Duet - by Elise Broach (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

★ "Exceptional.... Rich with facts around goldfinches and music, vivid descriptions, unique characters, and carefully crafted suspense." --Publishers Weekly, starred review

★ "Perfect for readers who, like Mirabelle, are sometimes spellbound by music." --Booklist­, starred review

A musically gifted bird, a piano-playing boy, and a real-life mystery involving three artistic geniuses

Welcome to the world of Mirabelle, a young goldfinch who loves to sing and dreams of becoming a musical star. She lives with her family in the backyard of a piano teacher, and she is quickly intrigued by Mr. Starek's newest pupil. Michael Jin is an eleven-year-old keyboard sensation, but lesson after lesson, he refuses to play. With the prestigious Chopin Festival looming at summer's end, how will he be ready in time? Mirabelle is responsible for Michael's breakthrough--to her own astonishment, she sings the Chopin piece he is beginning to play at the piano. It is their first duet.

Thus begins a secret adventure that will take Mirabelle and Michael further than they ever imagined--in music, in friendship, and in solving the mystery of a lost piano that could be worth millions. A house full of treasures holds the clues. There, Mirabelle, Michael, and their friend Emily will make an important discovery that links the great composer Frederic Chopin, the trailblazing author George Sand, and the French Romantic painter Eugene Delacroix.

A fast-paced, history-rich mystery will have young readers hooked as they root for boy and bird in this beautifully told novel, full of emotion and suspense.

A Bank Street College Best Book of the Year
A Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selection

Review Quotes

Praise for Duet:
An Amazon Best Book of the Month
A Bank Street College Best Book of the Year
A Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selection

* "Narrated by Mirabelle, a goldfinch with an exceptional voice, this soulful story set near Boston offers a bird's-eye view of three friends bound together by their passion for music.... Rich with facts around goldfinches and music, Broach's (the Masterpiece Adventure series) novel employs vivid descriptions ("It comes in a torrent, a rush of silvery notes cascading over one another"), unique characters, and carefully crafted suspense."--Publishers Weekly, starred review

"The prose is as lyrical as the themes.... Broach's latest invention celebrates the unique ways we each find to sing and the journey through which we turn our individual notes into the harmony of collective song."--La Crosse County Library, La Crosse County, WI

Praise for The Wolf Keeper's:

* "Broach's intrepid protagonists engage in sleuthing expeditions--moments Ratteree captures in evocative pencil illustrations of human interactions with the natural world.... A gratifying, thought-provoking tale."--Publishers Weekly, starred review

Praise for Masterpiece:

ALA Notable Children's Books
Bank Street Best Children's Book of the Year
ABC E.B. White Read Aloud Award
CCBC Choice (Univ. of WI)
Publishers Weekly Best Children's Books of the Year
Capitol Choices Noteworthy Titles for Children and Teens
CPL: Chicago Public Library Best of the Best
Florida Sunshine State Young Readers Award Master List
Illinois Bluestem Book Award
Illinois Rebecca Caudill Young Readers Choice Award Master List
Indiana Read Alouds Too Good to Miss Master List
Iowa Children's Choice Award Master List
Kansas State Reading Circle
Maryland Black-Eyed Susan Award Maser List
Nebraska Golden Sower Award Master List
Vermont Dorothy Canfield Fisher Award Master List

* "Inventive.... Broach...packs this fast-moving story with perennially seductive themes: hidden lives and secret friendships, miniature worlds lost to disbelievers.... Broach and Kelly show readers something new."

--Publishers Weekly, starred review

"This marvelous story is sure to be a hit."

--School Library Journal

* "The story involves a treasure hunt, but it revolves around the characters' love of music and the sense of wonder that it inspires . . . Mirabelle's lively, accessible first-person narrative offers a fresh perspective on the lives of birds and keen perception of the human characters. . . . This captivating chapter book is perfect for readers who, like Mirabelle, are sometimes spellbound by music."--Booklist, starred review

"Mirabelle, a goldfinch with a sparkling personality, narrates this engaging music-focused mystery con brio.... Broach gives her heroine true self-determination and emotional growth."--The Horn Book

"This story illustrates an appreciation for excellence and the passion to create music just for the joy of it. A quick and interesting musical read, full of history and mystery."--Kirkus Reviews

"This touching novel explores themes of family, friendship, loss, art, and music through the perspective of a bubbly but reflective narrator."--School Library Journal

About the Author

Elise Broach is the New York Times bestselling author of many books for children and young adults, including Masterpiece, Shakespeare's Secret, The Wolf Keepers, Desert Crossing, the Superstition Mountain trilogy, and the Masterpiece Adventures chapter book series. She lives in Connecticut. Elise invites you to visit her at elisebroach.com