Code Name Verity (Code Name Verity, #1) in Mock Newbery 2026

Jan 04, 2012 Monica Edinger rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Absolutely extraordinary. This story of friendship and war is over-the-top wonderful. The writing in every way is gorgeous from the elegant development of the young women to the setting to the remarkable plotting. It took me some time to read because it is harrowing in parts and I could only take that in small doses. A unique, completely original, and brillant work. My blog review.
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Apr 04, 2012 CLM rated it it was amazing

Shelves: ya, uk, historicalfiction, france, wwii, friendship

I have that tired, disgruntled feeling one gets after staying up too late to finish a book, then being sad the next day one didn't make it last longer... ...more

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May 23, 2013 Kate rated it it was amazing

Shelves: audible

I listened to this as an audiobook, which I highly recommend. The narration was astonishing. I could listen to both Maddie & Verity talk all day. I *did* listen to them talk all day. I loved these characters so much. I can't wait to read the book again in print form to pick up all the details I missed on my first listen-through. ...more

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Mar 17, 2012 Jess rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: historical-fiction, young-adult, printz-honor, world-war-two

This is the kind of book that you love from the beginning, where you worry about where the characters will end up, where you love every twist and turn and revelation, and where you trust that no matter how gut-wrenching the ending, you're in good hands with the author. Knowing and loving Wein's series that begins with The Winter Prince, and knowing the basic premise of the story, I had faith from the beginning, despite some knuckle-biting about wondering how bleak the story would get. I don't wa This is the kind of book that you love from the beginning, where you worry about where the characters will end up, where you love every twist and turn and revelation, and where you trust that no matter how gut-wrenching the ending, you're in good hands with the author. Knowing and loving Wein's series that begins with The Winter Prince, and knowing the basic premise of the story, I had faith from the beginning, despite some knuckle-biting about wondering how bleak the story would get. I don't want to describe the story too much and spoil anything, but suffice it to say that while the world is very different from Wein's earlier books, her grasp of character and story and mood is as distinguished as ever.

I was wondering, before I got very far into the book, what is is about WWII stories that captivates our imaginations so much. They're everywhere - kids books, teen books, adult books, movies and TV shows and all kinds of storytelling formats. Part of the reason, I think, is that there are so many stories to be told, so many countries involved, so many types of work that needed to be done. There's the battlefield and the political arena and the homefront for so many different countries. We know certain stories very well - soldier's stories and Holocaust stories especially - but there are still seemingly infiniate variations on those.

This one has a bit of the soldier's story, but these are women who weren't and couldn't be regular special agents or pilots, so there story has a bit more mystery. It's also partly the story of the homefront, and partly of occupied France, and partly of codes and secrets and spies. It may sound cheesy, but it is also, above all, the story of a friendship - one that wouldn't have happened without the war. It's rare to read a YA book without romance being a significant plot point, but this certainly fit the bill.

Source: ebook from NetGalley.

Review for Metro Parent:

“Verity” has been captured as a spy by the Nazis, and she knows the easiest thing to do is cooperate. As she writes her confession, she can’t stop herself from telling the story of her pilot friend Maddie and how they both came to be in Occupied France – but is she always telling the truth? ...more

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Dec 11, 2012 Celeste rated it it was amazing

Shelves: fiction, young-adult-fiction, wwii

This was one of the hardest books I have read in a long time, and also one of the most well-written. It is the story of a British spy captured in Nazi Occupied France during WWII and her best friend, the RAF pilot who flew them there. The first half of the book is written as Julie's confession extracted under torture. It is difficult to read because the descriptions of Nazi brutality are sprinkled in almost flippantly throughout the story of Julie and Maddie's friendship. I found it difficult to ...more

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Sep 07, 2012 Jennifer rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: hornbookhonor, strongfemalecharacters, youngadult, bulletinblueribbon, printzhonor, historicalfiction, survival, 2012reads, 2012-pub, pyriteshortlist2013

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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Jul 29, 2012 Ramona rated it it was amazing

Shelves: teenfiction, adultfiction

As I'm sure I've said before, I'm a sucker for WWII fiction, especially British WWII fiction, so this novel about a young female Intelligence officer who is captured by the Gestapo on her first mission to France (because she looked the wrong way while crossing the street) is right up my alley. She's forced to write what she knows about British airfields and planes, and ends up writing an entire account about her best friend Maddie, who is a pilot, and their experiences. Definite shades of Schehe ...more

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Jan 26, 2017 Michele rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: historical-fiction

A little slow to start, but then you can't put it down. Told as first person accounts of two English women working as pilots/spies during WWII. Intense and captivating. ...more

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Jul 27, 2012 Ellen rated it it was amazing

Shelves: historicalfiction, youngadultbooks, mysteries, adventure, death, books-that-made-me-cry

I completed two other books while reading the first 100 pages of Code Name Verity. I almost didn't stick with it, because it does start slowly and I am not a huge historical fiction fan anyway. I am so glad I continued to read. The writing is beautiful and I fell in love with the two main characters and their friendship. And the more historical detail I read, the more I wanted to know. No romance, no paranormal stuff, no future dystopia; just the passion of friendship and a vivd reminder of one ...more

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Jul 24, 2012 carissa rated it it was amazing

Shelves: teen-reads, teen-fiction-historical

Recommended Ages: grades 10 - adult

"In 1943, a British fighter plane crashes in Nazi-occupied France and the survivor tells a tale of friendship, war, espionage, and great courage as she relates what she must to survive while keeping secret all that she can."

Very intense book - I'm not sure why it's marketed to teens, even though it would appeal to some. This book could be read by adults and teens alike.
...more

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Apr 21, 2012 Rebekah rated it really liked it

Shelves: ya, adventure, historical-fiction, difficult-topics

I'm thankful for the good reviews that helped me plow through the (somewhat boring) beginning of this story.

It's one that is going to stick with me for some time. It's hard to talk about without giving much of the plot/story away, but, overall, it was an amazing story of war and the power of friendship. ...more

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Feb 21, 2013 Megan rated it it was ok

Shelves: listened-to, ya, historical-fiction, holocaust, award-winner

I tried. So hard. I tried to read it, I tried to listen to it. In the end, I could not connect with this book. I thought it was completely convoluted, hard to follow and dry. I know I'm the odd man out on this one, and I wish that I could have had the experience that so many others did :( ...more

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Jun 28, 2012 Susan rated it it was amazing

Shelves: teen-fiction, teen-historical-fiction

Wow -- what a GREAT book! I loved the characters, the twists and turns, and the story.

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Jul 15, 2012 Kate Hastings rated it it was amazing

Shelves: high-school

Middle and High School. WOW. This is a book to savor. Two English/Scottish women use their skills in unconventional ways to help the war effort. One, a spy, is captured and tortured to bring forth intelligence that could compromise the French Resistance.

The complexity of the story is what makes it such a riveting read. Details that first go unnoticed work effortlessly to tie everything together.

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May 20, 2013 Leslie rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: wonder, grownups, youngadult, favorites, historical_fiction

This is a remarkable book, going down as one of my favorites of all time. The characters, the plotting, the absolute cleverness in the way that it was written, will stay with me for a long time. It is the kind of book that I read slowly so I could catch every detail and delay the ending. I wish that this was also marketed to adults, because many people would enjoy this.

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Jun 19, 2012 Dest rated it it was amazing

Shelves: sad, historical-fiction, war, favorites, holocaust

I blubbered and sobbed my way through the last of this. I'm completely gormless. Kiss me, Hardy! Ugh. I'm going to go to back to crying now and I'll try to write a review later.

Notes to self:
-Anne Frank, Maddie comparison
-Atonement comparison
-Book Thief comparison (which is better? can I choose?)
-want to listen to audiobook
-I hate Nazis
...more

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