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Girls Who Code #3
Lights, Music, and Code!
Maya and her friends from coding club have an exciting new project: they're coding lights and music for the winter dance! But when Maya's old troublemaking friend Maddie moves to town, Maya starts spending a lot of time with her, and less time with her coding friends. Maddie just gets her in a way that her other friends don't.
Will Maya get swayed by Maddie's wayward ways, or will she stay true to her "permanent group" from coding club? And will she come through on her part for the light and music coding project? Maybe coding--like friendship--is about being there for your friends when they need you the most.
Will Maya get swayed by Maddie's wayward ways, or will she stay true to her "permanent group" from coding club? And will she come through on her part for the light and music coding project? Maybe coding--like friendship--is about being there for your friends when they need you the most.
139 pages, Paperback
First published March 13, 2018
42 people are currently reading
175 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews
January 20, 2019
These are really great books. I know that my girls would have loved these. There is just enough coding to peak an interest. They have a great message in each one. They are well written, positive and enjoyable.
I love the diversity of the characters. They are all shapes, colors and personalities. Each book is from a different girls perspective, so you get to see a bit into their personal lives. The family dynamics are all very different as well. They are a great coding team and work well together on their projects. More than that, they are an amazing group of friends who help each other and are always positive. I love the interactions and the lessons learned.
These are so well done and I would highly recommend them for middle school aged children. This would be a great set of books for a teacher to have in their personal class library.
I love the diversity of the characters. They are all shapes, colors and personalities. Each book is from a different girls perspective, so you get to see a bit into their personal lives. The family dynamics are all very different as well. They are a great coding team and work well together on their projects. More than that, they are an amazing group of friends who help each other and are always positive. I love the interactions and the lessons learned.
These are so well done and I would highly recommend them for middle school aged children. This would be a great set of books for a teacher to have in their personal class library.
March 18, 2018
3.5/5 Stars
LIGHTS, MUSIC, CODE! is the third book in the Girls Who Code Series and continues the story of the first two books just from a new point of view. Following a group of middle school girls exploring coding through their Coding Club at school, readers get to experience coding from through the eyes of intelligent young girls. Maya is the narrator of this installment, and she offers a unique view of learning computer science. When Maya’s old best friend moves to her school, the conflict between Nicole, a troublemaker, and Maya’s friends threatens to tear the group apart. Maya and her friends are tasked with designing light displays for the school dance that react to music when played. Not only must they figure out how to code this massive project together, but they must deal with personal struggles, too.
Each book in this series offers something different from the last, whether it be the type of coding discussed or the personality of the narrator. Maya’s voice was unique from the other girls, and she experienced different growth as well. I especially appreciated how much this novel focused on character development and the importance of staying honest with your friend group. The computer science aspects focused on robotics and using code to achieve a variety of goals. The plot successfully builds up the audience’s understanding of robotics from nothing, teaching a significant amount without seeming so.
LIGHTS, MUSIC, CODE! is short and sweet yet succeeds in getting its points across. The innovative approach of teaching computer science through literature is bound to make an incredible impact on the involvement of girls in computing. The novel is heavily driven by supportive dialogue from fantastic role models, and that is, by far, the best part of the book. This group of girls brainstorm, struggle through, and eventually succeed in meeting impressive goals.
All Girls Who Code books are necessary reads for young girls who may or not have ever had exposure to computer science. Combining both an engaging plot and introductory coding topics, LIGHT, MUSIC, CODE! aims to further the mission of the Girls Who Code organization while retaining excellent entertainment value. I highly recommend this entire series to younger middle school girls because I genuinely believe they can make a significant impact in the field and the lives of readers.
LIGHTS, MUSIC, CODE! is the third book in the Girls Who Code Series and continues the story of the first two books just from a new point of view. Following a group of middle school girls exploring coding through their Coding Club at school, readers get to experience coding from through the eyes of intelligent young girls. Maya is the narrator of this installment, and she offers a unique view of learning computer science. When Maya’s old best friend moves to her school, the conflict between Nicole, a troublemaker, and Maya’s friends threatens to tear the group apart. Maya and her friends are tasked with designing light displays for the school dance that react to music when played. Not only must they figure out how to code this massive project together, but they must deal with personal struggles, too.
Each book in this series offers something different from the last, whether it be the type of coding discussed or the personality of the narrator. Maya’s voice was unique from the other girls, and she experienced different growth as well. I especially appreciated how much this novel focused on character development and the importance of staying honest with your friend group. The computer science aspects focused on robotics and using code to achieve a variety of goals. The plot successfully builds up the audience’s understanding of robotics from nothing, teaching a significant amount without seeming so.
LIGHTS, MUSIC, CODE! is short and sweet yet succeeds in getting its points across. The innovative approach of teaching computer science through literature is bound to make an incredible impact on the involvement of girls in computing. The novel is heavily driven by supportive dialogue from fantastic role models, and that is, by far, the best part of the book. This group of girls brainstorm, struggle through, and eventually succeed in meeting impressive goals.
All Girls Who Code books are necessary reads for young girls who may or not have ever had exposure to computer science. Combining both an engaging plot and introductory coding topics, LIGHT, MUSIC, CODE! aims to further the mission of the Girls Who Code organization while retaining excellent entertainment value. I highly recommend this entire series to younger middle school girls because I genuinely believe they can make a significant impact in the field and the lives of readers.
February 3, 2022
Really good, i give credit to Jo Whittemore for making a reader feel like they have a connection with the charecters.
October 8, 2018
I really enjoyed this book even though I know (knew) nothing about coding or much about technology in general. This ARC is the third of a Girls Who Code series, but the reader is quickly brought up to speed on the main characters: Maya, the narrator of this story, and her four best friends, Sophia, Lucy, Lela, and Erin.
Lights, Music, Code! Focuses on creative coding. The middle school Coding Club is tasked with designing a feature for the upcoming school dance, and the five girls are in charge of the project—coding the lights and music. As part of one of the subplots, Maya also utilizes wearable technology to help out a friend. Along the way, their coding strategies are explained to the reader; therefore, the reader also learns a little about coding, which may inspire them to become involved in STEAM activities or clubs in their schools.
The plot of this novel focuses on Nicole Davis (referred to as Maddie in the Goodreads synopsis), a girl Maya met in the summer who convinced her to try shoplifting, something completely out of character for Maya. Maya has vowed to stay away from her, but Nicole has now moved to Maya’s school district and convinces her that she has changed. However, as Maya’s friends and mother observe, Nicole is really trying to separate Maya from her coding friends and activities. As Maya becomes more and more suspicious of her friends, she finally realizes what Nicole is doing and that she has not changed, but she finds a way to help her.
The main characters are diverse: Chinese, Latina, African-American, Pakistani, and White middle school students, and the short novel is appropriately-written for Grade 4-8 readers.
Lights, Music, Code! Focuses on creative coding. The middle school Coding Club is tasked with designing a feature for the upcoming school dance, and the five girls are in charge of the project—coding the lights and music. As part of one of the subplots, Maya also utilizes wearable technology to help out a friend. Along the way, their coding strategies are explained to the reader; therefore, the reader also learns a little about coding, which may inspire them to become involved in STEAM activities or clubs in their schools.
The plot of this novel focuses on Nicole Davis (referred to as Maddie in the Goodreads synopsis), a girl Maya met in the summer who convinced her to try shoplifting, something completely out of character for Maya. Maya has vowed to stay away from her, but Nicole has now moved to Maya’s school district and convinces her that she has changed. However, as Maya’s friends and mother observe, Nicole is really trying to separate Maya from her coding friends and activities. As Maya becomes more and more suspicious of her friends, she finally realizes what Nicole is doing and that she has not changed, but she finds a way to help her.
The main characters are diverse: Chinese, Latina, African-American, Pakistani, and White middle school students, and the short novel is appropriately-written for Grade 4-8 readers.
June 18, 2019
This third book in the Girls Who Code series is told from the point of view of Maya, the fashionista of the group. The girls have earned the opportunity to add some fun coding idea to the winter dance at their school. It takes them a bit to decide on a project that will be both fun and affordable. When Maya's old friend Nicole transfers to their school and begins stirring up trouble, it adds an extra layer of issues for the girls to navigate. Both the coding issues and the friend issues are stepped up in this book, making it more interesting on both counts. I look forward to the next one. Recommended for grades 3 & up. It helps to read the books in order.
April 1, 2018
Lights, Music, Code by Jo Whittemore is the third book in a coding series. This book is about Maya, who is an asian american, that lives with her mom and Stepdad. In this book Maya meets an old friend name Maddie who cause her problems before. Now Maddie has turn up at Maya school. She has told Maya that she has change. But the question now is will Maya stay with her true friends which is the group or will Maddie once again cause her problems.If you want know my final thoughts you can find them at this link:https://melimimi.blogspot.com/2018/04...
April 5, 2019
Maya is excited for the next challenge in her middle school coding club, where she will work together with her three friends to design something cool for the upcoming school dance, but when a bad influencing girl from her recent past makes an appearance, Maya must decide to whom she will be true and where she will invest her time. This school story has a nice amount of coding details tied into the friendship plot, and a main character with a sense of humor and humility. A nice addition to the series and genre.
March 7, 2018
I like how they tie in coding into every day type things. I don't like how a book that seems to be written on a 3rd/4th grade level spends so much time on boys and girl drama. The girls in the book are in 7th grade, but the content and reading level seems to be much lower. Just seems to not gel together.
August 3, 2019
D-R-A-M-A!!! This book was hard to read through. I hard a hard time finishing is because I felt like the focus was on drama more than anything else. I get that these are people and younger ones at that but gods I couldn't careless about this story line. If this had been the first I would not of read through this book nor continued with the story.
August 3, 2019
Another great adventure from the Girls Who Code squad! They remind me a lot about the Baby-Sitters Club books I used to read as a kid, but with a tech twist to it. They aren't only about coding club, but also about friendship and respect.
April 17, 2018
My Rating: 3.5 Stars!
June 10, 2019
IT WAS AWESOME!!!!!!
one of my favorites
😊
one of my favorites
😊
July 22, 2019
Probably the best in the series.
Read
December 5, 2019Great story
Loved it so much
Loved it so much
March 19, 2018
I loved this book! I think part of why I loved it so much is that I'm currently rereading the entire Babysitters Club series, which I loved when I was a kid, and this series feels like an updated version of that.
It's about middle school girls, but written at a lower reading level, so younger girls can read it and think about how cool those older girls seem (this was my experience of reading the BSC, so I imagine it's a similar experience for girls reading this series now). It deals with typical problems that pre-teen girls have - problems with friends, problems with boys, problems with parents, etc - in a way that's relatable to its target audience, while also showcasing coding as something that is cool for girls to do. It balances the coding jargon well with the "typical" girl stuff, and shows that girls who code can also enjoy clothes or talking about boys/relationships or any other things other middle school girls enjoy.
I would definitely recommend this book to the middle-grade girls I work with! And if you loved the BSC, check out this one for a more modern take on the same kind of girl power story!
It's about middle school girls, but written at a lower reading level, so younger girls can read it and think about how cool those older girls seem (this was my experience of reading the BSC, so I imagine it's a similar experience for girls reading this series now). It deals with typical problems that pre-teen girls have - problems with friends, problems with boys, problems with parents, etc - in a way that's relatable to its target audience, while also showcasing coding as something that is cool for girls to do. It balances the coding jargon well with the "typical" girl stuff, and shows that girls who code can also enjoy clothes or talking about boys/relationships or any other things other middle school girls enjoy.
I would definitely recommend this book to the middle-grade girls I work with! And if you loved the BSC, check out this one for a more modern take on the same kind of girl power story!
February 24, 2018
I have yet to find a perfect balance between the graphic Gene Luen Yang Secret Coders series and this Girls Who Code series that has enough coding mixed with real world practicalities. This series borders on not having enough coding, but I applaud the effort with a story about friendship, working out your issues, and getting your STEM on.
May 31, 2022
I borrowed this from the library on a whim for my 7-year-old daughter. She said that she liked it, so I'll probably try to find the others in the series.
I also read it and liked it. The plot is mostly about young-teen drama, but without anything too uncomfortable for me to have to explain to a younger kid. The characterization of the kids and adults was pretty good and positive. I like how Maya and others admitted that they made bad choices sometimes and recovered from them with honesty and humility.
The coding content seemed mostly plausible, but i doubt that my daughter understood any of it. It was nicely worked into the plot without seeming pasted on.
I do feel a little annoyed at the lack of diversity in the characters. Well, it's a very short book, and there wasn't much time to add a cultural element to the plot, but I basically felt that the girls could have been from any race without changing the plot. The one person whose cultural differences were mentioned was Leila, who wears a head scarf and wants to dress up as Ms. Marvel. True diversity means that the characters should be motivated in part by their cultures of origin, and that their dialogue and actions would change if they were any other race. That kind of ethnic diversity wasn't evident in any way except for Leila.
I also read it and liked it. The plot is mostly about young-teen drama, but without anything too uncomfortable for me to have to explain to a younger kid. The characterization of the kids and adults was pretty good and positive. I like how Maya and others admitted that they made bad choices sometimes and recovered from them with honesty and humility.
The coding content seemed mostly plausible, but i doubt that my daughter understood any of it. It was nicely worked into the plot without seeming pasted on.
I do feel a little annoyed at the lack of diversity in the characters. Well, it's a very short book, and there wasn't much time to add a cultural element to the plot, but I basically felt that the girls could have been from any race without changing the plot. The one person whose cultural differences were mentioned was Leila, who wears a head scarf and wants to dress up as Ms. Marvel. True diversity means that the characters should be motivated in part by their cultures of origin, and that their dialogue and actions would change if they were any other race. That kind of ethnic diversity wasn't evident in any way except for Leila.
March 25, 2025
"A good story that helps you learn to code"
My eight-year-old daughter continues to enjoy the stories from each new mc as the books contribute to her growing foundation in the culture of coding. I sincerely hope that this series will function as one of the tools in her kit of educational resources that can help to foster the type of thinking required to genuinely thrive and excel in this field. Literature like this is vital and necessary even in our ultra modern world. I originally purchased these books because my daughter is dealing with friends who are already of the opinion that "Minecraft is boring and just for boys." I am exceedingly grateful for entertaining stories that both educate her and combat that awful stereotype. We will finish this series.
My eight-year-old daughter continues to enjoy the stories from each new mc as the books contribute to her growing foundation in the culture of coding. I sincerely hope that this series will function as one of the tools in her kit of educational resources that can help to foster the type of thinking required to genuinely thrive and excel in this field. Literature like this is vital and necessary even in our ultra modern world. I originally purchased these books because my daughter is dealing with friends who are already of the opinion that "Minecraft is boring and just for boys." I am exceedingly grateful for entertaining stories that both educate her and combat that awful stereotype. We will finish this series.
January 28, 2020
I think the Mother-Daughter book club series will always be my standard (and bias) for MG contemporary, but this is a really cute series and even my 23 year old self is learning things about coding
March 26, 2020
In, "Lights, music, code!" The girls code lights, and learn more about themselves.
February 22, 2021
Cute story involving girls who code. Themes of family and friendship.
July 2, 2021
Love reading it.
July 12, 2021
Very Interesting story to read
February 3, 2022
It was really good.
Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews