Sixth Grade Secrets

by Louis Sachar

From the Newbery-award winning author of Holes

When Laura Sibbie starts a secret club at school, makes the other members them give her something totally embarrassing as "insurance," to make sure they don't tell anyone else about the club. She promises to keep the insurance secret, unless someone blabs. Gabriel, who never tells on anybody, would be a perfect member of Pig City. He wants to join, too. But when Laura asks him, something goes terribly wrong. Now there are two secret clubs in Mr. Doyle's class, and guess who's the head of the new one-Gabriel! Each club is determined to topple the other, and nobody's secrets are safe.

Genres: Middle Grade, Childrens, Fiction, Young Adult, Realistic Fiction, School, Humor

208 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published January 1, 1987

About the author

Louis Sachar (pronounced Sacker), born March 20, 1954, is an American author of children's books.

Louis was born in East Meadow, New York, in 1954. When he was nine, he moved to Tustin, California. He went to college at the University of California at Berkeley and graduated in 1976, as an economics major. The next year, he wrote his first book, Sideways Stories from Wayside School .

He was working at a sweater warehouse during the day and wrote at night. Almost a year later, he was fired from the job. He decided to go to law school. He attended Hastings College of the Law in San Francisco.

His first book was published while he was in law school. He graduated in 1980. For the next eight years he worked part-time as a lawyer and continued to try to write children's books. Then his books started selling well enough so that he was able to quit practicing law. His wife's name is Carla. When he first met her, she was a counselor at an elementary school. She was the inspiration behind the counselor in There's a Boy in the Girls' Bathroom . He was married in 1985. Hisdaughter, Sherre, was born in 1987.

Reviews

[Paula · Rating 5 out of 5]

In "Sixth Grade Secrets" it all started with a hat. Laura bought a hat in a yard sale and liked it because it said,"Pig City". She and her friends decide to make their own club and want to name it Pig City because of the hat. Then Gabriel, a boy, knows a little bit about Pig City and wants to be in the club. So, he writes Laura a letter saying that he knows about Pig City and that he won't tell anyone. Gabriel writes the letter so that Laura would let him join her club. For insurance in Laura's club, everyone who wants to join, has to tell something embarrasing. So if anyone says anything about Pig City, she will show them their insurance.
So then, she asked him to join Pig City, and his insurance is to kiss Laura. So then, Laura tells him that she would have never done it if his note hadn't said to. But Gabriel says that he never wrote that, because Sheila changed it and nobody knows it.They both get mad because Laura says that she had never told a lie and Gabriel says that she had just right now in the note. Gabriel starts his own club and names it Monkey Town. So his club wants to get revenge on Pig City and they get Pig City's insurance and they show everyone. After Laura collects all of the insurance, everyone fogives Laurra and Gabriel says that he is sorry for what he did.
What I liked about this book is that it is about a group of kids who have their own clubs and fight with each other about things. I also liked it because in Pig City everyone has insurance and their insurance is something that is embarrasing to them. I would recommend this book to people who like reading books on kids who have clubs and who like to read realistic fiction books.

[Sara · Rating 3 out of 5]

I remember reading this book as a kid, and all I remembered was the bit about the underpants and the edited note. I picked it up at a used bookstore today and finished it in one afternoon.

For a book about secret clubs and petty teenagers and mean-spirited pranks, this wasn't bad. Actually, it was pretty good. I liked that Laura was a brat of a protag who did mean things but wasn't entirely unlikeable and you actually felt sorry for her when she got hurt and screwed over. I was sorry she didn't get to have her revenge on Sheila and Howard, but I was glad to see Gabriel put them in their place and get away with it due to the fact that them scalping Laura was infinitely worse. (Seriously, I read that part over at least five times, so satisfying.)

Sheila was definitely the most annoying character in the book. At least the other Monkey Town members had sympathetic qualities, but Sheila was just a jealous whiny bitch. I liked the accuracy in that some people are just dicks and assholes, but I still hated Sheila.

And of course it's only the heroine who has to learn a lesson in the end, but at least her friends and classmates are implied to have learned something as well since they made up with her offscreen and helped her with the dictionary assignments. And at least Sheila and Howard got suspended, and probably screamed at by their parents for what they did.

So overall, I actually liked this book. I was a little wary of it due to having a kneejerk hate for petty middle school bullshit (having been on both sides of that) but this one was well-handled.

[Amy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Apparently this book is currently out of print. I am not sure why. It's a great book that my son just loved. It's all about a secret club started by a girl who is a born leader. Things spiral out of control and by the end of the book, you are on the edge of your seat.

Not recommended for kids much younger than fifth grade. It's not a kiddy book, more of a middle school book.

My only criticism is that in real life a good teacher would have stepped in much earlier and figured out what was going on. Mr. Doyle is supposed to be a good teacher....but I guess if there was adult interference (one of the no-no's of children lit!) then this would not have been nearly as interesting.

[Jenna Jakubowski · Rating 5 out of 5]

The book was super good that I just can't explain how great it is!

[Tina · Rating 5 out of 5]

I lost count how many times I had read this book. The cover was so worn, it was falling off. I forced my younger sister to learn the Pig City "salute". Good times!

[Kats · Rating 4 out of 5]

First rule of Fight Club is "You do not talk about Fight Club!". Pig City has exactly the same set of rules except they have a mean "insurance policy" to be able to enforce these rules......

For a six hour drive from Zurich, Switzerland, to Tuscany (Italy), we picked this audio book in the hope that it would appeal to the 9- and 12-year-old as well as to the adults in the car. It did! We all enjoyed the story as well as the narration, and I look forward to reading more Louis Sachar. My 12-year-old recommends "Holes".

[Tracey · Rating 4 out of 5]

One tends to forget how really mean kids could really be to one another. What started out as a secret club, ended up escalating with other people getting hurt in the process. One thing about Laura - she never lied and stood up when someone else was going to get the blame for something she did. In the end - truth and honesty won the day. Just by-the-by; the fictional character Mr Doyle (homeroom teacher) is by far the coolest fictional character in Pig City. Imagine if all teachers had an amazing sense of humour like he does.

[Khalil McMorris · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is called sixth grade secrets. It is about a girl named Laura Sibbie who created a secret club called pig city. Everyone who joins the club has to give Laura something embarrassing so if they say anything about the club Laura would tell the school the the embarrassing thing. It starts to fall apart when another person creates their own club. I would really recommend this book to people who enjoy drama.

[Wendy Bamber · Rating 3 out of 5]

Middle school fast paced friendship drama, would go down well with the Raina Telgemeier readers in my school I think. Dangerous idea for kids to pretty much against their will give Laura something they wouldn’t want to be shared with the rest of the class in order to keep their position and the club a secret. Laura is a confident individual who thinks she can put one over anyone else and control the group, until Gabriel takes a stand and starts an opposing club. Good fun.

[Naomi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Even though this book is about sixth graders I would say that this book would be good from grade 5-7 because none of the information is really just for a sixth grader I think that it would be good for fifth graders so they can know what may happen in the years that approach. And I also think that it would be good for a seventh grader because even though it is meant for a grade younger it still has information that won’t be too easy for them to understand.

[Kathryn · Rating 1 out of 5]

i read this book when i was in elementary school and i think it traumatized me. i was always afraid that someone would attack me and cut off my hair and it's still a mild worry even as an adult. the children in this book are AWFUL! the hair cutting part is HORRIBLE!! 0 out of 10 do not recommend.

[Nicole · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great writing with a good story, quick to read and age appropriate. Lost one star only because it’s just not as intricate as Holes, which is a masterpiece.
Very true to the nature of children/pre teens, and delicately written.

[Florence · Rating 4 out of 5]

sometimes you need to read your childhood favourite book at 2am on a sad wednesday….i loved this so much when i was 9 because i had a pig club BEFORE reading this book. somehow both nostalgic and aspirational

ps realising i gave this book the same star rating as the simone de beauvoir, LOL.

[Brittnee Schramer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great audiobook for a roadtrip. Perfect for my tween
girls. Wouldn’t want to read it with younger kids.

[Michelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well when Laura goes to a yard sell with her friends she finds a hat called pig city. So then she wore everyday to school. Everyone got used to it. Then she and her friends want to start a club called pig city because of her hat. They made them give insurance that is embarrassing and if they tell anyone about pig city it will be shown to everyoneSo then a kid named Gabriel gave a note to her that said that he knew about pig city but it is only a little that he knows. So then A girl named Sheila a girl who sits in back of Gabriel changed the note And said " I know all about pig city. If you don't kiss me I will tell the whole school. You have very ugly hair." Then she was mad so she asked Gabriel if he can come to her house. He didn't go since he was grounded. Then next week on a Monday he went to her house. Laura showed him the note. Gabriel said that she was lying. Laura never told a lie but since Sheila changed the note that happened. So they began yelling at each other. Laura kicked Gabriel out of her house. So then Gabriel was still mad then he started a new club called monkey town.They started writing on the board like Laura did. She was angry. Then one day Laura goes to Gabriel's house to return his shirt then Laura and the members of pig city attack! They put mustard on him everywhere! So then he was angry and he got the treasures of pig city which is the insurance and showed it to everyone. That was his revenge! So none of the members of pig city talked to Laura. They were all mad at her. Then when Laura was at this brick wAll Sheila and a boy named Howard cut of her hair! She got a bump. So then she saw a paper that said PIGS ARE BALD. It was singed from Gabriel since Howard ask Gabriel for his autograph. Laura was mad! She thought it was Gabriel but it was Sheila. The next day Gabriel goes to Laura's house and gave her flowers. He told her the big truth. They were friends again. Also the members started hanging out with Laura again. This was the end

[Lucie Miller · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'd been looking for this book for ages. I'd read it as a kid in the late 80s but couldn't remember the name of it. After googling the main theme the titles "Sixth Grade Secrets" and "Pig City" came up. (It was re-released later on with the title "Pig City"). I ordered it off Amazon a week ago and it came today.

I've just spent an hour reading it. I remember that the main character, Laura, had really long hair and named her secret club after the slogan on her baseball cap, Pig City.

To make sure none of the club members talk about the club she makes them give her something embarrassing as "insurance" (underpants, a naked baby photo, love letters, etc...) The insurances are kept secret until someone tells about the club and then a war breaks out between Pig City and their rival secret club, Monkey Town.

It ends after the secrets are revealed and Laura being humbled by a prank where her hair is cut off.

As a 10 year old I felt I related to Laura as I was always starting my own secret clubs and also had super long hair. I always liked that she was flawed but still likeable.

Not as good as I remembered it but still surprisingly good for a dated junior fiction.

A witty and fun read.

[Claire · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this last night when I couldn't sleep. It has always been a childhood favourite of mine but after re-reading it I have downgraded it to 3 stars (it was 4 before). When I read this as a child (probably around 6th grade), I loved the whole club thing and if I remember correctly, I tried to start my own club (no insurance required) but it was a spectacular failure. Reading now though, I can't believe how horrible these girls are! It is still quite funny and I always loved the idea of the dictionary pages punishment but I just can't get over these kids. Perhaps my adult mind is getting in the way of the innocence of reading a book from my childhood or maybe I was just more tired than I thought last night and should have just gone to bed.

I will always have fond memories of this book. I don't even have my orginial copy (it had the cover with the 2 girls and 2 boys) anymore, it had been read so many times it literally fell apart but by that time Sixth Grade Secrets was no longer available - you could only buy Pig City. I was really disappointed about this. So I have a copy of Pig City and hopefully one day, I can get an old copy of Sixth Grade Secrets back on my shelf.

[ashes ➷]

This book always made me uncomfortable as a child, and in rereading it I wanted to find out why. So, honestly, a baffling reason to be here to begin with.

The conclusion I’ve come to is that this is a pretty cisgender book. You’ve got the class split up into girls who like boys and boys who like girls, and the way they join the club and speak to each other and embarrass each other all reflect relatively uncritically portrayed issues in society. It’s not that the book is unrealistically sexist—and in fact I just wouldn’t go as far as to say it’s sexist to begin with—but that it was hard to face down a book where a girl’s greatest asset is her long hair and the most embarrassing thing is to have a love note sent to a boy.

With that said—I reread it! I enjoyed it, as odd as it is! And I’ll likely read it again, or at least I want to have it around, so I’m keeping it on my shelf. Would recommend if you’re a Sachar completionist, but I don’t think there’s much other reason to read this vs. all the other books in the world.

[Suzanne Paschke · Rating 1 out of 5]

Really quite disappointing. Sure, these are children, but their antics were really quite horrible at times. Physically attacking one another, cutting off hair, note passing, holding threats over one another's heads - sure it was juvenile and they are children, but quite frankly, a lot of it was just mean. It's not something I would want children to consider doing, so it's not something I want them reading about. Therefore as a teacher, it's not a book I would recommend students read nor one I would read to a class. Considering I've read other Sachar novels that I thought were quite brilliant and have read to my class I was really quite disappointed with this offering.

[♥ Aphrodite · Rating 5 out of 5]

OMG, I've been looking for this book! I forgot the title but I knew what the cover looks like...after searching various authors I finally came across Sideways Stories from Wayside School and a light went on...same author. AHA! I found it!

This was absolutely my favorite book of all time in elementary school. This is were my love for writing and reading was sparked. I absolutely thank Louis Sachar for his genius writing. This book I recommend every parent to buy for their fourth firth sixth graders. It's a classic!

[Swankivy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read this as a kid when I was going to be going into sixth grade the next year. I loved it and shared it with my sister. The characters were all multi-layered--amazingly so for a kids' book, too!--and I loved these kids having competing clubs with warring anthems, not to mention the hilarious things they did to collect dirt on each other in exchange for membership. And I related to Laura, the main character, because everyone knew her for her long hair. :)

[Rosanna · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed the Book called Six Grade Secrets by Louis Sachar. He is a real good author. In this book it takes you back as if you were back in six grade. It made me remember all the drama that came with being that age and most of all how we all wanted so badly to fit in with all of our peers. I recommend this book to anyone that wants a good read.

[Claire Hua · Rating 5 out of 5]

Laura is my favorite character in this book. She is smart, and honest. She hasn't cut her hair since she was four. Her parents told her that if she doesn't lie, then she doesn't need to cut her hair. Sheila is my worst favorite character. She is a big jerk and a big fat lier. I enjoyed this book very much, and had a fantastic time reading it.😃

[Jill · Rating 5 out of 5]

***SPOILER ALERT***Humorous rivalry between two classmates! One girl makes a club with her friends and won't allow an annoying friend join! This club involves secrets(hense the name)insurance and dares! MY favorite book of all time!

[Edward (saysmeow) · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really liked this book. This was my favorite book ever since I read it in 5th grade. I always read it when I get bored like in an airplane to China. It never gets boring.

[Teagan · Rating 5 out of 5]

It was really good because the characters were really interesting. I couldn't put it down!

[Kate · Rating 3 out of 5]

When I saw this cover I remembered that girl with her long hair... my hair used to be that long when I was younger...

[Summer · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this book its so cool and funny i diffently recommend it.

[Marian]

This was one of my favorite books when I was in elementary school. So glad I had the chance to re-read it!

[Katherine Tobiya · Rating 2 out of 5]

It was alright, I never read this as a child but I love most of Louis Sachar and his books so thought I'd give this a try. Not at the same level at all as his others, but still not bad.