The Secret Sisters: A Historical Coming-of-Age Story About Old Rules and New Ways in 1920s Colorado for Children

The Secret School #2

by Avi

Newbery medalist Avi tells the story of a young girl determined to define her own place amidst old rules and new ways in the Roaring Twenties.

Attending high school in Steamboat Springs is Ida Bidson’s dream—it’s her next step toward becoming a teacher and her best shot at escaping a life of milking cows. It’s 1925, and from using telephones to attending movies, Ida is thrilled by her new experiences in Steamboat. She and her school friends even form a club, the Secret Sisters, to celebrate everything modern.

But when they accidentally antagonize the strict, traditionalist principal, Ida’s high school career may be over before it even begins. It's up to the Secret Sisters find a way to save Ida’s dream!

Readers will cheer for Ida as she continues the adventure begun in the one-room schoolhouse of Avi's popular The Secret School!

Genres: Historical Fiction, Middle Grade, Historical, Friendship, Childrens, Juvenile, Fiction

250 pages, Kindle Edition

First published August 29, 2023

About the author

Avi is a pen name for Edward Irving Wortis, but he says, "The fact is, Avi is the only name I use." Born in 1937, Avi has created many fictional favorites such as The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle, Nothing but the Truth, and the Crispin series. His work is popular among readers young and old.

Reviews

[Ms. B · Rating 3 out of 5]

Who knew the 1920s were so wild? By the time you finish this title from Avi, you'll know all the slang from a hundred years ago. Jeepers creepers, this book is ducky! Ida is attending a high school away from home; she boards with Miss Sedgewick, a former teacher who is an inspector of the county schoolhouses. Living away from home and no longer on a farm, Ida is excited when the hip Lulu, an aspiring flapper who knows all the latest slang and trends befriends her. Miss Sedgewick cautions Ida about her new friend. Will Ida's friendship with Lulu hurt her reputation? Could it give Mr. Langley, the principal reason Lulu enlists a new young teacher to teach her and her friends the Charleston, a new dance. to expel her? Could another new friend Dot who takes the train from another town to the high school each day also be expelled because of her class status and past? Could Ida's friendship with Dot also hurt her reputation?
If you like school stories or series like Ann M. Martin's Family Tree or The Penderwicks Sisters which make you long for times of the past and perhaps, more innocence, give Secret Sisters a try.
A huge thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me to read a copy of this title.

[Joscelynn Puckett · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed The Secret School, so I was delighted to discover that it has a sequel! Full of fun characters, navigating balancing new friendships with schoolwork, and other high school adventures (which reminded me of the Betsy-Tacy high school books and Anna Rose Johnson's The Star That Always Stays), I enjoyed reading about Ida in high school just as much as I enjoyed the first story!

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had read The Secret School by Avi years ago and really enjoyed it so I was delighted to get my hands on an ARC of The Secret Sisters, which continues Ida's educational adventures.

Ida is a delightful character who sets out on her new adventure with a mix of emotions - she misses her family and home a bit, is excited to meet new people, worries about being accepted and more. All of Ida's feelings will resonate with readers who have those same feelings - just in a different time period! Ida is determined to get an education and moving away from her family to board with someone she barely knows. She experiences a huge range of new things - indoor bathrooms, hot water, electricity, the movie theater, and a big school full of subjects she has no real knowledge of. (Imagine her surprise when she learns Latin is not a country - no wonder she couldn't find it on the map!)

Ida quickly makes friends, comes into her own as a student and manages to upset the principal who has some very firm ideas about what is proper. Through it all, Ida begins to figure out just who she is and what she believes in - finding chosen sisters who help her along the way. The book was a delightful read and a trip to the past that confronts women's rights, coming of age, and taking risks.

[Kara Rutledge · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Secret Sisters by Newberry Medal-Winning Author Avi opens with Ida Bidson on her way to live her biggest dream thus far in her life . . . to go to high school so she can eventually become a teacher.  The Roaring Twenties is in it's hey day, and Ida is learning a lot of new things from using a telephone for the first time to seeing her first moving picture to learning how to speak "flapper".  But, when she corrects the principal in front of her class, she worries that she may not last long at the high school.

A huge thank you to Net Galley and HarperCollins Children's Books for the Advanced Readers Copy (ARC) of The Secret Sisters by Avi.  Having heard of the author, but having never reading any of his books, I was intrigued by the synopsis of his latest middle grade book and requested to read it.  When I was approved, I was absolutely delighted.

Although I'm not the target audience, I found The Secret Sisters to be fun and engaging . . . and even educational!  I loved the fact that Ida and her friends were learning how to speak "flapper" from one of their more modern friends and learned how to dance the Charleston.  What was fascinating was that these things were frowned upon by some people in the town.  This story was a great reminder that this time in history was vastly different than it is now.  Even though I knew that many people in the twenties and thirties didn't get their high school education, especially those who lived on a farm, it was a great reminder to me, and I'm sure a new lesson to kids nowadays.  This book is a great historical fiction novel for children between the ages of eight and twelve.  I enjoyed reading this story immensely and now want to read its predecessor.

Four out of five stars is what I gave The Secret Sisters by Avi.  The expected publication date is August 29, 2023.  It's sure to be a winner with kids and adults alike.

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[Allie Khonsary · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Secret Sisters is such a cute coming of age and inspirational read for middle grade. It’s such a great stepping stone into historical fiction. Very positive and female empowerment vibes for the younger generation to follow their dreams.

[AllyP Reads Books · Rating 2 out of 5]

I did not enjoy this book. Usually for kids' books, even if I did not enjoy them I'll give an extra star because I'm not the target audience, but for this book I could not. I added it to my currently reading shelf a few days ago and listened to it and now when I come back to review it I take note of the cover that shows there's five girls and I'm like, "There were five of them?!" I literally could not tell you who the other two girls were if you put a gun to my head. I only remember there being three. There was the main character Ida (whose name I could never remember and so often when it was mentioned I thought, "Who? Oh yeah main character"), Dot the milquetoast, and the flapper whatever her name was.
The MC was so annoying and did nonsensical things very early on. The first day of high school, she goes to register and is told she needs a paper. I forgot what it was called but it is the equivalent of her eighth grade diploma. She doesn't have it so is told to go to the main office where they can help her. She goes and waits ten minutes and when no one is there she leaves the school and is going to walk all the way back home to wherever she is from which is twenty miles away (she is currently boarding locally). WTH? It's the first day of school. It's chaotic. Everyone's busy. They're not in the office because they're doing a million other things. You can't wait long enough for someone to help you so you're going to quit and leave?! Why wouldn't you wait a bit longer? Why not go back to the nice lady who told you to go to the office in the first place and ask her for some assistance? Why would you give up on your dream of education and high school after one set back that so far has only taken up ten minutes of your time? Ridiculous. Then she magically is given the paperwork she needs by the woman boarding her (who knows why she didn't have it in the first place if it was so necessary and important) so she gets registered and goes to her first class. But now she's late so the teacher tells her not to do that again and to take a seat. She sits next to another girl who is staring straight ahead and the MC takes this as a sign the girl is ignoring her and judging her for being late. Um, maybe she's looking ahead because she's listening to the fucking teacher who is currently talking?!?! So the MC says to the girl why she was late and is told not to talk in class by the teacher. Idiot! How completely full of yourself and/or stupid are you that you think someone who is not paying you any attention during class time when the teacher is talking is ignoring you? Get over yourself. Then once class is over the other girl, who turns out to be Dot, says she didn't mean to get Ida in trouble. Don't worry Dot; despite your red hair you didn't get Ida in trouble- she did that all on her own.
It didn't make any sense why this club was a secret. I guess it had to be called that to stay with the "secret" theme from the first book, but if clubs are allowed at the school, and they were planning what they thought would be perfectly innocent activities, what's to keep a secret? Why wouldn't you open the club up to others who might also want to make friends and try new things?
Despite some issues, everything works out hunky dory peachy keen at the end. Of course. Zzzzzzzzz. . . .

[Becky · Rating 5 out of 5]

First sentence: As far as Ida Bidson was concerned, it was the most exciting day in her fourteen years of life: she was about to leave for high school. It was September 13, 1925, a bright and chilly Sunday morning, when she stepped out of her log cabin home, high among Colorado's Elkhead Mountains.

Premise/plot: The Secret Sisters is the sequel to Avi's Secret School. Ida Bidson, our fourteen year old protagonist, is taking her first steps to fulfilling her lifelong dreams. She's leaving home to attend high school. She'll be boarding with Miss Trudy Sedgewick who will be acting as her guardian for the school year.

The novel chronicles one semester--the fall semester--at high school. Ida will be meeting teachers, classmates, and...the school principal. Some will be kindred spirits...others not so much. She'll be taking many subjects--most of them new to her. She'll also be experiencing a more 'modern' world. Indoor plumbing. Electricity. Movie theaters with motion pictures. Popular music.

It is titled Secret Sisters. This is the club that she forms with other freshman girls. Each week they take turns being 'president' of the club and choose a new activity to do.

My thoughts: I LOVED, LOVED, LOVED this one so much. I loved meeting Ida and all of her new friends. They were a hoot! I love that this one is so grounded in the 1920s. Ida is learning a new way to talk, and a new way to "experience" the world around her. In addition to the vocabulary, there's plenty of cultural references to songs, dances, movies, actors, artists, hairstyles and fashion, etc. Even 'new' recipes for 'modern' households. I love that Trudy is so determined to be 'modern' that she is cooking all these recipes from magazines. Readers are learning alongside Ida about this 'modern' world. So it never feels like an info-dump as Ida processes the world around her.

I loved the characters and characterization. I loved the story. I wouldn't mind a book for each semester of her high school year.

Quotes:

She searched for the country called Latin but couldn't find it. As she flipped through the book, she felt as if the world were getting bigger.

Learning is wonderful. But at the same time--hard. Why is something good hard? Because, she told herself, the more you learn, the more things change. It's not the learning that's hard--it's the changing.

[Rebecca Shelton · Rating 2 out of 5]

"The Secret Sisters" is a historical novel set in 1925, capturing the experiences of Ida Bidson, a young girl with aspirations beyond her rural beginnings. Enthralled by the prospect of attending high school in Steamboat Springs, Ida dreams of becoming a teacher and eagerly embraces the modern wonders of the time, such as telephones and movies. Along with her friends, she forms a club called the Secret Sisters to celebrate their newfound independence and modernity.

However, their excitement is soon tempered by conflict with the school's conservative principal, whose traditionalist values clash sharply with the girls' enthusiasm and sense of innovation. This antagonism threatens to derail Ida's educational ambitions and forces the Secret Sisters to come together to find a solution that can preserve her dreams.

Set against a backdrop devoid of significant cultural diversity—reflective of the novel’s historical setting in a predominantly white rural America—the story primarily explores themes of gender roles and societal expectations. The narrative addresses the challenges faced by young women during this era, particularly in pursuing educational and professional ambitions in the face of systemic sexism.

Rated 2 out of 5, the novel, while well-written, falls short in engaging readers who might be looking for a more profound exploration of the issues it presents. One major criticism is the lack of depth in addressing why sexism and traditional values were so entrenched during the 1920s, missing an opportunity to provide historical context that could enrich the story and give readers a better understanding of the challenges the characters face.

Overall, "The Secret Sisters" offers a glimpse into the aspirations and struggles of young women in the early 20th century, but it may not satisfy readers seeking a deeper or more critical examination of the social dynamics of the period. The book's focus on a relatively narrow slice of historical life, without a broader contextual analysis, makes it a lighter read that might not resonate with those looking for a more impactful historical narrative.

[Laura Byrd · Rating 3 out of 5]

If you loved Secret School, and have been eager to find out what happened to Ida after getting her acceptance letter for highschool in Steamboat Springs, the next chapter in her story is finally here!

Our story begins with Ida setting off on her new adventure in Steamboat Springs. While Secret School gave us a peek into life in rural 1920’s Colorado, Secret Sisters shows us a more modern view of city life. It’s packed with “flapper-speak” and all the modern conveniences of the 1920’s. As Ida tries to wrap her brain around all the fascinating things in this modern setting, she also struggles to understand why some people continue to hold to such outdated views on important things. Ida also grapples with staying true to who she is while embracing a new way of life.

I loved this new perspective on the time period, and was so happy to see Ida following her dreams in this new book. I also truly enjoyed getting to know each of her secret sisters. I did find it harder to connect with Ida in this new setting, and didn’t really find myself deep into the story until about 3/4 of the way through. I think I was waiting for a little more depth as Ida was older in this story. However, just as in Secret School, I found myself finishing this book with all sorts of wonderful, warm fuzzy feelings. This is a feel-good read for sure.

If you fell in love with Ida in Secret School, and are eager to find out what happened next, I recommend picking up Secret Sisters and embarking on the next phase of the journey with Ida Bidson.

Thank you Netgalley and Harper Collins Children’s for an advanced copy of this book to review.

[Virginia McGee Butler · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Secret Sisters, by Avi, is a sequel to The Secret School. While I have read a number of Avi’s other books but not The Secret School, I never felt lost in the narrative. In 1925, Ida Bidson gets the opportunity to leave her rural one-room elementary school after she graduates and serves briefly as its teacher to go to high school in Steamboat Springs. She knows her destiny is to become a teacher, not to spend her life milking cows.

Miss Sedgewick, the Routt County inspector for one-room schoolhouses, sees promise in Ida and offers her the opportunity to board for free and attend the high school. New experiences await Ida far beyond the classroom. She soon becomes part of a group of friends who call themselves “The Secret Sisters.” There are movies, telephones, and a ride on the train for an overnight with her friend. Some of the new experiences threaten to spoil her attendance at the high school with its strict principal who seems to intimidate even Miss Sedgewick who worries about her reputation. When the group of friends learns to speak “flapper,” and the new young teacher shows them the moves to the Charleston, they feel copacetic and get a wiggle on. The principal becomes a killjoy and a flat tire, but Miss Sedgewick decides not to be an old fogie.

The book ends with a glossary of flapper definitions. Middle schoolers who read it will get a picture of another life – especially for women. The book is really the cat’s pajamas!

[Lori · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was the first book I read by Avi, about a girl named Ida who boards away from home to study at the nearest high school. I was really disappointed. It was either not my best choice, or bad timing for me to read it, and my attitude may have affected my perspective.

The writing felt like the author entered a list of books, inventions, cultural and social problems, poems, and flapper jargon into ChatGPT and had AI write the book, complete with the author’s and excerpts of the textbooks, like the Algebra book Ida was issued in class. “Copacetic”.

You’ll find canned salmon, Wonderbread, Good Housekeeping, a Silvertone Phonograph, Eddie Cantor, Little Women, the Wizard of Oz, Emily Dickinson, Mr. r Gunner, Model T’s, Austin Dobson, and more.

I was irritated by the juxtaposition of feminism and patriarchy, and the actions characters took, or didn’t…presenting that a “modern woman” is expected to take more risks and try more things, and that could be perceived as bad…something upsetting the status quo. “Strikers” were talked about as “anarchists” and ‘bomb throwers’. I was irritated by the fact that youth didn’t seem to know how to snap before the 1920’s. Paired with all the “Copacetics” throughout, this was like a heavy prequel to the 1950’s and 60’s beatnik movement.

Mixed messages and intimidations from teachers and friends, as well as “rebellion” from Ida and her friends and childhood shaming, were additional reasons I didn’t enjoy this as a coming of age tale.

[Ayon Ibrahim · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was shocked and delighted when I learned that Avi wrote a sequel to one of my favorite childhood books, The Secret School - 22 years later!! I immediately grabbed a copy from the library and read it all in one sitting.

It continues the 1925 story of young Ida Benson as she finally goes on to high school (a goal she worked so hard to achieve in the prequel!). In addition to experiencing all sorts of new things like flapper language and living in a house that has electricity, she learns to navigate many of the struggles she faced in the prequel: balancing school and friends, finding her growing voice and place in the world, and staying strong against the many obstacles (often men) that sternly stands against modernity and women's rights.

I don't like it quite as much as the first one, but it's still great (and undoubtedly nostalgia plays a big role there). If you loved the prequel, I definitely recommend reading this one - you'll get the same warm, fuzzy feelies.

One of my favorite lines that I heartily agree with:

"In the meantime, in between time, ain't we got fun?"

Ida's last thought of the day was: I love all the in-betweens.

[Tomi Rues · Rating 5 out of 5]

When I first took the position as the elementary school librarian in our small town, the former librarian told me to never discard any book written by Avi. Now, several years later, I would like to extend special thanks to Net Galley and HarperCollins Children's Books for the Advanced Readers Copy (ARC) of The Secret Sisters by Avi.

This is Avi's latest middle-grade novel, and it is a wonderful book to introduce young readers to the fascinating genre of historical fiction. Ida Bidson has a dream to become a teacher and the only way this can happen is if she is willing to move to another town to attend high school, be a boarder in a new home, and learn to deal with an old-fashioned, stuck-in-his-ways principal,

To help adjust to her new surroundings Ida quickly becomes a part of a new club called The Secret Sisters. With her five friends and the help of some kind and strong female role models, Ida becomes "determined to define her own place amidst old rules and new ways in the Roaring Twenties."

This book is pure, engaging, and a delight to read. I highly recommend it!

[Murray · Rating 3 out of 5]

14 year-old Ida Bidson is about to go on an adventure in 1925 Colorado. She is leaving her log cabin, her family to head to Steamboat Springs and begin high school. She is going to live with a young widow, Miss Sedgewick, and try to fit in and follow her dream to become a teacher one day. She then meets Lulu a would be flapper, who seems to have a language all her own, and convinces Ida a few other girls they should have their own club which becomes the Secret Sisters, but an event might doom the Sisters and Ida's possible enrollment in school. A lovely book about friendship and how expectations and perceptions make a young teenager's life complicated. Avi includes a glossary of flapper terms at the back of the book. Though the young protagonist is a teen, this is a middle grade novel. Sophisticated YA readers might find the book hokey.

[Kathy Cowie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Years ago, my older daughter read The Secret School, and recommended it to the rest of us. We were all hooked by Ida Bidson's fierce determination to be educated, in a one-room schoolhouse back in 1925. When I saw there was finally a sequel, I stopped for a minute to realize that this was probably not a book we would all read together. My daughters are grown now, and I have a lot less pull (if I ever had any) in recommending what they read.

But maybe not. This may be a book meant for a middle grade reader, but it is truly a story about perseverance, and the work of women who yearned for more than what society was willing to have them achieve. Sadly, still relevant today. It is a book about powerful women who fought for an education many men felt was unnecessary. For a life many men didn't accept. Ida Bidson is a hero, and I am so happy that Avi gave us more of her story.

[Christine · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a short middle grade story about fourteen year old, Ida who wants to be a teacher so leaves her home to attend high school in Steamboat Springs, Colorado in 1925. Things are alot more modern in her new town and she must struggle with how much to change to fit in and how much she should just be herself.

It would be a wonderful historical fiction "living book" for a child interested in this time period. The end includes a glossary of all the Flapper slang terms used throughout by one of Ida's new friends as well as suggestions and resources for further study.

Thanks to Netgalley for the chance to read it in exchange for my thoughts.

[lovemyshelf · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Secret Sisters was a breath of fresh air and gave Little House on the Prairie vibes. In the 1920s, 14-year-old Ida travels to a new town for high school. There she sees electricity, running water, and the intimidating idea of the modern woman. Ida struggles to find her place in this new world and outgrow the stereotypes binding young women to decorum rather than substance. I love her group of friends and the impact t she has on Trudy. Lovely book and though it is a sequel, I never read the preceding book and it posed no issue. Thank you to NetGalley ad Clarion Books for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

[Season Johnson · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is the sequel to The Secret School, which I have not read. This is a sweet story of a young girl who moves into “town” to attend high school. She lives with a teacher who has offered her room and board. She learns how to deal with old-fashioned values in the 1920s by standing up for herself against the “proud” principal at her school. A delightful read without the controversial topics that weigh down so many of the YA and middle-grade books I read. I loved this one! Helpful if middle schoolers have some knowledge of the 1920s.

[Alice Teets · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was given a copy of this book by Netgalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Ida is leaving home to go to high school! Because it is 20 miles away from her home on the ranch, and this is the 1920s Colorado, she must board in her new town to attend high school. While staying with Trudy and making new friends, who become her Secret Sisters, she learns about life and herself.

Cute, quick little read about depending on yourself and being loyal to others, this book reminded me a bit of Anne of Green Gables, with Ida showing Anne's spunk and basic goodness.

[Suzanne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Master storyteller Avi returns to his Roaring Twenties setting of The Secret School to continue the story of Ida Bidson. As she moves from her family's farm to the town of Steamboat Springs to attend high school, Ida is excited and nervous. She has never attended a school other than the one-room schoolhouse she and the other kids out in the county shared. Now she is boarding with a school system employee and taking classes like Latin. Ida also learns many lessons that are not academic, things like - some people expect rural kids to fail, some people don't like progress, and some judge you by the friends you keep or by outmoded social standards.

Ida makes a group of friends who form a club and name themselves the Secret Sisters. I enjoyed the way each girl has her own personality and backstory, but they could all support each other. A flapper, a miner's daughter, a girl from a sheep ranch...they all have strengths and can help each other succeed. They can also make each other brave enough to stand up for what is right.

Readers who are unfamiliar with the era may appreciate the glossary of flapper terms, as well as the author's note about the 1920s. A touch I especially liked was the way musical lyrics from songs of the day were worked into the story. Don't let your middle grade readers miss it!

[Alyssa DeLeon · Rating 2 out of 5]

Sadly not on par with the first book. Ida barely thinks about Tom, which seemed odd. The writing seems much simpler and skips large time periods in single paragraphs. Perfectly fine for elementary/middle school readers, but so different from the feel of the first book. And the two club members that weren’t Dot and Lulu…can’t even recall their names. Not great character growth for everyone. I expected much more out of Dot’s build-up. Entertaining for-fun read though.

[Amy · Rating 3 out of 5]

**Thank you netgalley for the opportunity to read and review this book!**
This story, unfortunately, missed the mark for me. It took me over a month to read it because I just had a hard time getting into the story. Nothing really grabbed my attention and held on. It was still a sweet story and I would recommend it to a child in the age 10-12 age range, but it just wasn't for me!

[Candice Forte · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoy Avi’s writing. I love this period piece. I learned new things about the era and the story was great. I am unsurprised that I enjoyed this! All of the 1920s slang terms sometimes confused me, but they were also kind of entertaining. The use of Latin was really neat! My children study it.

[Gabrielle S · Rating 3 out of 5]

There were some good elements and Dot’s story was especially poignant but I really thought that we would get more exploration into the other two girls who weren’t Lulu, to learn about them but I’m fairly sure they were padding.

I received this ARC for review from Eidelweiss.

[Jenn Naughton · Rating 5 out of 5]

This story is too short. It's excellent for supplemental reading, but I wanted it to continue. I'm biased because there isn't an Avi book I don't like. That said, this is on my list of books to go along with Story of the World 4 for homeschoolers chronologically studying history.

[Adelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Okay, this book was incredible. I loved the theme of standing up for your rights and all the feminism involved! I hadn't read the first book in the series, but I am definitely going to do that now.

[Michelle · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a very sweet coming of age story! Recommend.

Thank you to NetGalley for the opportunity to read this title ahead of its release date.

[Danielle Wood · Rating 3 out of 5]

I always really enjoy Avi’s stories. I really liked the characters and how they stood up to Principal Langly.

[Melody · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great historical fiction (1925) with examples of how difficult times were for women and girls. Excellent end notes from author and out the time itself and how society was impacted.

[Flannery · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5 stars