 5]

an interesting and fast read for sure! It did get a little confusing at first because the story did move at such a fast clip but once you get the rhythm of the book it does read a little smoother. I think the best part of the book was the ending only because it really sets up the story for a sequel!

[Tomcat · Rating 4 out of 5]

Our family enjoyed reading an advance copy of this book, sent to a neighbor. Our eleven year old granddaughter is now interested in spirals, and has asked for posterboard and drawing tools to make her own. The math goes down easy, and the characters are fun.

[Meg · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great book about a young girl who has the gift of the spiral to take care of. She needs to find the spiral to help her see-through friend for planet dog save his brother. Will she keep the task at hand or get sidetracked by finding her dad in Paris. Find out in The Secret Spiral.

[Hayden Casey · Rating 3 out of 5]

What a cute children's book! Lots of high-fantasy elements, including the main premise. Definitely for younger readers.

[Penny · Rating 4 out of 5]

Super unique, a book I would definitely read again!