The Secret Message

Billie B Brown #8

by Sally Rippin

Meet Billie B. Brown, brave, brilliant, bold, and bound to become your best friend! Brand-new readers will readily relate to this series of stand-alone, everyday adventures. Filled with true-to-life situations, warm family relationships, humorous illustrations and positive problem-solving, they're taking the early reader scene by storm! Billie finds a tiny bottle at the beach. Billie shows her new friend and insists The Secret Message is from a pirate! But then Billie has a little mishap...

Genres: Childrens, Chapter Books

48 pages, Paperback

First published January 4, 2011

About the author

Sally Rippin was born in Darwin, but grew up mainly in South-East Asia. As a young adult she lived in China for three years, studying traditional Chinese painting. Sally has over seventy books published, many of them award-winning, including two novels for young adults. Her most recent work includes the highly acclaimed children’s novel Angel Creek and the popular Billie B Brown books, which became the highest selling series for 6-8 year olds in Australia within the first year of their release. Sally is Australia’s highest selling female author and her Billie B Brown books have sold more than 4.5 million copies in 14 languages.
​
Sally is a popular presenter in schools and at literary festivals both in Australia and overseas and has a regular program on 3RRR interviewing children’s authors and industry professionals. She is a passionate ambassador for the 100 Story Building creative writing centre for marginalized youth and has mentored many emerging writers and illustrators. Recently, she and her partner co-founded Story Peddlers, a hand-made performance tent that packs away into a custom-built bike, with the aim of bringing back the art of the roving storyteller.

Reviews

[Katt Hansen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Billie B is at the beach, and is faced with the complicated task of building a sandcastle that's totally awesome. It would be easier with help, but it's hard to make friends - and to keep them when things go wrong.

Cute story, well told. This is a situation that every child can identify with. As usual Billie B. sorts out the best way to deal with the situation. :)

[atty · Rating 3 out of 5]

OMG I CAN'T BELIEVE THAT THERE WASN'T A MESSAGE IN THE BOTTLE

[Kara · Rating 4 out of 5]

Day #4 of reading to my indoor Guinea pigs. This book was the superest-dooperest book I've finished today.

[Sonya Bright]

A fun Billie book with a change of scenery. However, Billie's best friend Jack doesn't really factor into this one, which might disappoint some fans.

What I really like about this series is that the author never stereotypes. Every time there's a character who could be set up as the "mean" one or the clichéd perfect kid, there's a twist. There's a lot of good messaging here without it being too obvious.

This was very much the case in The Secret Message. I liked the way the confusion with Billie's brand new friends at the beach was resolved.

With the beach holiday and "message in a bottle" themes, I can see this one as an exciting book for newly independent readers.

[Barbara · Rating 2 out of 5]

When Billie B. Brown and her parents head to the beach for a vacation, Billie finds a tiny bottle and makes a couple of new friends. After making up a story about the bottle's origin and helping her new friends build a sand castle, Billie accidentally destroys the castle and breaks the bottle. She's sure she has also destroyed her friendship with Harriet and Charlotte, but in true BBB fashion, she comes up with a possible solution. The book contains a good message but resolves things pretty easily. Still, this protagonist is a good example for young readers since she tries to resolve her own problems.

[Andy Hickman · Rating 3 out of 5]

7-Sally Rippin, “Billie B Brown: The Secret Message” (​​Prahran, Victoria, Aust: Hardie Grant Egmont, 2011).
“Billie's dad says, 'Would you like extra sand in your witch?'” (p7)
Very good 'beach' story about friendships, honesty and forgiveness.

The 'Billie B Brown' series by Australian author Sally Rippin is a wonderful set of books helping young kids acknowledge and deal with their range of emotions that arise from various childhood predicaments. These books reinforce the positive outcome of good decision making.

[Louise · Rating 2 out of 5]

A glimpse into the best selling Billie B Brown series- hugely popular with young Aussie girls. A simple story, Billie B Brown goes to the beach, finds a simple mystery and a new friend, all told in big text with lots of pictures, suitable for emerging readers.

http://astrongbeliefinwicker.blogspot...

[Sweetsweet · Rating 1 out of 5]

I did not like it.

[Megan · Rating 3 out of 5]

I gave it three stars because it was okay. I liked when Billie gave the bottle to her friends and said that the bottle was from a pirate.