"The Girl & The Green Hat" by Rachel Allord

About this book:

  “School’s out!
    Addie Brown has survived her first year in London. Now she can’t wait to ditch her tie, chuck her school shoes, “Mary and Jane”, under the bed, and forget all about Math(s) for six glorious weeks back home. As she flies off to Chicago to visit Aunt Becky and reconnect with best friend Lauren she wonders if this could be: The. Best. Summer. Ever?
    But nothing’s ever straightforward for Addie. Blindsided by Dad’s surprise new girlfriend, Addie arrives at summer camp only to discover London has followed her there. Join Addie as she navigates family dynamics, messy friendships and even a bear, all with a little help from the mysterious lady in the green hat.”


Series: The sequel to “The Girl on the Tube”. Review Here!


Spiritual Content- A handful prayers and talking to God (including apologizing to God for doing something bad); Church going (once); ‘H’s are not capital when referring to God; Addie and her father don’t go to church often after her mother died, but they go with her aunt (which Addie enjoys and listens to the preacher’s sermon about praying); Addie doesn’t know much about God, but knows He exists because of all the wonderful things in nature & notices that she has been praying to God in different moments because she doesn’t know “who else” would she be talking to; Addie recalls her mom praying with her before bed and feeling safe when she would do that; Addie wonders if she can pray about missing her mom and could tell God she’s angry at Him for “taking her away”; When in a dangerous situation, Addie prays to God for help and a sudden gust of wind leads her to a safe direction (and later says that she thinks God was watching over her); When her aunt accidentally swears, she apologize to Addie and to God, which Addie notes about it being like her aunt was talking to God as if He was right there with them (Addie’s aunt comments that she messes up every day, but “God is good…He forgives.”); Addie tells God all about her concerns and feelings despite thinking “He must know about everything already” because He’s God, but maybe He is interested in hearing about it all from her personally; Mentions of God; Mentions of prayers, praying, talking to God, & blessings over food; A few mentions of churches, church going on holidays, a preacher, & a sermon; A mention of an event in the Bible; 
             *Note: Addie wonders if someone has appeared in front of her like a fairy godmother or an angel; A woman is described as “otherworldly”; Mentions of luck & being lucky; A couple mentions of Addie being “spellbound” by something; A couple mentions of a Greek mythology character (Narcissus); A mention of a girl being in “heaven” when doing something she likes.

 

Negative Content- Minor cussing including: a ‘duh’, a ‘rats’, four ‘dumb’s, and seven forms of ‘stupid’; A few mentions of a curse (said, not written; the adult apologizes to Addie and God for saying it); Eye rolling; Addie lies & gossip (including talking badly about a girl and saying that they aren’t friends; Towards the end, *Spoilers* Addie realizes she’s done more than just stealing, but also snapped and yelled at family members & gossip and lied *End of Spoilers*); Addie snaps at others & can be disrespectful and rude (including to adults like her dad, her aunt, and her dad’s girlfriend); Pain, Injuries, & Blood/Bleeding (barely-above-not-detailed); Crying & Grief (Addie for her mother and what their lives could have been if she was still alive; up to semi-detailed); A dangerous situation with being trapped between a mother bear and her cubs (which makes Addie and another girl think they could die or be seriously hurt, up to semi-detailed); Addie steals an item from someone and feels guilt about it (*Spoilers* She steals her dad’s girlfriend’s sunglasses and justifies it at first as taking something like the girlfriend stole Addie’s day with her dad & how it’s Addie “winning” against the woman; Addie denies knowing where they are, lies about them, & hides them for the summer; Addie starts to feel guilt about taking and hiding them; Addie has a couple moments to confess to the woman, but doesn’t until the very end of the book after talking to the woman in the green hat about it; Addie tells God she’s sorry for taking them and apologizes to her dad’s girlfriend for it when giving the sunglasses back; The girlfriend says it’s okay and Addie feels great relief (Addie’s father is not made aware of any of this) *End of Spoilers*); Addie feels jealous and left out when her old best friend is hanging out with another girl (feeling like she’s been ditched by her “former best friend”) & also when a different girl gets more attention at camp than her (a few different scenes); A girl accuses Addie of only thinking of herself, so Addie responds with words to “bite [the girl] back” and calls her a “bossy killjoy” and says she looks forward to having a break from her over the summer (Addie thinks that saying that feels good at first, but then sees the girl’s reaction and wonders if she went too far; Addie doesn’t apologize, but tries to give a peace offering); Later, Addie gossips and talks badly about the girl to a group of others (*Spoilers* which the girl finds out about and is very hurt by Addie’s words; Addie says she didn’t mean what she said and that sometimes the girl can be bossy; Addie says they are “friends who fight sometimes, but friends” and they grow closer as the book continues *End of Spoilers*); Mentions of deaths & grief  (including Addie for her mother & a woman for her father); Mentions of stealing, stolen items, thieves, & crimes; Mentions of a divorce, a girl having to choose which parent she will live with, & parents arguing (a side character/friend of Addie’s who discusses it with her); A few mentions of a car accident & death; A few mentions of injuries, pain, & blood/bleeding; A few mentions of when Addie went outside by herself in Book 1 & got lost; A few mentions of lies, lying, & liars; A mention of World War II; A mention of cheating on a test; A mention of throwing up; 
             *Note: Having a panic attack (being unable to breathe, up to semi-detailed); Addie’s mother died a few years prior and she greatly misses her; Addie is very upset at her dad for having a girlfriend and is mad that her mom could be replaced (this leads to Addie yelling at her dad, running to her room and slamming the door (x2), feeling like her dad is keeping secrets from her, lying, stealing, and being very rude to her dad’s girlfriend and being very mad at her dad; The girlfriend continues to get to be kind to Addie and try to get to know her; *Spoilers* Towards the end, the girlfriend tells Addie that no one can replace her mom and that helps Addie’s opinion on her dad’s relationship with the woman; By the end, Addie helps her dad plan the proposal and being okay with their relationship *End of Spoilers*); Addie doesn’t want to invite her dad’s girlfriend to her birthday party (despite being told it would be nice and the right thing to do) and decides not to invite her because it’s her birthday; Addie comments that because of her peanut allergy, if she ate one she could die, but her dad says that’s “rather dramatic”; Addie breaks her school’s dress code on the last day of school by removing her tie while still on school grounds (when leaving for summer vacation; another girl tells Addie that she will get in trouble, but Addie does not); Mentions of brand names and items (LEGO, Minecraft, Mad Libs, KitKat, & Tootsie Rolls); A few mentions of FaceTime; A few mentions of singers (Benny Goodman, Muggsy Spainer, Quincy Jones); A few mentions of a book Addie starts to read (‘Animal Farm’); A few mentions of a panic attack & anxiety; A mention of Uber; A mention of a musical (‘Oliver!’); A mention of stepmothers often being villains (Addie says this because of fairytales).
 
 
Sexual Content- Seeing a couple embrace; Addie is very upset to learn her dad has a girlfriend and dislikes the woman (calling her nothing special and will not allow the woman to “shove her way” into their lives; Addie’s aunt tries to talk to her about wanting her dad to be happy and for Addie to give the woman a chance; Addie’s cousin tells her to treat the woman like a random person instead of her dad’s girlfriend, which Addie does and the day goes better; Addie still hopes they won’t last due to having a long-distance relationship; *Spoilers* Towards the end, Addie overhears her father saying he is ready to propose and Addie is incredibly hurt and upset; After a conversation with the girlfriend, Addie starts to realize that maybe she isn’t so bad and the woman isn’t trying to replace her mom; The book ends with Addie helping her dad plan the proposal and being okay with their relationship *End of Spoilers*; Mentions of girlfriends/boyfriends, dating, & dates; A few mentions of blushes (between an adult couple & Addie friend and cousin when meeting for the first time); A mention of kissing; A mention of Addie and a friend talking about boys (which ones they like and don’t like); 
             *Note: A friend straightens Addie’s “frizz[y]” hair and Addie can’t take her eyes off herself in the mirror because of it.
 
-Adelina “Addie” Brown, age 12-13
                                1^st person P.O.V. of Addie 
                                                        160 pages
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Pre Teens- 

New Teens- 

Early High School Teens- 

Older High School Teens- 

My personal Rating- 

It’s been a while since I read the first book about Addie, so I think it would be best to read them close together because there’s not a lot of “catch up” to remind the reader of prior events and characters. Because of this, I didn’t remember the issue Addie had with a classmate, Victoria, so I was very disappointed in Addie when she spoke harsh words to her. I didn’t love Addie’s attitudes towards different topics in the beginning (how she treated some other girls, her reaction to her dad having a girlfriend, and then stealing something), but at the same time, her emotions, thought process, and overall lack of thinking did make sense because she’s hurting. She was honestly acting like a brat at times (especially towards those she didn’t like), so I was eagerly looking forward to her much-needed character development to happen. I would have personally preferred Addie to apologize for some of comments or actions, but it was good to see a change in her by the end of the book. I’m not sure if there will be a book 3 in this series and while I hope so because of the woman in the green hat and I would like to see more faith content, it was a satisfying ending for this book’s plot.

 

 

See y’all on Friday with a new review! 

*BFCG may (Read the review to see) recommend this book by this author. It does not mean I recommend all the books by this author.

*I received this book for free from the Publisher (10Publishing) for this honest review.

"The Girl on the Tube" by Rachel Allord

About this book:

  “Twelve-year-old Addie Brown wants to fit in. But ever since she and her dad moved from small town America to bustling London, life is as bumpy as the Tube she rides to school. Addie’s cranky neighbour tells her off but then invites her to tea! It seems as if Addie’s best friend in America has already forgotten all about her. Worst of all, Addie’s dad doesn’t seem any happier than before, even though moving across the pond was his crazy idea.
    But the biggest mystery Addie encounters is the lady in the green hat. Who is she? And why does she appear on the train when Addie is missing home – and her mom – the most?” 


Series: Book #1 in a series.


Spiritual Content- A prayer; 'H's are not capital when referring to God; A couple mentions of God & Thanksgiving being a reminder to thank Him; A couple mentions of prayers & a blessing over food; A couple mentions of the pilgrims leaving England to worship God in “greater freedom without restriction”;
             *Note: *Spoiler, but about a potential angel/ghost* At the very end of the book, Addie sees the lady on the Tube again, but then the “edges of her glimmer and glint, her body blips and blurs like a fuzzy picture on an old television screen” and the woman disappears “just like that, she is gone, transported back to whatever secret world she’s come from”; It’s noted that Addie feels “spellbound” by seeing this *End of Spoiler*; Addie’s dad calls himself her guardian angel on the Tube; A few mentions of a family leaving Iran because of their religion; A mention of a statue of Ghandi.
 

Negative Content- Minor cussing including: an ‘idiot’, three ‘dumb’s, three ‘rats’s, and five ‘stupid’s; A bit of eye rolling (Addie rolls her eyes disrespectfully to her dad’s comment once); A mention of a man cursing (said, not written); Addie and her father have recently moved to a new country and she cries about missing their old home and wishing to go home; Addie has first day at a new school jitters & is a bit jealous at others already having friends; Addie has moments of angry words and runs off (in their apartment area) or slams her bedroom door when her father asks her questions about her day or won’t let her travel to school by herself (she is particularly upset about him not letting her go to school by herself and this comes up a couple times before he offers to shadow her instead and make sure she can get there by herself; *Spoiler* When they try this, Addie wonders why she feels lonelier when it was what she wanted; He allows her to go to school by herself only after they’ve done this a few times; *Major Spoilers* Towards the end, when Addie is upset and her dad has to leave for a bit, she leaves the apartment and goes to explore, adding that she feels a bit of guilt, but her anger takes over and she’s going to smash his rule “into to smithereens”; Addie thinks that this “big, bad thing I’m doing feels wild and satisfying, like bashing a pinata”; She quickly feels uncomfortable, realizes she forgot her mobile, and starts to panic; She imagines her dad panicking about not finding her at home and hurries to get back, knowing that she messed-up by breaking his one big rule; She gets back home to her father looking for her and they have a good discussion about her mom; As a punishment he makes her help their neighbor & return her travel card after school each day *End of Spoiler*; A neighbor says that Addie is fortunate to have a father who cares about her and her whereabouts); Once of the girls at school corrects Addie about different British words unkindly & Addie gets embarrassed when the girl comments about her dad taking her to school; Addie goes to insult the know-it-all girl, but someone cuts her off; A boy says that Addie left half her brain in America & Addie wonders if he’s right and part of her is stuck back in America, which makes her cry at remembering everything she’s missing (later, he makes another comment along the same lines); *Spoilers* A group of boys stick gum in Addie’s hair and because she’s allergic to peanuts and can’t use peanut butter like someone told her about, she takes matters into her own hands by cutting her hair (she is very upset afterwards and cries); Addie gets detention for forgetting part of her uniform and a teacher believing she’s being disrespectful when asked about it *End of Spoiler*; Addie gets nervous when trapped on the Tube, thinking of it like a buried coffin underground; Addie eavesdrops on her father’s conversation with her aunt; Addie attempts to eavesdrop on someone to be able to catch her name; Addie lies about wanting to try a new food, but ends up liking it; When Addie mimics her aunt calling her dad a “stick in the mud”, he gives her a sharp look which makes her quiet; Mentions of deaths & grief (including from a car accident; a woman’s husband & also a mother/wife); A few mentions of the events of the Boston Tea Party; A few mentions of homeless people begging on a corner with their dog; A couple mentions of deaths in history (the Mayflower); A couple mentions of prison/jail; A couple mentions of injuries & blood/bleeding; A couple mentions of passing clubs and tattoo parlors; A mention of a drunk man; A mention of a food looking “like sick” (meaning vomit); A mention of a classmate assuming Addie’s parents are divorced; 
             *Note: *Spoilers about Addie’s mom* Addie’s mom passed away when she was nine; She recalls a memory that makes her feel achy inside; There’s a couple moments where Addie notes her dad is sad and thinking about her mom; Addie doesn’t want to make her dad sadder by talking about her mom and sometimes feels like “she’s here, an invisible barrier between us. Especially when having a mom around would help a lot.”; Addie cries after something happens that her mom could have fixed and that if her mom was still alive then they wouldn’t have moved to London; Addie has another positive memory about her mom, but then remembers the night the two officers showed up at her house with news about her mother’s car accident; Towards the end, Addie has a breaking point of missing her mom and wishing she could bring back the dead and go back in time to stop the car accident; Later, Addie and her dad talk about her mom together and he shares good memories about her with Addie; When Addie’s aunt comes to visit, she encourages Addie that it’s okay to miss her mom and feel sad when she’s sad, happy when she’s happy *End of Spoilers*; Addie’s new friend is Iranian and her family had to move, which Addie doesn’t understand (a neighbor explains to Addie that not all countries are free and there are rules where opinions can’t be expressed by reporters or artists, people are forbidden to change or share their religion, and that women have the most difficulty with doing things that Addie takes for granted like “showing their hair and skin. Riding a bike. Singing, dancing, and talking too loudly in public”; Addie says she would just have to break the rules then, but the neighbor says that’s “an easy boast for someone who isn’t in danger” and that her friend must miss the only home she’s known; Addie’s friend later tells her about swimming for the first time when she was nine because “girls aren’t allowed to swim at most beaches. Unless they have a women’s section.” and Addie thinks that’s another unfair rule); Addie is concerned that her best friend back home has a new best friend, but tries to squelch the doubt; *Spoiler* Towards the end, Addie feels like her best friend is choosing someone else over her, giving up on their friendship, & Addie feels betrayed; They don’t talk for a couple weeks, but send a text to each other at the end which Addie feels is a good step *End of Spoiler*; Addie cuddles with a stuffed animal she’s had for a long time even if it’s a “babyish, stupid habit” because it brings her comfort; Mentions of a play/musical (42^nd Street, which Addie goes and sees); Mentions of brand names and items (Marmite, Tootsie Rolls, Jolly Ranchers, Jello, Sharpie, & iPad); Mentions of a movie & fictional character (Mary Poppins, Peter Pan and Wendy); Mentions of FaceTime; A few mentions of celebrities/well-known figures (Ginger Rogers & Winston Churchill); A couple mentions of places (Walmart & Tesco); A couple mentions of the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade; A mention of BBC.
 
 
Sexual Content- Addie is upset to hear that her father has a date (he explains that it’s a work-dinner and not a date, but she is still upset *Spoiler* and runs away to go explore; More information in a spoiler in a Negative Content section above, but he later tells her that he can go on dates and she shouldn’t disobey him *End of Spoiler*); A mention of a musical’s second act making Addie sleepy, adding it had “too many romance parts” (42^nd Street); 
             *Note: A couple mentions of underwear; A mention of passing women in tiny skirts.
 
-Adeline “Addie” Brown, age 12
                               1^st person P.O.V. of Addie 
                                                        192 pages

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Pre Teens- 

New Teens- 

Early High School Teens- 

Older High School Teens- 

My personal Rating- 

I was hopeful about this book and enjoyed many elements of it! It had a charming feel of a book just in-between the Middle-Grade and Young Adult age groups and I think many readers would like as well. The faith content was much lighter than I was expecting, just as a note, as there’s barely any. 

 

Some Americans might be confused with it being said that Addie is starting high school (also called year seven) when she’s only twelve, but it’s just the way the UK school systems are and there were many parts of Addie having to learn about her new country.

 

Addie was honestly a delight. I thought she handled everything well and was very realistic for her age. I liked the Thanksgiving scene especially, but I’ll admit to not loving the rest of the ending with how *Spoiler* we don’t have an answer for the lady on the Tube by the end. There’s an implication that she’s a guardian angel for Addie, but no real details on what exactly is going on *End of Spoiler*, which I was disappointed about. 

 

Edit to add: The author sent me a message letting me know that this is now the first book of a series and more will be discovered about the mysterious green hat lady! I'm excited to hear this and see more of Addie. :) 

 

See y’all on Friday with a new review! 

*BFCG may (Read the review to see) recommend this book by this author. It does not mean I recommend all the books by this author.

*I received this book for free from the Author for this honest review.