Title: Where the Crickets Sing
Author: Rosie Boom
Series: The Barn Chronicles, book 3
Major Themes: Family Life, Farming, New Zealand
Synopsis: A family in New Zealand has fun working and playing together as they live in a barn while building their house on the farm they bought.
I just read Where the Crickets Sing for the second time (one thing I’m enjoying about writing reviews is the excuse to reread some of my favorite books!) and loved it as much as the first time. This book describes the third year the Boom family lived in their barn on the property they bought on the North Island of New Zealand while they built their house.
Where the Crickets Sing begins immediately after New Year’s Day. Mum, Ellie, and Millie soon go on a horse trek and spend most of a week camping, with their horses and a lot of other people and their horses, at the sea. Both fun and tragedy are described. The rest of the year is spent building the house, working together on other tasks on the land, and enjoying playing together, both as a family and with friends. As the children grow older, things change a little; Kate goes away to school. Millie continues milking her cow and keeping things lively with her brothers. My favorite story is the one about the cavemen. I do feel for Mum’s embarrassment, but it sure makes a funny story!
As with the other Barn Chronicles books, Where the Crickets Sing makes a wonderful read-aloud. The true story of a homeschooling family with six children, it is so well-written that your children will beg for more and more.
WARNING: The word “darn” is used on page 45 in chapter 5.
Age levels:
Listening Level—Ages 8 – 12, 10 – 12, Family Friendly
Reading Independently—Ages 8 – 12, 10 – 12, 12 – 15, 15 and Above, Adults
Links to buy this book:
Amazon: Paperback | Kindle | Hardcover
AbeBooks: View Choices on AbeBooks.com
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