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The Specialists #4

Native Tongue

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GiGi is back again and on a brandnew mission in the fourth book in this original series Lovable GiGi is pairing up with expert linguist Darren, aka Parrot, on a mission to South America. When a centuries-old vase is found in a cave full of hieroglyphics, it is discovered that this vase was important to at least fifteen different North American and South American Indian tribes. And now all fifteen nations want it back. They are meeting in Rutina, South America, to decide who gets the vase. Enter the Specialists, and Parrot who will go as the official translator. And when no one can decode the ancient cave writings, not even the elders of each nation, GiGi comes to the rescue. Of course there's a hitch. One of the tribal chiefs attending the meeting in Rutina is connected to Parrot's past in a very bad way. The question is, will Parrot be able to face his past and complete the mission, or will the vase and the fate of the Native American nation fall into the wrong hands?

237 pages, Paperback

First published July 31, 2008

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1673 people want to read

About the author

Shannon Greenland

22 books477 followers
Shannon Greenland is the award-winning and best-selling author of Middle Grade, Young Adult, and Adult books. She grew up in Tennessee where she dreaded all things reading and writing. She didn’t even read her first book for enjoyment until she was twenty-five. After that, she was hooked! When she’s not writing, she's usually traveling or hanging out with a rogue armadillo that frequents her backyard.

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5 stars
909 (40%)
4 stars
721 (31%)
3 stars
494 (21%)
2 stars
93 (4%)
1 star
38 (1%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 61 reviews
Profile Image for Karen Syed.
162 reviews170 followers
September 4, 2008
I can't seem to find enough really good adjectives to describe Shannon Greenland's writing. The Specialists Young Adult series has become one of my favorites and that is saying a lot for a 43-year-old woman with no children.

NATIVE TONGUE is a bit of a departure from the series as it has a much more serious tone than the previous books. But it is by far the best. Parrott is a wonderful character with some deeply emotional issues. The premise of family is much stronger in this book than the others and offers us a deeper look into both Parrott and Gigi's personalities.

The fun part is meeting the colorful characters when we head into the jungle. Adventure is a great venue for Greenland as a writer and she pulls off all the various aspects of this book with ease. Each of her books is better than the last.

Don't you dare jump into this series in the middle, start with MODEL SPY, and enjoy every word.

©Karen L. Syed
Profile Image for ☘Misericordia☘ ⚡ϟ⚡⛈⚡☁ ❇️❤❣.
2,532 reviews19.2k followers
September 18, 2020
All the made up stuff is still super-cringy: Q: … Junoesque Jungle … (c)

When do they do the actual jobs, not personal projects, if any?
Q: And suddenly it occurred to me that every “bad guy” I’d run into so far had had a personal connection with me or one of my teammates. (c) Ok, really. That's a million dollar observation.

Decoding of cave drawings this project around, are we? And riding a code-nerd horse, Diablo (nerds united).
Or is it in triplicate.

Chapling, walking into meetings in the middle of people speaking and seamlessly continuing their topics?

David drama also is a bit over the top.

LOL! This is probably my favourite part:
Q:
“Sit. Let’s talk.”...
Conversation wasn’t my strong point, and it certainly wasn’t his. (c) LOL! Why don't they take some geekterpreter? Or, considering one of them already is an interpreter, a geniusterpreter?

Other nifty-thrifties:
Q:
“You know me too well,” I grumbled. “Lip gloss or eteus code. Take your pick.”
 “Let’s go for lip gloss.” (c) Why guys always go for make up, dunno.
Q:
“Tall, hot, smart chick?”
 “That’s what they call you.”
 Nobody had ever called me a tall, hot, smart chick. (c)
Q:
TL had required each of us to wear the flesh-toned tracking device. He kept tabs on us everywhere we went. Even the bathroom. I still cringed at that thought. (c) Yeah, TL's a real busy guy. You know: keeping tabs on his charge's bathroom times. Wow. That mush have done a lot of good.
Q:
Of course I wouldn’t know a kinkajou from a gibbon if one walked right up to me and slapped me in the face. (c) Ah-hah. Right. Why would it bother with those antics?
Q:
I swept a proud smile over everyone in the conference room, then slowly realized from their perplexed looks that, once again, I’d made a complete nerd of myself. 
TL’s lips twitched. “Your science teacher would be proud.”
Everyone chuckled, and I joined in. Joke’s on me. I mean, really, what was the point of getting embarrassed? They expected this stuff from me. (c) Pre-pre-precisely! Now it dawns on her, 4 books in. Better late than never, however!
Q:
I’d never paid such close attention to a person’s physical details. I’d never searched for answers in their eyes and smile. It was incredible how much I could learn about someone by observing them. (c)
Q:
There will be ten different dialects and indigenous languages spoken; you are familiar with six. You have four weeks to learn the remaining four. (c) How nice. 'Would you like a piece of Moon go with that, sir, while I'm at it?' <- too bad Parrot didn't say that.
Q:
Did they really expect me to ride a horse? Hello? Me? Queen of uncoordination? (c) Come on, you've just done a cheerleading crash course (and practice!). Horse riding can't be worse than that!
Q:
Again I began spraying the air with bug repellant. The insects merely flew through the fog as if it gave them a renewed strength. (c) Some repellents do that!
16.6k reviews155 followers
September 1, 2020
An relic has been found and many different tribes claim it belongs to them so they are sent to try to sort it all out. He has a past with one tribe and this may not help their work. Can they decide the vase? Who will get the vase? See how they get on

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
Profile Image for Sophia s.
556 reviews
March 13, 2024
hesitant to rate it because i have no clue how many liberties the author took with native american culture...
but other than that i actually really liked this one. thought the plot was interesting. professor quirk was ok but kinda random. we're all tired of hearing about david but a little cheating love triangle wasn't required i guess. & now they're fighting in the final book so!
Profile Image for nαомι αndιno.
189 reviews59 followers
July 17, 2021
I was really liking this series so far but this book was not it for me. The plot was very meh and there was very little action. The highlight being GiGi having a leach stuck to her butt. I’m really disappointed in this book but I will be reading the next one since it’s the last one.
Profile Image for Sara.
1,614 reviews73 followers
April 26, 2009
3.5 stars. In this installment, GiGi is sent on a mission to recover an artifact that a number of tribes in a fictional country are after because of its supposed mystical powers, and she spends most of her time in a cave in the jungle, trying to decipher hieroglyphics. Standard fare for the series. However, what made this book stand out from the previous ones is that there was (finally!) character growth, with the heroine even realizing how far she's come and matured. I liked that a lot, as too many series feature characters that stay stagnant and simply do not change, no matter what ridiculous situations they go through. Not the case here, which was nice. And although the plot itself was a little predictable, it was fun to read and see how the ending came about. Only complaint: There are now a few loose ends in the series (not the plot of this book, but the series overall) that need to be resolved and I don't know when the next, final book in the series will be released.
Profile Image for Victoria.
185 reviews
September 2, 2015
I loved this book! I'm glad it was Parrot we got to see next -- I didn't think I'd like his backstory as much until it was revealed, which, was pretty serious.

Gigi in this gets kind of a second love interest? I liked him and I usually hate (when I say hate, I mean hate) love triangles but, this isn't really one of those. I think the person who is the second character here does a good job and Greenland as always gets it pretty right when writing about these characters.



I'm glad that Parrot got his peace of mind and is able to be with his family. The cliffhanger on this book is a bit insane because what!?

would reread*
Profile Image for LadyTechie.
784 reviews52 followers
July 19, 2011
I am totally enamored of this series and very sorry that I only have one book left. The wonderful thing is the author made it a free pdf download and I am reading it on my Nook. I was thinking about these stories last night and decided one of the things I like about them is seeing teens that have had extremely hard circumstances, from loss of parents to being homeless, have a chance to still have families and good role models in their lives. These are just great stories that show each of the team members being challenged, growing, and getting a positive end. However, I am quite concerned by the blurb on Fight to the Finish.
Profile Image for cagla tastemur.
591 reviews95 followers
July 17, 2013
SHE HAS A SİSTER?! HOLY SHİT!!!!! AND 15 older than Kelly...HOLY SHİT!!!
85 reviews1 follower
April 5, 2013
I wanted more David! But all in all, a pretty good book! :)
Profile Image for Barbara Hackel.
2,810 reviews46 followers
May 18, 2019
I really enjoy this series, but the 3rd and 4th books don't seem to have the focus the first two had. In Native Tongue, too much of the pre-story about Darren/Parrot before The Specialists is vague. If not for my deep-seated practice of always reading a series in order, I might have been tempted to skip this one. Darren's mom leaves him and he is forced to live with his grandmother. We never really learn what the problem was between him and his grandmother because she is dead in the very beginning of the book. Also as a member of the Specialists, Parrot never seems to be part of the discussions, and he certainly never answers any questions about himself. It is almost a contrived plan of the author to make me not care about him.

In spite of this, Parrot is needed for a special mission in South America in the jungle as a translator for many native leaders who want to claim a rare artifact for their own people. While the jungle is interesting, we really don't learn much about the ecology in the jungle or animals which could have had major impact on the mission. We do learn a smattering about native customs and beliefs, which I have no idea are facts or things created for this book. It does make for interesting reading with some tense moments and a murder.

I want to point out that I enjoyed the book-just not as much as the first two of the series where I felt the story-lines were more complex and more exciting for the reader.
5 reviews
November 30, 2018
The book Native Tongue is by the author Shannon Greenland. The book is the four book in The Specialists series. The series is focused on a girl named Kelly James, who's nickname is GiGi. GiGi is great at hacking and anything else related to computers. In the first book, she was caught trying to hack into the government's main system for a friend, David. She was then recruited by a government spy agency who teaches teens to go undercover. The agency had noticed her special skill with computers and her 191 IQ.
In the four book, GiGi goes undercover as Hannah Flower on a mission to South America. She works with her team's linguist, Parrot who is from the area. After an ancient vase is found, different South American tribes debate over who the vase belongs to. History shows that the vase brought good fortune and was extremely to at least fifteen tribes. The vase has many hieroglyphics on it.
GiGi and Parrot are attending a meeting in the South American jungle to figure out who actually owns the sacred vase. GiGi will be there to decode the hieroglyphics on the vase, while Parrot will be the translator. While there, GiGi encounters many difficulties including eating the native american food. Parrot on the other hand has bigger problem. One of the chiefs at the meeting, is connected to Parrot's past in a negative way. Parrot and GiGi has find out who the vase actually belongs to while making sure Parrot's past doesn't get in the way.
Profile Image for Cindy Mitchell *Kiss the Book*.
6,002 reviews222 followers
January 27, 2018
Greenland, Shannon The Specialists: Native Tongue, 237 p. Speak (Penguin), 2008. Language - PG, Violence - PG, Sexual Content - G.

The Specialists need Gigi's math brain to unravel the hieroglyphics in an ancient cavesite in order to determine which Indian tribe can actually lay claim to a vase with supposed mystical powers. Her cohort on the mission includes Parrot, who has secrets that connect him to one of the tribal chiefs, a chief with a streak of viciousness. Of course the groups lives will be in danger somewhere along the way.

I think the Specialists is a great filler series for kids who like spy novels, but aren't up to Michael Crichton. Its not squeaky clean, but they are riddle filled and action-packed. This is the fourth book in the series.

MS - ADVISABLE. Cindy, Library-Teacher.
https://kissthebook.blogspot.com/2008...
6,028 reviews40 followers
August 22, 2019
Our heroine is off to South American with the teams linguistic specialist in tow, hoping to avert tribal conflicts.

This is the fourth book in a teen spies series featuring a group of smart and tough kids keeping the world safe. Each book works just fine as a standalone story, so feel free to read them in any order.

I am enjoying this series more and more with each book that I read. The plot is fun and easy to read with enough twists and turns to keep things interesting. We meet yet another teen in the program, which provided some more depth to the setting. Overall, a nice addition to the series and I am looking forward to the next one.

Highly recommended.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout for review purposes.
Profile Image for Robyn Baltazar.
190 reviews5 followers
April 2, 2020
I liked the first three books of this series but there's something about this book that was plainly boring. The reason why I liked it was because of Darren/Parrot and his feminist side. Compared to the first three books, this one was a disappointment.

Luckily, I like smart guys so I found myself getting attracted to Randy/Professor Quirk. How I hope that Kelly/GiGi's love interest would change from David to Randy but I guess that is unlikely to happen.

This book disappointed me as it had less action compared to the first three. The plot was not strong. Nevertheless, I am still excited to read the last book of this series. I waited for Bruiser/Molly to finally come into the view!
251 reviews1 follower
August 19, 2019
Once again Shannon Greenland has managed to keep me enthralled to the end. I love reading about Gigi and her band of misfits. Formed from a motley group of teens with troubled backgrounds, the Specialists are enjoyable to read. Of course always clean and appropriate to the age they are aimed at. this time we them going to South America to solve a mystery surrounding an ancient Vase. I recommend these books for anyone teen to oldster like me.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
Profile Image for Pat Eroh.
2,618 reviews32 followers
August 17, 2019
I think each book is getting better and better as we get know the players and what they do. I love this one, possibly because of my Native American background, but this story held my interest even more than prior books in this series. I love the characters and this author is a wonderful writer as she takes me into the story.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
Profile Image for Heather W.
4,066 reviews35 followers
August 20, 2019
Native Tongue is the fourth book in The Specialists series and is my favourite story so far. This time, Gigi is working with expert linguist Darren, aka Parrot, on a mission to South America. We are learning more about the teenage spies' backgrounds in each book which ties them all together. There is a cliffhanger to lead into the final book in this series.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
Profile Image for Maria Sorgie.
50 reviews
September 3, 2018
Loved this next adventure of GIGI and The Specialists! This is such a fun spy series and enjoyable for all ages. Quick easy reads and Shannon Greenland takes you on such a fun ride. I received a free copy from the author through Voracious Readers Only.
61 reviews2 followers
September 1, 2018
Very well written. Keeps your attention while you are waiting on the next surprise. Good read
Profile Image for priya.
445 reviews45 followers
dnf
August 17, 2022
My bad. Hated this and just realized part of that may be bc it’s the 4th not 1st book
64 reviews
January 24, 2023
This one was quite a bit better than book #3. Only 1 more to go and I'm excited to see how it ends!
45 reviews
May 4, 2023
3.75⭐️

THE ENDING WAS QUITE ABRUPT 😱
Profile Image for Ally.
1,346 reviews81 followers
July 7, 2014
Native Tongue is a thriller about espionage and James Bondish things. This time, Greenland focuses on another part of the group. This time, it is Parrot, who is an expert on languages and tongues. He is a bit darker than GiGi, but not as dark as Frankie who witnessed the death of his family (which is tragic, of course). Oh, I should always mention Beaker. She had it pretty easy compared to the boys. And what is up with this? Boys and tragic history? What is going on with this? First, David. Then Frankie. Now Parrot. Oh, I can also add... Oh, wait. I can't. I know next to nothing about Mystic.

Native Tongue is fun to read book. It is a great summer read. I really enjoyed it while spending time at Camp. It kept boredom off my back. That was a good perk. However, I would had really like it if GiGi went into more details about technology and other stuff. Usually, the way I learn things is by reading books. People may claim that reading is useless, but I think it has a hidden secret. You can actually learn while reading. While learning, you can read. Isn't that a fun twist? Yeah, I read something about that play of words (learning and reading).

Okay, GiGi is seriously getting on nerves now. What was she thinking? I never thought that GiGi was the one to cheat, after all she is loyal, trustworthy, great, and the local psychiatrist (but that is not the point of this paragraph). Okay, she didn't really cheat, but kissing another guy while having a boyfriend defines as cheating. So therefore, I'm contradicting myself. Go math! Now, I will stop, but GiGi! She is getting on my nerves!

David sadly rarely is seened.

Quirk is the guy she kissed. Well, that depends on the story you hear from. Quirk thinks he kissed GiGi. GiGi thinks he kissed her. I think they both kissed, because they wanted to. So I guess my reasoning is partially biased and therefore should not be part of the final rating. Shall I say "Go Math!" again?

Now, I really am thinking about conspiracy theories. It is mentioned that GiGi's mother's body has never been found. I can't wait to find out the truth about GiGi's mother's death. Honestly, I hope that she isn't dead, but that is only a dream. Ian Rider was dead by the end of Stormbreaker. How he died in the movie of Stormbreaker is depressing.

Overall, Native Tongue is fun. If you can stand GiGi's whining.

Rating: Four out of Five

-ofpaperandwords.blogspot.com
Profile Image for Chanin Malley.
71 reviews6 followers
January 22, 2014
This book showed a Gigi that had matured one that was still her lovable self but who had grown into someone who didn't need validation.I enjoyed this book though i have to wonder if one of the plots is to pair everyone up with someone every book.It was nice to see a love interest for Gigi and for the kiss to make her realize what is truly important in her life.I really did enjoy this series and though it took me a little longer than the others because the book did kinda of lag in some areas I'm glad i finished and you can be sure that i will be reading the final and last one fight to the finish.For all of those out there reading this please dont read this book before the others they won't flow as nicely.................................................Spoiler Below..................................
I honestly did not see that coming a sister?! I thought for sure the woman that kept being mentioned was her mom but with amenisia or something.I wonder how that is going to factor in the next book and i hope David and Gigi stay David and Gigi
Profile Image for Krista.
610 reviews6 followers
November 4, 2017
I love Parrot. Honestly I wish I could speak and learn languages as quickly as he could. That would be the coolest thing ever. I could go anywhere and know the language and not have to worry and it would be great. Gigi and Parrot's friendship and relationship is so wonderful and supportive of each other. They work well together as a team and there for each other as friends and teammates.
5/5 for nostalgic reasons.
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