Charlie and Frog by Karen Kane is a middle grade novel about friendship and learning to really listen. All Charlie Tickler wants is for his parents to listen. Charlie's parents have left him (again). This time they are off to South Africa to help giant golden moles. And Charlie? He's been dumped with his TV-obsessed grandparents. Lonely and curious, Charlie heads into the village of Castle-on-the-Hudson, where a frightened old woman gives him a desperate message-in sign language. When she suddenly disappears, Charlie is determined to find answers. All Francine (aka Frog) Castle wants is to be the world's greatest detective. Frog, who is Deaf, would rather be solving crimes than working at the Flying Hands Café. When Charlie Tickler walks into the café looking for help, Frog jumps at the chance to tackle a real-life case. Together, Charlie and Frog set out to decipher a series of clues and uncover the truth behind the missing woman's mysterious message. Charlie needs to learn American Sign Language (fast) to keep up with quick-witted Frog. And Frog needs to gather her detective know-how (now) to break the case before it's too late.
Charlie and Frog is a novel with interesting characters and a great deal of emotion. At first I was not thrilled wit the ease of which adults treated Charlie like an adult, or simply ignored him. However, once the set up of the story was over I quickly because engaged with the antics and worries of Frog and Charlie as they tried to find Aggie and figure out what was going on. I greatly enjoyed their interactions and the secondary characters around the small town. I liked that everyone was so accepting of quirks and differences, and wish every place was that caring and open, even if they seemed grumpy on the surface. I thought the adventure was very well done, and it left me inspired to learn more sign language, I only know the basics and most of the alphabet at this point. I think a small guide to some of the signs used, or information about learning more sign language would have been a nice inclusion to the end of the book. I enjoyed the read, and was touched by the friendships found by Charlie, as well as the changes he starting working toward in his family. I can think of many readers that will simply adore the read and will be looking for more from the author in the future.
Charlie and Frog is a book that both delighted me and broke my heart. I loved the characters and the message, and found myself just as captivated by the mystery as the characters.
