This is a realistic fiction story about navigating middle school. Emmy is new to California and the adjustment to her new surroundings starts as overwhelming. She finds a dedicated teacher in her life who sparks her interest and inspires her to push forward and be true to herself. It offers an interesting way to gain an introduction to the language of coding.

Aimee Lucido is our Kids Need Mentors author this year. As a class we read Emmy in the Key of Code and the students loved it. We learned a lot about coding and music while reading the book. The students really enjoyed reading the story!

What a delightful story! The theme of a 12 year old entering a new school and all the unlimited trials and tribulations that are bound to and will occur is evident in the plot of this book.
Yet, the story's presentation is so inviting. The writing in verse is fresh and invigorating. The theme of music adds to the plot's unfolding and the result is one of uniqueness and excitement.

Moving to a new school is tricky. Emmy has never quite felt like she fit in anyway; the music in her head refuses to come out. But in her new elective she learns a new way to do it, and finds new friends to help her weather life's problems.


I know I tend to be quite emotional, but I challenge anyone to read this sweet story and not tear up a little bit. Emmy is strong and smart, and sadly those things don't always matter. I loved watching the different characters grow in their own ways and become stronger and better versions of themselves by the end. Although I don't know much about Java, I followed well enough, and I imagine those bits would make perfect sense to most kids nowadays.

A great read.

Emmy and her musician parents move from the Midwest to California. The whole family struggles together to adjust to their new lives. The author sprinkles musical and coding terms and references throughout the story. She does so in a very poetic styling. This very unique story is told from Emmy's perspective and we get to know her thoughts and feelings and join her in her emotional discoveries. She loves music like her parents do, but she begins to realize it’s not her passion. Coding is. And with her teacher’s (Ms. Delaney) guidance, she discovers she can make music with her coding.

Normally, I’m not very drawn to poetic styling, but this book was different for me. I felt like the author did an exceptional job weaving together these unique topics and experiences, comparing Emmy’s experiences to different coding and musical terms and setting her feelings to songs. For example:

“If Ms. Delaney is our conductor then today we are playing a Mozart requiem.”

And

“I don’t think it’s a coincidence that “algorithm” has inside it a little “rhythm.” Algorithms are formulas patterns programmed into a computer and Ms. Delaney teaches me how to write one that generates music.

It sounds like hopping
like crickets chirping
and sparrows singing.
We tweak some numbers and it sounds like marching
like thunder rolling
and rain pounding.
We tweak it again and it sounds like swimming
and again and it sounds like clapping
and again and it sounds like the rays of sunlights
For the first time I know there's music in me.”

And

“I walk inside like I’m a chord resolving.”

And

“There are hundreds of computer languages but Java is mine. Just saying it feels like a chocolatey drop on my tongue and I spend the weekend on my laptop wrapped in a blanket fingers twitching at all the things I want to use this language to say.
Racket, Ruby, Groovy, Scheme,
Scala, Rust, Objective C,
Python, Pascal, Prolog, Perl,
Pico, Logo, Haskell, Curl,
PHP, CSS, XML,
D HTML, X++, SQL,
C Go, Hack, Lingo, Lava
Java Java Java Java”

I think this book will be intriguing to the reader, even if the coding and musical lingo is foreign to him/her. I was absolutely clueless about coding lingo prior to reading this book, but I found it a worthwhile effort.

Thank you to Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Children's Book Group and Net Galley for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

The title and the cover are what drew me in, but the story and the beautiful way it was told is what made me love this book. This is a story that many kids could relate to and it is perfect for school and public libraries. It is the story of a girl trying to find out where she belongs after a cross country move. There is something for everyone with this book. If you love music, coding, stories of friendship and fitting in, and the struggles that kids face you will enjoy this one. The story told in verse makes it that much better. Highly recommend!

Love music? Love coding? Love friendships? Love life-giving teachers? Love this book! Follow Emmy in her journey through a new town, a new school, new relationships and a new found passion. Written in verse (and code) this book hits all the feels. This is a great book about the power of passion, self confidence and finding your voice.

Emmy in the Key of Code is excellent on many levels. First, it's an engaging story about a girl trying to make friends at her new school. Underneath are many subplots and themes such as finding your talent, pursuing your passion, fitting in, being brave and dealing with loss. The gifted author writes about all of this in verse, managing to incorporate coding language throughout. Genius! I thoroughly recommend this book as an addition to any elementary or middle school library collection, especially those seeking STEM titles.

I don't normally enjoy books written in verse. It often feels, to me, like the author didn't have enough to say it couldn't form a good sentence. This book, however, is much different. The form means something, and as the book progresses the reader is treated to a glimpse into the syntax of computer programming.

Emmy is struggling to fit in as the child of professional musicians and as the new girl at school. It isn't easy when her choices for elective are two music classes, which she doesn't excel at, or coding, which she has never encountered. Going with the unknown, Emmy is able to learn and grow in ways she never knew were possible.

I am eager to share this one with my child, who is majoring in comp sci as an undergraduate. I also am considering reading this with my coding club at school.

Was given an advanced e-copy from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I loved everything about this book! The cover was so lovely and what drew me in, and I’m so glad I read this. I work in a middle school library and will definitely recommend purchasing this book.

Emmy’s voice was so strong. I felt her awkward new girl feelings and it took me back to the isolation middle school can cause.

We are also given a small glimpse into why the mean boy character acted the way he did, which I appreciated and would’ve liked to see more of.

Ms.Delaney was a refreshing teacher character, especially since so many books make the teachers the bad guys. I loved that she also had a storyline aside from just being the teacher, we learned a bit about her as a person as well.

This book did a great job of showing how versatile and varied our interests can be. So often the narrative is you’re either artistic or academic, and Emmy’s conflict between the two felt realistic and relatable.