The Humming Room

Gr 4–6—Roo, 12, witnesses her parents' murder and survives by hiding beneath the family's trailer home. A rather unlikable child, she's a thief and she bites. She is put in foster care, where she is teased mercilessly by the other children, until a relative can be found. Then a previously unknown uncle turns up. He is wealthy and reclusive and lives on an island. He travels a great deal, so he sends his assistant to fetch Roo. On the train ride to Maine, Ms. Valentine lays down the rules about Roo's new house, and the child immediately sets about breaking every one of them. She discovers a secret box underneath some floorboards. She hears a mysterious humming noise. She notices that a good portion of the home, which used to be a sanatorium for children, is boarded up. And, she wonders about a mysterious, homeless boy she notices on a nearby island. Soon, she's noticing other mysteries and inconsistencies and makes a big discovery, which she keeps a secret. Sound vaguely familiar? The cover states that the book was inspired by The Secret Garden. It so parallels its predecessor that it's really a modernized retelling that works on many levels—but not on others. It's shorter and more streamlined and quite suspenseful. Yet, could a child be so easily hidden away nowadays? Fans of the classic will delight in the similarities and differences. Readers who might be intimidated by the original will find Potter's telling more accessible.—Brenda Kahn, Tenakill Middle School, Closer, NJ