I had mixed feelings after reading this book. At first, I really liked the book because of its pictures. Instead of using illustrations, the author took real photos of student’s head shots and inserted these head shots onto illustrated bodies. It is an extremely different and cool aspect of the book. However, I did not like the actual content of the story because there were a couple scenes in the story where I did not find it appropriate for young readers to see and hear. For example, on one of the pages, the young girl is hanging upside down by the tree and the picture clearly shows her underwear. The text said “her panties” were showing which was completely irrelevant and inappropriate. I also thought the end was inappropriate for young children to see because it shows Garmann and one of the twin sisters kissing. The images are cool but not appropriate at all for growing individuals. The purpose of this book was to emphasis that friendship does not come with gender. The purpose of this story was to show readers that anyone is liked and loved as long as they are given a chance. ( )

This book was sweet enough, and I did like the illustrations. It's not a good fit for my collection, seeing as we don't have the other two in the series and I think reading the other two would help. ( )

It could easily be said that the illustrations are both the best and the worst part of Garmann's Secret. The illustrations are really innovative, original, and eye-catching. Yet for a young children's picture book, some of the expressions and distortions come across as a bit creepy, if not scary, to a small child. After reading another Garmann book, this one was a little disappointing. Perhaps something was lost in translation. When I got to the end, I turned the page expecting more, but there was none. It was like stepping off the porch only to find too late that there were no steps. ( )

Garmann’s Secret is the third book in a series about a young boy who experiences all the joys and trials of childhood. In this book, as in the previous title, Garmann’s Street, Garmann once again finds himself the object of bullying, but in both cases the bullying leads to unexpected pleasures. Garmann knows that identical twins Hannah and Johanna are not really alike; Hannah torments him, but when Johanna leads him into the woods to show him her secret discovery, a strong friendship (maybe even a budding romance?) develops. The illustrations, a combination of photographs, paintings, and collages, are at times both fascinating and slightly troubling, but nevertheless perfectly enhance the story line. Some may object to a couple of the pictures, but taken as whole, Garmann’s Secret is another winner for author/illustrator Hole. ( )

This story felt rather disjointed to me. And while my daughter and I both liked it, I think the illustrations were the best part of it. They are very original and I found myself paying more attention to them than to the story itself. ( )