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Chasing Vermeer #1
Chasing Vermeer
This bewitching first novel is a puzzle, wrapped in a mystery, disguised as an adventure, and delivered as a work of art.
When a book of unexplainable occurences brings Petra and Calder together, strange things start to happen: Seemingly unrelated events connect; an eccentric old woman seeks their company; an invaluable Vermeer painting disappears. Before they know it, the two find themselves at the center of an international art scandal, where no one is spared from suspicion. As Petra and Calder are drawn clue by clue into a mysterious labyrinth, they must draw on their powers of intuition, their problem solving skills, and their knowledge of Vermeer. Can they decipher a crime that has stumped even the FBI?
When a book of unexplainable occurences brings Petra and Calder together, strange things start to happen: Seemingly unrelated events connect; an eccentric old woman seeks their company; an invaluable Vermeer painting disappears. Before they know it, the two find themselves at the center of an international art scandal, where no one is spared from suspicion. As Petra and Calder are drawn clue by clue into a mysterious labyrinth, they must draw on their powers of intuition, their problem solving skills, and their knowledge of Vermeer. Can they decipher a crime that has stumped even the FBI?
273 pages, Paperback
First published June 1, 2004
706 people are currently reading
10.6k people want to read
About the author
Blue Balliett
31 books518 followersI was born in New York City and grew up playing in Central Park, getting my share of scraped knees, and riding many public buses and subways. By the time I was a teenager, I sometimes stopped at the Metropolitan Museum of Art or the Frick Museum after school, just to wander and look and think. The Met has five Vermeer paintings and the Frick three, so Vermeer and I have been friends for many years.
After studying art history in college, I moved to Nantucket Island, in Massachusetts, in order to write. I surprised myself by writing two books of ghost stories, stories collected by interviewing people. My husband and I met and were married on Nantucket, lived there year-round for another 10 years, and had our two children there.
When our kids started school, we moved to Chicago. I began teaching 3rd grade at the University of Chicago Laboratory Schools. One year my class and I decided to figure out what art was about. We asked many questions, visited many museums in the city, and set off a number of alarms — by mistake, of course.
In writing Chasing Vermeer, I wanted to explore the ways kids perceive connections between supposedly unrelated events and situations, connections that grown-ups often miss. Given the opportunity, kids can ask questions that help them to think their way through tough problems that adults haven’t been able to figure out — problems like the theft of a Vermeer painting!
In The Wright 3, I play with questions about architecture as art, the preservation of old buildings, and Frank Lloyd Wright’s legacy. I wanted to continue exploring controversial ideas within the three-dimensional art world. We need kids to develop into powerful, out-of-the-box thinkers, now more than ever. I believe in making trouble — of the right kind.
My third book, The Calder Game, takes place in a small community in England, a 1,000-year-old town that I visited while on a book tour. I had a wonderful time writing this book. I had to do lots of eavesdropping, poking around, tiptoeing through graveyards, and climbing walls, and then there was all the Cadbury chocolate I had to eat. Alexander Calder's work is art for any age. I first saw his sculpture when I was 9 years old, in a show at the Guggenheim Museum in New York. It was art but it was magic, and it left me hungry for more. This, I'm sure, was the beginning of my belief that art is about adventure.
Blue Balliett grew up in New York City and attended Brown University. She and her family now live in Chicago, within walking distance of Frank Lloyd Wright's Robie House. Balliett's books have now appeared in 34 languages. Warner Bros. Pictures has acquired the film rights to Chasing Vermeer.
After studying art history in college, I moved to Nantucket Island, in Massachusetts, in order to write. I surprised myself by writing two books of ghost stories, stories collected by interviewing people. My husband and I met and were married on Nantucket, lived there year-round for another 10 years, and had our two children there.
When our kids started school, we moved to Chicago. I began teaching 3rd grade at the University of Chicago Laboratory Schools. One year my class and I decided to figure out what art was about. We asked many questions, visited many museums in the city, and set off a number of alarms — by mistake, of course.
In writing Chasing Vermeer, I wanted to explore the ways kids perceive connections between supposedly unrelated events and situations, connections that grown-ups often miss. Given the opportunity, kids can ask questions that help them to think their way through tough problems that adults haven’t been able to figure out — problems like the theft of a Vermeer painting!
In The Wright 3, I play with questions about architecture as art, the preservation of old buildings, and Frank Lloyd Wright’s legacy. I wanted to continue exploring controversial ideas within the three-dimensional art world. We need kids to develop into powerful, out-of-the-box thinkers, now more than ever. I believe in making trouble — of the right kind.
My third book, The Calder Game, takes place in a small community in England, a 1,000-year-old town that I visited while on a book tour. I had a wonderful time writing this book. I had to do lots of eavesdropping, poking around, tiptoeing through graveyards, and climbing walls, and then there was all the Cadbury chocolate I had to eat. Alexander Calder's work is art for any age. I first saw his sculpture when I was 9 years old, in a show at the Guggenheim Museum in New York. It was art but it was magic, and it left me hungry for more. This, I'm sure, was the beginning of my belief that art is about adventure.
Blue Balliett grew up in New York City and attended Brown University. She and her family now live in Chicago, within walking distance of Frank Lloyd Wright's Robie House. Balliett's books have now appeared in 34 languages. Warner Bros. Pictures has acquired the film rights to Chasing Vermeer.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 2,574 reviews
August 10, 2008
"A Da Vinci Code for tweens." - Newsweek
This is only one of the quoted praises lumped on Chasing Vermeer and proudly emblazoned on its back cover. It is probably the most apropos quote because it hinges almost entirely on the readers' familiarity with and reaction to Dan Brown's novel.
If you found Da Vinci Code boring, trite, melodramatic, sophomoric, and preposterous, you will probably have a similar reaction to Blue Balliett's debut young adult novel, Chasing Vermeer.
Balliett has stated that it took her five years to write Vermeer, but the central mystery is so lousy and ridiculous, it comes across as the product of a very drunken weekend in an art gallery. Similar to Brown's trainwreck of a novel, Balliett lumps absurd coincidences on top of sleuthing skills that are based less on clues and more on silly guesses:
"She wears all those earrings - there's a key, a pearl, a high-heeled shoe..."
Calder was muttering now. "Key-pearl-shoe... shoe-pearl-key... pearl-shoe-key... heel-key-pearl... key-pearl-heel..."
"Hey! That sounds like 'keep her here,' doesn't it?... maybe this means she's in Gracie Hall!" (p. 155)
Come on ! Really? Is that what being a detective is like? Making goofy connections between unrelated items? Sherlock Holmes must be rolling in his literary grave. All this would probably be tolerable if the characters were more than paper-thin sketches of precocious children and erudite villains, or if the public reactions to the stolen art weren't so far-fetched, or if the red herrings weren't so obvious, or if the transitions between character narration weren't so jarring. Unfortunately the believability is sacrificed at every turn.
Librarians sometimes recommend books they haven't read. After all, we can't read everything, but we want kids to read as much as possible. Perhaps I should have listened to the 8th grade girl who stomped up to me last May, Chasing Vermeer trapped in her fist. "This book," she sneered, "is beyond boring." Her buddy glared at me, too. "It was terrible, Mr. Prince. Terrible." Point taken, kids. Point taken.
This is only one of the quoted praises lumped on Chasing Vermeer and proudly emblazoned on its back cover. It is probably the most apropos quote because it hinges almost entirely on the readers' familiarity with and reaction to Dan Brown's novel.
If you found Da Vinci Code boring, trite, melodramatic, sophomoric, and preposterous, you will probably have a similar reaction to Blue Balliett's debut young adult novel, Chasing Vermeer.
Balliett has stated that it took her five years to write Vermeer, but the central mystery is so lousy and ridiculous, it comes across as the product of a very drunken weekend in an art gallery. Similar to Brown's trainwreck of a novel, Balliett lumps absurd coincidences on top of sleuthing skills that are based less on clues and more on silly guesses:
"She wears all those earrings - there's a key, a pearl, a high-heeled shoe..."
Calder was muttering now. "Key-pearl-shoe... shoe-pearl-key... pearl-shoe-key... heel-key-pearl... key-pearl-heel..."
"Hey! That sounds like 'keep her here,' doesn't it?... maybe this means she's in Gracie Hall!" (p. 155)
Come on ! Really? Is that what being a detective is like? Making goofy connections between unrelated items? Sherlock Holmes must be rolling in his literary grave. All this would probably be tolerable if the characters were more than paper-thin sketches of precocious children and erudite villains, or if the public reactions to the stolen art weren't so far-fetched, or if the red herrings weren't so obvious, or if the transitions between character narration weren't so jarring. Unfortunately the believability is sacrificed at every turn.
Librarians sometimes recommend books they haven't read. After all, we can't read everything, but we want kids to read as much as possible. Perhaps I should have listened to the 8th grade girl who stomped up to me last May, Chasing Vermeer trapped in her fist. "This book," she sneered, "is beyond boring." Her buddy glared at me, too. "It was terrible, Mr. Prince. Terrible." Point taken, kids. Point taken.
March 31, 2017
I finished reading this to my 9-year-old last night, then poked around here on Goodreads, assessing what reader response had been when the book was originally published.
I was surprised by how many reviewers didn't like this book, or couldn't finish it. Believe me, I understand the issues readers had with "plot points." Yes, the plot does unravel somewhat at the end. Yes, the "bad guy" here was a stretch of the imagination, and too many sloppy bits were thrown in at the end. I'm never a fan of not getting your story straight before you commit it to print.
However. . . when it comes to criticizing this book as a "DaVinci Code for kids." Hmmmm.
Whether you liked The DaVinci Code or hated it, you must admit. . . it was a success. It was incredibly readable (I practically ate my copy), and it made people think about things for a long time after they closed the cover.
So, in regard to that, I say. . . so what if it's like a DaVinci Code for kids? Is that a bad thing, or an incredibly good thing?
This book had my daughter scouring through art books all over our house. She has been 9 for less than a week, and she had copies of Vermeer paintings lined up on the floor before her, "hunting" for clues. She also broke out a little notebook and started making "connections" all around her. She wondered at "coincidences" and even asked for her own set of pentominoes.
Weak plot points or not, the characters were quirky and cute and it's hard to criticize a book that inspired our child to want a return trip to the Art Institute of Chicago!
I was surprised by how many reviewers didn't like this book, or couldn't finish it. Believe me, I understand the issues readers had with "plot points." Yes, the plot does unravel somewhat at the end. Yes, the "bad guy" here was a stretch of the imagination, and too many sloppy bits were thrown in at the end. I'm never a fan of not getting your story straight before you commit it to print.
However. . . when it comes to criticizing this book as a "DaVinci Code for kids." Hmmmm.
Whether you liked The DaVinci Code or hated it, you must admit. . . it was a success. It was incredibly readable (I practically ate my copy), and it made people think about things for a long time after they closed the cover.
So, in regard to that, I say. . . so what if it's like a DaVinci Code for kids? Is that a bad thing, or an incredibly good thing?
This book had my daughter scouring through art books all over our house. She has been 9 for less than a week, and she had copies of Vermeer paintings lined up on the floor before her, "hunting" for clues. She also broke out a little notebook and started making "connections" all around her. She wondered at "coincidences" and even asked for her own set of pentominoes.
Weak plot points or not, the characters were quirky and cute and it's hard to criticize a book that inspired our child to want a return trip to the Art Institute of Chicago!
February 6, 2017
Chasing Vermeer by Blue Balliett was given to me by a friend because it was similar to From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs Basil E. Frankweiler. As I'd read that and liked it, I was eager to read this. I've recently become more interested in Vermeer, so that added to my motivation.
There are some things I liked about the book. There are two protagonists who are both perceived as "nerds," but they are initially interesting and rather likeable. (Their names, by the way, were carefully chosen by Balliett as references to art and architecture.) There's an art theft and a crusty but eventually sympathetic old lady.
The author also tells us quite a lot about the life and work of a famous maker of "old pictures," and if, as a result, young readers become interested in a kind of art that they might not otherwise have considered worth their notice, well, that's a good thing. If it shows them that teachers and other adults are real people with weaknesses and foibles, rather than mere authority figures to be feared and avoided, that's a good thing too.
The book, especially at first, has a lot of promise. But, sadly for me, it does not deliver on that promise.
Why? Well, there were some things that just irritated me to no end. One of the morals of the story is that even though things may seem unimportant or unrelated, there is no such thing as coincidence, and we should be open-minded enough to see unexpected relationships between things. On paper this sounds fine. But in the story it leads to the overuse of intuition and the merely random as a means to provide clues.
We are not in Hogwarts here, and yet Calder constantly consults a set of pentominoes as if they are runes or tarot cards; his method is to look at the letter he pulls out of his pocket, think of a word that starts with that letter, and then try to use that word as a guide to conduct. Petra, on the other hand, has a psychic connection with a woman in a Vermeer painting who encourages and guides her. At one point they try to derive clues from a series of random words uttered by the crusty but sympathetic old lady. More hints are seen everywhere, to the point where they seem to crawl almost literally out of the woodwork.
Again, I really wanted to like this book. And if this were a Harry Potter novel, it might fly. But in this fictional universe, "Blue's Clues" are just silly.
There are some things I liked about the book. There are two protagonists who are both perceived as "nerds," but they are initially interesting and rather likeable. (Their names, by the way, were carefully chosen by Balliett as references to art and architecture.) There's an art theft and a crusty but eventually sympathetic old lady.
The author also tells us quite a lot about the life and work of a famous maker of "old pictures," and if, as a result, young readers become interested in a kind of art that they might not otherwise have considered worth their notice, well, that's a good thing. If it shows them that teachers and other adults are real people with weaknesses and foibles, rather than mere authority figures to be feared and avoided, that's a good thing too.
The book, especially at first, has a lot of promise. But, sadly for me, it does not deliver on that promise.
Why? Well, there were some things that just irritated me to no end. One of the morals of the story is that even though things may seem unimportant or unrelated, there is no such thing as coincidence, and we should be open-minded enough to see unexpected relationships between things. On paper this sounds fine. But in the story it leads to the overuse of intuition and the merely random as a means to provide clues.
We are not in Hogwarts here, and yet Calder constantly consults a set of pentominoes as if they are runes or tarot cards; his method is to look at the letter he pulls out of his pocket, think of a word that starts with that letter, and then try to use that word as a guide to conduct. Petra, on the other hand, has a psychic connection with a woman in a Vermeer painting who encourages and guides her. At one point they try to derive clues from a series of random words uttered by the crusty but sympathetic old lady. More hints are seen everywhere, to the point where they seem to crawl almost literally out of the woodwork.
Again, I really wanted to like this book. And if this were a Harry Potter novel, it might fly. But in this fictional universe, "Blue's Clues" are just silly.
January 5, 2022
i remember this as being one of the best and most fun stories i read in my whole childhood (which was, true to my current existence, full of books), but i just gave its reviews a cursory glance, ready to see the hordes agreeing with that take, and saw a whole lot of one and two star reviews.
...
is this how you guys feel when i write my lil rant reviews about your favorites?
because if you're trying to teach me literary empathy, it won't work.
on the to reread shelf it goes.
part of a series i'm doing in which i review books i read a long time ago, blah blah
...
is this how you guys feel when i write my lil rant reviews about your favorites?
because if you're trying to teach me literary empathy, it won't work.
on the to reread shelf it goes.
part of a series i'm doing in which i review books i read a long time ago, blah blah
January 26, 2025
Charming mystery featuring a few of my young self’s (and old self) favorite topics— art and puzzles.
Balliett has brilliantly brought together quirky characters, shared secrets, and middle school mayhem in a pattern-palooza of coincidences and queries!!
My grade school self would have spent her allowance on this Scholastic classic, had it been around then, and certainly declared it a book worthy of reading at any age!!
PS— as a fan of the game Blokus with my kids— I loved how pentominoes featured so regularly in this tale!!
(Reviewed 3/19/23)
Balliett has brilliantly brought together quirky characters, shared secrets, and middle school mayhem in a pattern-palooza of coincidences and queries!!
My grade school self would have spent her allowance on this Scholastic classic, had it been around then, and certainly declared it a book worthy of reading at any age!!
PS— as a fan of the game Blokus with my kids— I loved how pentominoes featured so regularly in this tale!!
(Reviewed 3/19/23)
September 8, 2010
This book may very well be the worst book I have ever read in my entire life. Why? Let me break it down for you.
There's a painting. It gets stolen. Lucky for the art museum of Chicago, three fifth graders have a plan to get it back. So if you'd ever read the last three chapters of flat stanely, you have read this entire book.
First of all, I generally hate mystery books anyway, which is most likely a prime factor of my hatred for this book. Secondly, I hate mysteries that involve children, just adding on to my hatred. This entire book includes about five separate mini mysteries within one large mystery, so it's like six mysteries which like sextuples my hatred for this book. Lastly, there was a whole secret language that you need to decode in order to understand parts of he book, which was irritating and took me about an hour to decode each paragraph.
Overall, I may just hate this book because of my opinions about mysteries and needing to stop for an hour to understand what just happened mid-read. Amazingy, I forcefed myself this book, thinking it would grow on me lime some mysteries have. It didn't. Oh well. I blame the economy.
There's a painting. It gets stolen. Lucky for the art museum of Chicago, three fifth graders have a plan to get it back. So if you'd ever read the last three chapters of flat stanely, you have read this entire book.
First of all, I generally hate mystery books anyway, which is most likely a prime factor of my hatred for this book. Secondly, I hate mysteries that involve children, just adding on to my hatred. This entire book includes about five separate mini mysteries within one large mystery, so it's like six mysteries which like sextuples my hatred for this book. Lastly, there was a whole secret language that you need to decode in order to understand parts of he book, which was irritating and took me about an hour to decode each paragraph.
Overall, I may just hate this book because of my opinions about mysteries and needing to stop for an hour to understand what just happened mid-read. Amazingy, I forcefed myself this book, thinking it would grow on me lime some mysteries have. It didn't. Oh well. I blame the economy.
November 26, 2007
I loved parts of this book and disliked other parts, so there you are; the epilogue ending is particularly bad (in that "I don't know how to work all this into the plot, so here, this is what happened" kind of way). The "there's no such thing as coincidence" stuff would have been way overdone in any other book, but I understand that that was one of the author's main points here; still, I wasn't convinced. And the art history reads as coming straight from the author's Brown BA at least twenty years ago--very old-fashioned, to the book's detriment. This just isn't the way people think about art history now, and the book would have been enriched by going into the paintings at a deeper level. (I kept waiting for the big "it doesn't matter whether Vermeer painted it" payoff, and the idea that Vermeer would want to be redeemed by people agreeing that he didn't paint those "lesser" paintings really annoyed me.)
On the other hand, there are moments of actual suspense, the codes are enjoyable, and it's definitely an intelligent book.
On the other hand, there are moments of actual suspense, the codes are enjoyable, and it's definitely an intelligent book.
May 16, 2019
An unexpected find that I really enjoyed. Both the story and illustrations were great. Will be continuing the series. 🐸
July 29, 2018
Ένα από τα 6 παιδικά βιβλία που κατά τη γνώμη μου διαβάζεται κι από ενηλίκους!Μπορείτε να δείτε ποια είναι τα άλλα στο μπλογκ μας, σε αυτό το λινκ: https://wp.me/pa25z8-79❤
Το «Στα ίχνη του Βερμέερ» είναι ταμάμ για όσους αγαπούν το μυστήριο και τους γρίφους. Η ιστορία περιστρέφεται γύρω από έναν κλεμμένο πίνακα του Ολλανδού ζωγράφου Γιαν Βερμέερ και τις προσπάθειες δύο έφηβων ερασιτεχνών ντετέκτιβ να λύσουν την υπόθεση ακολουθώντας στοιχεία που ανακαλύπτουν. Κάτι σαν «Κώδικας Ντα Βιντσι» για εφήβους και παιδιά χωρίς όμως να ναι απλοϊκό, έχει πολύ ιδιαίτερη γραφή (σχεδόν λυρική σε κάποια σημεία), περιλαμβάνει ιστορία της τέχνης και η εικονογράφηση του Μπρετ Χέλκουιστ είναι αριστοτεχνική. BONUS: Εχει και χάρτη!😍
Το «Στα ίχνη του Βερμέερ» είναι ταμάμ για όσους αγαπούν το μυστήριο και τους γρίφους. Η ιστορία περιστρέφεται γύρω από έναν κλεμμένο πίνακα του Ολλανδού ζωγράφου Γιαν Βερμέερ και τις προσπάθειες δύο έφηβων ερασιτεχνών ντετέκτιβ να λύσουν την υπόθεση ακολουθώντας στοιχεία που ανακαλύπτουν. Κάτι σαν «Κώδικας Ντα Βιντσι» για εφήβους και παιδιά χωρίς όμως να ναι απλοϊκό, έχει πολύ ιδιαίτερη γραφή (σχεδόν λυρική σε κάποια σημεία), περιλαμβάνει ιστορία της τέχνης και η εικονογράφηση του Μπρετ Χέλκουιστ είναι αριστοτεχνική. BONUS: Εχει και χάρτη!😍
January 13, 2009
Another YA purchase from Green Apple books, and to be honest, a disappointment. This is a new-ish book, published in 2004, and while I had never read it before, I had high hopes. I had read reviews that said it was clever, it has expert illustrations by Brett Helquist (Lemony Snicket’s illustrator), and the inside flap lead me to believe it was a puzzle tale in the same vein as The Westing Game, by Ellen Raskin.* Chasing Vermeer is not a terrible book, but it didn’t live up to my expectations.
It tells the story of two outcast sixth graders, Petra and Calder, who come together and ultimately solve a mystery about a missing Vermeer painting. I loved the characters – the leads seemed like real, nerdy, slightly unpopular students, and the supporting characters were ok, if a bit clichéd from earlier books. Also, the writing had some beautifully lyrical passages that I really enjoyed. The fault I had was with the mystery. Half of the book seemed like a solvable puzzle, with clues for the reader (even clues built into the illustrations). The other half turned on mystical coincidences and psychic connections. In short – the book seemed to want to have it both ways, and thus, left me unsatisfied. The psychic mystical parts were actually quite nice – dreamy and philosophical, but they didn’t mesh with the everyday realness of the characters. The mystery, once solved was not an “Aha!”, but rather a “huh?” – a cobbled together explanation that was unsatisfying. Too many red herrings, not enough clues, and unsolvable, I think, if one wasn’t getting secret psychic messages. I would read another book by Ms. Balliett – she has a real gift for characterization and a way with words, but I would hope that next time she is more sharp in her thematics and plotting.
It tells the story of two outcast sixth graders, Petra and Calder, who come together and ultimately solve a mystery about a missing Vermeer painting. I loved the characters – the leads seemed like real, nerdy, slightly unpopular students, and the supporting characters were ok, if a bit clichéd from earlier books. Also, the writing had some beautifully lyrical passages that I really enjoyed. The fault I had was with the mystery. Half of the book seemed like a solvable puzzle, with clues for the reader (even clues built into the illustrations). The other half turned on mystical coincidences and psychic connections. In short – the book seemed to want to have it both ways, and thus, left me unsatisfied. The psychic mystical parts were actually quite nice – dreamy and philosophical, but they didn’t mesh with the everyday realness of the characters. The mystery, once solved was not an “Aha!”, but rather a “huh?” – a cobbled together explanation that was unsatisfying. Too many red herrings, not enough clues, and unsolvable, I think, if one wasn’t getting secret psychic messages. I would read another book by Ms. Balliett – she has a real gift for characterization and a way with words, but I would hope that next time she is more sharp in her thematics and plotting.
July 2, 2010
Usually when I read finish reading a childrens book I didn't enjoy, I ask myself whether or not I would have enjoyed it 13 years ago. Sometimes my answer to me is "yes" and sometimes it is "no", but even with the nos, I can imagine some hypothetical audience of child enjoying a book.
With this one, I can't imagine any demographic. Even gifted kids will probably need to have a savant-like interest in art (specifically Dutch Baroque art), or in the mathematical approach to coincidence, or in American university architecture -- or, ideally, in all three -- in order to power through the more ungodly boring pages of this book. Which there are a lot of.
Please know that I am saying this as a person who dorked out and received a 106% A+ final grade in Baroque Art class in college by doing unnecessary extra credit activities for fun. OK? So I'm going to safely say that with this book, it's not me...it's the book.
While I had mild to moderate interest in finding out who stole the Vermeer painting and why, and what role the kid detectives' teacher Ms. Hussey had in the whole plot, I had more than a few moments that set me off on a mental rant. Here is a list of those rants:
1.) So it turns out that in order to be able to learn details that are instrumental in solving the mystery, the reader NEEDS to get out a pen or pencil and paper and decode the three coded letters between Tommy and Calder. I decoded exactly none of these while reading, because when I'm reading I don't want to freaking stop! It annoyed me so much to learn that the information Tommy gives Calder in these letters was actually really important. Put a solution in the index, please! It's OK to make a reader work for a mystery's solution, but "work" usually means "think," not "physically get up off the couch to grab a writing utensil." I'm sorry, 99% of the time I'm not going to do that.
2.) I hate hate hate when mysteries get heavy on exposition at the end. There's nothing that sucks more than to invest in a narrative and then have the author kill that narrative with cut and dry "here are the details of the entire crime plot" sentences, followed by a glossed over "all shall be well now that the mystery is solved" epilogue. Those few-sentence character epilogues are only tolerable in comedy films parodying character epilogues.
3.) All of the exploration of the coincidence of 12 and the prediction of pentominoes and the appearance of the Vermeer painting in Petra's dream -- what. I suppose my thinking that this fatalism is annoying in a straight mystery has a lot to do with me being more practical-minded than mystical/romantic; perhaps not a flaw of the book itself, but a conflict of interest with me as a reader. I am curious about what other Marble Fawns will think of this. I will say, though, that it is annoying to me that a lot of the "clues" Petra and Calder used to solve the mystery were not reality-based at all, but coincidences and intuitions.
4.) The best part of the book was learning about Petra's home life. Which is like, the only section of the book that contains any humanizing character traits for the kids at all. This is not an exaggeration. :(
I wanted to like this! Art, kid detectives, the author's name is Blue! Alas, not even being a raving fangirl of Artemisia Gentileschi and The Mixed Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler was enough to surmount the massive uninteresting-ness of this book.
With this one, I can't imagine any demographic. Even gifted kids will probably need to have a savant-like interest in art (specifically Dutch Baroque art), or in the mathematical approach to coincidence, or in American university architecture -- or, ideally, in all three -- in order to power through the more ungodly boring pages of this book. Which there are a lot of.
Please know that I am saying this as a person who dorked out and received a 106% A+ final grade in Baroque Art class in college by doing unnecessary extra credit activities for fun. OK? So I'm going to safely say that with this book, it's not me...it's the book.
While I had mild to moderate interest in finding out who stole the Vermeer painting and why, and what role the kid detectives' teacher Ms. Hussey had in the whole plot, I had more than a few moments that set me off on a mental rant. Here is a list of those rants:
1.) So it turns out that in order to be able to learn details that are instrumental in solving the mystery, the reader NEEDS to get out a pen or pencil and paper and decode the three coded letters between Tommy and Calder. I decoded exactly none of these while reading, because when I'm reading I don't want to freaking stop! It annoyed me so much to learn that the information Tommy gives Calder in these letters was actually really important. Put a solution in the index, please! It's OK to make a reader work for a mystery's solution, but "work" usually means "think," not "physically get up off the couch to grab a writing utensil." I'm sorry, 99% of the time I'm not going to do that.
2.) I hate hate hate when mysteries get heavy on exposition at the end. There's nothing that sucks more than to invest in a narrative and then have the author kill that narrative with cut and dry "here are the details of the entire crime plot" sentences, followed by a glossed over "all shall be well now that the mystery is solved" epilogue. Those few-sentence character epilogues are only tolerable in comedy films parodying character epilogues.
3.) All of the exploration of the coincidence of 12 and the prediction of pentominoes and the appearance of the Vermeer painting in Petra's dream -- what. I suppose my thinking that this fatalism is annoying in a straight mystery has a lot to do with me being more practical-minded than mystical/romantic; perhaps not a flaw of the book itself, but a conflict of interest with me as a reader. I am curious about what other Marble Fawns will think of this. I will say, though, that it is annoying to me that a lot of the "clues" Petra and Calder used to solve the mystery were not reality-based at all, but coincidences and intuitions.
4.) The best part of the book was learning about Petra's home life. Which is like, the only section of the book that contains any humanizing character traits for the kids at all. This is not an exaggeration. :(
I wanted to like this! Art, kid detectives, the author's name is Blue! Alas, not even being a raving fangirl of Artemisia Gentileschi and The Mixed Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler was enough to surmount the massive uninteresting-ness of this book.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 23, 2019
Ναι, είναι ένα παιδικό βιβλίο μυστηρίου, αλλά όπως είπε και η Ιωάννα από το acourtofboooks : https://wp.me/pa25z8-79 διαβάζεται πολύ ευχάριστα και από ενήλικες!
Γιατί παρά τον παιδικό τρόπο σκέψης των πρωταγωνιστών (κάτι που αξίζει κανείς πάντα να εκτιμά), προσεγγίζει ζητήματα φιλοσοφίας, τέχνης, πίστης και παιδείας. Κοινώς, διαβάζεται ευχάριστα από κάθε ηλικία άνω των 10-11. Σας το προτείνω, ειδικά αν μόλις διαβάσατε κάτι αρκετά "βαρύ" λογοτεχνικά.
Εντάξει, δεν ήταν τέλειο, αλλά σίγουρα αρκετά καλό, και θα κοιτάξω να το προσφέρω σε κάποιον που ελπίζω να το αγαπήσει. Δεν έχω ακόμα σκεφτεί, αλλά έτσι συμβαίνει συχνά με τα βιβλία... Σε κοιτούν από τη βιβλιοθήκη και κάποια στιγμή φωνάζουν τα ίδια που θέλουν να πάνε...
Γιατί παρά τον παιδικό τρόπο σκέψης των πρωταγωνιστών (κάτι που αξίζει κανείς πάντα να εκτιμά), προσεγγίζει ζητήματα φιλοσοφίας, τέχνης, πίστης και παιδείας. Κοινώς, διαβάζεται ευχάριστα από κάθε ηλικία άνω των 10-11. Σας το προτείνω, ειδικά αν μόλις διαβάσατε κάτι αρκετά "βαρύ" λογοτεχνικά.
Εντάξει, δεν ήταν τέλειο, αλλά σίγουρα αρκετά καλό, και θα κοιτάξω να το προσφέρω σε κάποιον που ελπίζω να το αγαπήσει. Δεν έχω ακόμα σκεφτεί, αλλά έτσι συμβαίνει συχνά με τα βιβλία... Σε κοιτούν από τη βιβλιοθήκη και κάποια στιγμή φωνάζουν τα ίδια που θέλουν να πάνε...
January 14, 2021
This book was a lot of fun to read. It reminded me a little of a Da Vinci code for younger minds, only in some ways this book was a lot trickier. Throughout, there is a pentomino code, and another hidden code which I never tried to decipher, although I saw the clues. Codes aren't my thing. But I was still pulling out a notebook to decrypt the letters going between two friends in certain chapters.
I think this is a really original and unique book, that looks at things in all sorts of ways--ways we might usually not. The range of topics covered is somewhat broad, but they flow together, and while in some cases the thinking behind it all seems highly advanced, at the same time, younger people tend to be much more open to "crazy" and wild ideas than some of their more learned counterparts who "know better."
If you like mysteries, puzzles, or art, definitely give this book a read.
_____
This is one of the books I've most enjoyed in the past few years. I've never read anything quite like it, and it has a bit of something for everyone. Mystery, puzzles, codes, excitement. The idea of an elementary class unraveling an injustice that far outlives them is just great.
The basic story revolves around Vermeer's paintings, how many he did in his life, and how many were correctly attributed. Something you'd think was above the heads of grade school kids, but their class is anything but usual.
I think this is a really original and unique book, that looks at things in all sorts of ways--ways we might usually not. The range of topics covered is somewhat broad, but they flow together, and while in some cases the thinking behind it all seems highly advanced, at the same time, younger people tend to be much more open to "crazy" and wild ideas than some of their more learned counterparts who "know better."
If you like mysteries, puzzles, or art, definitely give this book a read.
_____
This is one of the books I've most enjoyed in the past few years. I've never read anything quite like it, and it has a bit of something for everyone. Mystery, puzzles, codes, excitement. The idea of an elementary class unraveling an injustice that far outlives them is just great.
The basic story revolves around Vermeer's paintings, how many he did in his life, and how many were correctly attributed. Something you'd think was above the heads of grade school kids, but their class is anything but usual.
July 3, 2013
I had far too many problems with this book to even start to enumerate them. I'll just mention the one thing I really liked about sharing the experience of listening to this book (the first half) and then reading it aloud (the second) with my son. It so happened that when we reached the point in the story where Vermeer's painting "A Lady Writing" is introduced, we were visiting my mother's home in Northern Virginia. On the morning of the drive home, it turned out to be really easy to make our first stop of the day almost immediately. We parked the car in DC, and quickly popped into the National Gallery, saw the painting, and quickly popped out again. Although Tommy wasn't quite as impressed with the painting as one would hope, I still think it has to rank as one of my best parenting moments of the year. And, oh the wonderfulness of a world class art museum that is completely free, I love the Smithsonian so much, I wish I could give it a hug.
October 3, 2023
Pretty sure I read this as kid solely because it has the same illustrator as A Series of Unfortunate Events which I was obsessed with. But it’s super good in its own right! What’s not to love - precocious kids, puzzles, art, Chicago! Just a lovely cozy mystery. I plan on reading the rest in the series! And I want to go back and try to solve the puzzle that’s in the illustrations! Also I want my own set of pentominos, they seem delightful to have on hand.
December 8, 2021
Reread of an old favorite, made even more fun this time by the fact that I had recently finished a book about an actual forger of Vermeer works! And on the day I finished Chasing Vermeer, the weekly newsletter from my son's school reported that one of their classes is reading this book as part of a mystery unit. Lo! So many coincidences... or are they? Worthy of Charles Fort's attention, perhaps? :) For those who have no idea what I am talking about, read the book and you will see! It's a delightful read for all ages! And I even cracked the picture code this time around!!!
September 12, 2023
I can’t wait to teach this book to my Secondary 2 students! I’m certain they’ll love it. It’s filled with art history and adventure. An overall lovely read.
Update: They didn’t 😂
Update: They didn’t 😂
October 23, 2020
Take the dustjacket off and see the paintings! I was lucky enough to find a copy in a(n) LFL. My brother liked it a lot. He wants me to read and answer
Well, now that I've read it, I don't know. Strange book. I liked that it taught us about looking at art with our own eyes and looking at details, and also about observing patterns. But when it got to the point that numerology became a clue, I got annoyed. And, granted that I'm distracted right now due to a family crisis, I still think the mystery unsolvable by the reader, which annoys me. And I really wish that I'd gotten to know the parents better. I probably will not read sequels.
Well, now that I've read it, I don't know. Strange book. I liked that it taught us about looking at art with our own eyes and looking at details, and also about observing patterns. But when it got to the point that numerology became a clue, I got annoyed. And, granted that I'm distracted right now due to a family crisis, I still think the mystery unsolvable by the reader, which annoys me. And I really wish that I'd gotten to know the parents better. I probably will not read sequels.
February 17, 2009
this book rocks, and so do blue m&ms!!!!!!!!!!! a really good story!
June 6, 2020
Ese libro está genial. Tenía muy bajas expectativas pero en serio esta súper guay!!!!!!!! Muy recomendado para amantes de la intriga
November 30, 2021
2 Stars
On the one hand, I can get why this book is/was popular. It fits right in with books like The Westing Game and From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler. It reads quirky and fun. But, on the other hand, it is absolutely no fun if the puzzles all along are . This is frustrating and doesn't make for good storytelling. Sorry, I'm not sorry to say it.
On the one hand, I can get why this book is/was popular. It fits right in with books like The Westing Game and From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler. It reads quirky and fun. But, on the other hand, it is absolutely no fun if the puzzles all along are . This is frustrating and doesn't make for good storytelling. Sorry, I'm not sorry to say it.
August 18, 2021
Two kids, Petra and Calder, unexpectedly become sleuthing partners when a famous painting is stolen and they believe that a mysterious elderly widow has a connection to the painting. I wouldn’t completely call it “The Da Vinci Code” for kids as its story doesn’t excite but slowly engages you. You won’t be bored though as the team’s story is still a good pleaser. It’s pentomino puzzles 🧩 are worth reading this solid sleuther. B+ (83%/Very Good)
October 20, 2024
I was able to finish this book in the woods on a fishing trip😂and although getting out of town and unplugging was what it took to finish this book, I did really enjoy it! If you are ever in the mood for an easy “Davinci Code for tweens” that has fun mystery heist elements and an unlikely friendship, I recommend! It is slightly juvenile, but that’s who it’s for so don’t hate on it😂
May 21, 2022
It was very deep, and required lots of thinking. I feel like they could have kept the mystery going longer
Read
March 1, 2016**SPOILER ALERT** Have you ever tried to solve a mystery ? Well Petra and Calder have. The genre of this book is mystery.Its mystery because Calder and Petra are trying to find the famous Vermeer painting that has been stolen. My overall opinion of this book is i loved it because it's so fun and loved the creativity.
In the beginning of the book Petra and Calder receive a letter from an unknown person asking them for help fixing a crime involving art. This letter threatens them, telling them that if they go to the authorities, their lives will be in danger. Calder and Petra,they are eleven year old students at the University School, located near Chicago. Calder knows Pentominoes .In the middle of the book the famous Vermeer painting goes missing. They go on the run searching for the painting. There are so many possible clues and connections.At the end of the book *spoiler alert* the painting is found hidden in a wall in a stairwell, Calder and Petra run for their lives as alarms scream behind them. Soon they realize they are being followed by a man. Calder gets left behind. Petra is able to escape from the chasing man but soon loses the painting as she and a police officer search for Calder. Again Petra finds the painting and finds an injured, but alive, Calder. The conflict of the book is person vs person because Calder and Petra are tying to find the theft and the painting. The theme teamwork because they work together to find the painting and theft.
The title relates to the book "chasing Vermeer" because they looking for the famous Vermeer painting. A major event in the story is when they found the painting and solved the mystery. The theme can be seen when they are figuring out the clues. The setting adds to the conflict because in Delia Dell Hall thats where the painting was found. I think this book will make a good movie because it would be bring attention to others and it'll be funny . The narrator is reliable because it give good information and isn't untruthful.
I was surprised when they found the painting is found hidden in a wall in a stairwell. I was angry when Calder got injured. My favorite was when the painting was found and put back. An interesting thing i learned was to never give up on what your looking for because at the end you always get what you want. I thought the ending of the book was pretty good because at the end of the story, the author explains and gives many clues and coincidences found in this book. I was moved when they got letters from a random person. "chasing Vermeer" is a good title for the book because it goes with the book and genre.
I would rate the book 4 out 5 stars because it was well written and interesting. I would recommend this book to people who like mystery and cool books. What would you do if were looking for a stolen paintings?
In the beginning of the book Petra and Calder receive a letter from an unknown person asking them for help fixing a crime involving art. This letter threatens them, telling them that if they go to the authorities, their lives will be in danger. Calder and Petra,they are eleven year old students at the University School, located near Chicago. Calder knows Pentominoes .In the middle of the book the famous Vermeer painting goes missing. They go on the run searching for the painting. There are so many possible clues and connections.At the end of the book *spoiler alert* the painting is found hidden in a wall in a stairwell, Calder and Petra run for their lives as alarms scream behind them. Soon they realize they are being followed by a man. Calder gets left behind. Petra is able to escape from the chasing man but soon loses the painting as she and a police officer search for Calder. Again Petra finds the painting and finds an injured, but alive, Calder. The conflict of the book is person vs person because Calder and Petra are tying to find the theft and the painting. The theme teamwork because they work together to find the painting and theft.
The title relates to the book "chasing Vermeer" because they looking for the famous Vermeer painting. A major event in the story is when they found the painting and solved the mystery. The theme can be seen when they are figuring out the clues. The setting adds to the conflict because in Delia Dell Hall thats where the painting was found. I think this book will make a good movie because it would be bring attention to others and it'll be funny . The narrator is reliable because it give good information and isn't untruthful.
I was surprised when they found the painting is found hidden in a wall in a stairwell. I was angry when Calder got injured. My favorite was when the painting was found and put back. An interesting thing i learned was to never give up on what your looking for because at the end you always get what you want. I thought the ending of the book was pretty good because at the end of the story, the author explains and gives many clues and coincidences found in this book. I was moved when they got letters from a random person. "chasing Vermeer" is a good title for the book because it goes with the book and genre.
I would rate the book 4 out 5 stars because it was well written and interesting. I would recommend this book to people who like mystery and cool books. What would you do if were looking for a stolen paintings?
March 10, 2009
The star rating may be a little unfair. For me, as an adult, it's two stars. Any kid age 8 to 12 probably would give this 5 stars. This is a code within a story, and I had a hard time deciding which to pay attention to. Because there's also an identical code in the pictures which is easily deciphered, I chose story. I'm pretty sure the code is easily deciphered within the story, I just didn't write down each time the author mentioned a specific pentomino.
The storyline really is pretty good with a reasonable premise, good suspense, and excellent resolution. Ms. Balliett writes well, and targets her intended audience well. I thought the ending was pretty clever.
Ms. Balliett explores some ideas that really weren't interesting to me, and they took up a large part of the narrative. I'm not that interested in connecting random events randomly. So what if two different events in completely different locations both contain the number 12. Twelve is a fairly common number. I am somewhat interested in trying to find patterns in everyday occurances, but I lean more towards fractals than any other theory.
I'm really not interested at all in unusual acts of nature, especially not cats raining from the sky throughout history. There are too many other explanations than a crazy one (crazy being they actually fell from the sky). Between the space this theme of the story took up and the overall juvenile content, this book wasn't for me. However, I can't fault Ms. Balliett for writing for her intended audience. These are just the kind of themes and thoughts that young readers would enjoy ruminating over. Some literature transcends age and some doesn't.
There are some good things in this book that I will definitely take more time to think about. "What is art?" You don't have to study paintings for a lifetime to know what is beautiful to you. I think it was an excellent idea to invite Brett Helquist to illustrate this book. He did an excellent job of inviting art into the book. His section in the "After Words" is especially informative. The "After Words" section itself was a stroke of genius. What a great idea!! I wish all books came with similar sections.
There is just one final question that was not adequately resolved. I went through the illustrations, decoded the hidden message, and now I'm not sure exactly what it means. There is the most basic explanation given in the final pages of the book, but if there is something more, please let me know.
Last but not least, I want my own pentominoes.
The storyline really is pretty good with a reasonable premise, good suspense, and excellent resolution. Ms. Balliett writes well, and targets her intended audience well. I thought the ending was pretty clever.
Ms. Balliett explores some ideas that really weren't interesting to me, and they took up a large part of the narrative. I'm not that interested in connecting random events randomly. So what if two different events in completely different locations both contain the number 12. Twelve is a fairly common number. I am somewhat interested in trying to find patterns in everyday occurances, but I lean more towards fractals than any other theory.
I'm really not interested at all in unusual acts of nature, especially not cats raining from the sky throughout history. There are too many other explanations than a crazy one (crazy being they actually fell from the sky). Between the space this theme of the story took up and the overall juvenile content, this book wasn't for me. However, I can't fault Ms. Balliett for writing for her intended audience. These are just the kind of themes and thoughts that young readers would enjoy ruminating over. Some literature transcends age and some doesn't.
There are some good things in this book that I will definitely take more time to think about. "What is art?" You don't have to study paintings for a lifetime to know what is beautiful to you. I think it was an excellent idea to invite Brett Helquist to illustrate this book. He did an excellent job of inviting art into the book. His section in the "After Words" is especially informative. The "After Words" section itself was a stroke of genius. What a great idea!! I wish all books came with similar sections.
There is just one final question that was not adequately resolved. I went through the illustrations, decoded the hidden message, and now I'm not sure exactly what it means. There is the most basic explanation given in the final pages of the book, but if there is something more, please let me know.
Last but not least, I want my own pentominoes.
November 5, 2012
Reviewed by Me for TeensReadToo.com
I think the fact that I had never heard of CHASING VERMEER before I picked up a copy at the bookstore helped in my enjoyment of it. After I finished reading the book, I read with interest other reviews, which is usually my habit after I've written my own review. I like to see what other readers thought of a story, or how similar--or, in some cases, dissimilar--my own thoughts and feelings are from other readers. I was surprised to see that many had touted CHASING VERMEER as a THE DA VINCI CODE for the younger set. I was surprised by the supposed hype that the book had generated. I was surprised, in fact, by the way I was caught up in the story myself. Although I can't comment on it's similarity to THE DA VINCI CODE (I'm one of probably only a handful of humans on the planet who hasn't read it!), I can say that CHASING VERMEER is a mixture of mystery, art, precociousness, and ingenuity that made it a joy to read.
Petra Andalee and Calder Pillay live down the street from each other in Hyde Park, share the same birthday, and have as the same sixth-grade teacher, the wonderful Ms. Hussey, at University School. It's rare to find a teacher who allows her students to have a say in what material they will cover, and both Petra and Calder are aware of this. When Ms. Hussey asks the students to discuss with an adult a letter that changed their life, most students are baffled. When the assignment fails, Ms. Hussey instead takes them on a field trip to the Art Institute--where the worlds of Petra, Calder, Ms. Hussey, and Vermeer collide.
Who was Vermeer? An artist, it turns out, who has several paintings attributed to him that some members of the general public don't agree were done by the painter himself. Suddenly, Petra and Calder's world is filled with a strange book entitled "Lo!", a painting known as "A Lady Writing," an old lady named Mrs. Sharpe, a man who owns a bookstore, a set of twelve pentominoes, a bunch of frogs, and a few bags of blue M&M's.
CHASING VERMEER is, quite simply, an art mystery in the style of Nancy Drew or The Hardy Boys, but more interesting and complex. This is a delightful read, and I can't wait to read THE WRIGHT 3, the next story in the adventures of Petra and Calder.
I think the fact that I had never heard of CHASING VERMEER before I picked up a copy at the bookstore helped in my enjoyment of it. After I finished reading the book, I read with interest other reviews, which is usually my habit after I've written my own review. I like to see what other readers thought of a story, or how similar--or, in some cases, dissimilar--my own thoughts and feelings are from other readers. I was surprised to see that many had touted CHASING VERMEER as a THE DA VINCI CODE for the younger set. I was surprised by the supposed hype that the book had generated. I was surprised, in fact, by the way I was caught up in the story myself. Although I can't comment on it's similarity to THE DA VINCI CODE (I'm one of probably only a handful of humans on the planet who hasn't read it!), I can say that CHASING VERMEER is a mixture of mystery, art, precociousness, and ingenuity that made it a joy to read.
Petra Andalee and Calder Pillay live down the street from each other in Hyde Park, share the same birthday, and have as the same sixth-grade teacher, the wonderful Ms. Hussey, at University School. It's rare to find a teacher who allows her students to have a say in what material they will cover, and both Petra and Calder are aware of this. When Ms. Hussey asks the students to discuss with an adult a letter that changed their life, most students are baffled. When the assignment fails, Ms. Hussey instead takes them on a field trip to the Art Institute--where the worlds of Petra, Calder, Ms. Hussey, and Vermeer collide.
Who was Vermeer? An artist, it turns out, who has several paintings attributed to him that some members of the general public don't agree were done by the painter himself. Suddenly, Petra and Calder's world is filled with a strange book entitled "Lo!", a painting known as "A Lady Writing," an old lady named Mrs. Sharpe, a man who owns a bookstore, a set of twelve pentominoes, a bunch of frogs, and a few bags of blue M&M's.
CHASING VERMEER is, quite simply, an art mystery in the style of Nancy Drew or The Hardy Boys, but more interesting and complex. This is a delightful read, and I can't wait to read THE WRIGHT 3, the next story in the adventures of Petra and Calder.
June 29, 2010
This book is OK. It's not really trying to be the Da Vinci Code for kids, but the movement in recent years with "smart" protagonists is definitely represented here.
The two protagonists are very likable and I was interested in the glowingly positive representation of the Chicago School constructivist education model. The problem here is a common one in YA, but magnified in this book I think. The kids are too curious and diligent. I can believe the overly brave, adventurous kids in most YA more than I can believe in all these kids reading thick books and articles by themselves about obscure topics their teacher leads them to. And then the two philosophize about the meaning of of love, life, "What is art?" and coincidence. Maybe I'm too cynical about America's youth, but I just don't see it. And then the plot point where the general public rouses from their apathy and gets excited about Vermeer's art and the attribution of possible forgeries--I buy that even less.
But I liked the story and many of the characters and would give it an average 3 stars if it weren't for the random mysticalness thrown in too. The boy gets messages from his pentominoes and two characters literally talk with the missing painting in their minds so clearly that they can write down her words. Not to mention a looong, wordy conclusion. So an OK book that falls short of its potential in my opinion.
Oh yea, one more complaint. I think the code breaking is clever and enjoyed looking at the code in the pictures although I didn't bother solving it. (If I even could have =) ) But putting those letters between Calder and his friend in code and then making them important plot points was really annoying. I just wasn't going to spend the time to write those out letter for letter and just gleaned what I could from the kids' comments after. I bet some kids would love it, but I bet most just skip it like I did.
The two protagonists are very likable and I was interested in the glowingly positive representation of the Chicago School constructivist education model. The problem here is a common one in YA, but magnified in this book I think. The kids are too curious and diligent. I can believe the overly brave, adventurous kids in most YA more than I can believe in all these kids reading thick books and articles by themselves about obscure topics their teacher leads them to. And then the two philosophize about the meaning of of love, life, "What is art?" and coincidence. Maybe I'm too cynical about America's youth, but I just don't see it. And then the plot point where the general public rouses from their apathy and gets excited about Vermeer's art and the attribution of possible forgeries--I buy that even less.
But I liked the story and many of the characters and would give it an average 3 stars if it weren't for the random mysticalness thrown in too. The boy gets messages from his pentominoes and two characters literally talk with the missing painting in their minds so clearly that they can write down her words. Not to mention a looong, wordy conclusion. So an OK book that falls short of its potential in my opinion.
Oh yea, one more complaint. I think the code breaking is clever and enjoyed looking at the code in the pictures although I didn't bother solving it. (If I even could have =) ) But putting those letters between Calder and his friend in code and then making them important plot points was really annoying. I just wasn't going to spend the time to write those out letter for letter and just gleaned what I could from the kids' comments after. I bet some kids would love it, but I bet most just skip it like I did.
March 1, 2012
Chasing Vermeer, by Blue Balliet and Illustrated by Brett Hellquist,is a fascinating mystery novel that continually draws readers in. In this respect it is a very interactive novel. For starters the two main characters, Calder Pillay and Petra Andalee, are perceived to be extremely geeky. However, they both realize that they have many common interests such as both liking blue M & M's, and end up becoming great friends. Their quirks have an appeal that readers cannot help but like. Calder and Petra overhear that a Vermeer painting has been stolen. A letter came out in the local newspaper from the thief who stole the painting saying it would give it back under certain circumstances. Since they are both interested in his works, the two six graders go out and start trying to solve the mystery. They eventually in the end solve the mystery of a stolen painting ("A Lady Writing") by the famous Johannes Vermeer. The two new friends team up together and break codes in newspapers and finally end up saving the painting. The thief is found out to be Xavier Glitts. He was found dead by the police after he had a heart attack.
I found this book to not only be extremely interesting to grade school children, but also very educational. For one, as the students read along they try and solve the mystery along with Calder and Petra. Readers are continually learning more about Vermeer than they realize. Also, students learn good team work skills and can model them after the friendship of Calder and Petra. Children also can develop their problem solving skills by reading this novel. As a teacher, I would try and develop a lesson for my students that used some of the same codes used in the novel. This would be a very exciting lesson for children, but also would be helpful to assist them in the reading of the novel. It would also allow them to apply what they learned in the class to the novel.
I found this book to not only be extremely interesting to grade school children, but also very educational. For one, as the students read along they try and solve the mystery along with Calder and Petra. Readers are continually learning more about Vermeer than they realize. Also, students learn good team work skills and can model them after the friendship of Calder and Petra. Children also can develop their problem solving skills by reading this novel. As a teacher, I would try and develop a lesson for my students that used some of the same codes used in the novel. This would be a very exciting lesson for children, but also would be helpful to assist them in the reading of the novel. It would also allow them to apply what they learned in the class to the novel.
August 7, 2015
Chasing Vermeer is a fun children's book, easy to read, with pictures that involve some thought, if you want to put that thought into it. (I am lazy, I did not.) I have some overall questions about the tack the book takes on Charles Fort and how it veers a little bit into magic without ever exploring that, but hey, a children's book that might introduce kids to Charles Fort? I'm pretty much in.
Note: The rest of this review has been withdrawn due to the changes in Goodreads policy and enforcement. You can read why I came to this decision here.
In the meantime, you can read the entire review at Smorgasbook
Note: The rest of this review has been withdrawn due to the changes in Goodreads policy and enforcement. You can read why I came to this decision here.
In the meantime, you can read the entire review at Smorgasbook
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