Book Review: The Secret Life of Ms. Finkleman

Book: The Secret Life of Ms. Finkleman by Ben H. Winters

Cover Art by Sam Nielson
Cover Design by Alison Klapthor

Edition: Hardcover

Description:

Ms. Finkleman is just our boring old music teacher. Or is she?

It all started with a Special Project: Solve a mystery in your own life.

For seventh grader Bethesda Fielding, one mystery is too tempting to ignore. She’s convinced that her mousy Music Fundamentals teacher is hiding a secret life. But no one is prepared for what she discovers. Ms. Finkleman used to be . . . a rock star? Soon the whole school goes rock crazy, and a giant concert is in the works, led by none other than timid Ms. Finkleman!

But is the case really closed or could there be even more to the story of Ms. Finkleman? With the help of her rock-obsessed classmate, Tenny Boyer, Bethesda won’t stop until she solves this mystery once and for all!





Rating: 4 stars

Review:

Music, mystery, student and school life merge seamlessly in The Secret Life of Ms. Finkleman which follows as seventh grade student Bethesda Fielding uncovers an interesting mystery about Ms. Ida Finkleman. At Mary Todd Lincoln Middle School, Ms. Finkleman is a shy, quiet and boring music teacher that no one ever pays any attention to. However, that will soon change when Bethesda decides to uncover the mystery of the music teacher for her seventh grade Social Studies Special Projects assignment.

The assignment was to find a mystery in their lives and solve it and that's what Bethesda set out to do. Unlike the bits of information they know about their other teachers, no one knew anything about Ms. Finkleman. She was a complete mystery. With determination, curiosity and a little thinking outside the box, Bethesda followed a few clues which uncovered a fascinating musical secret. Unfortunately for Ms. Finkleman it would throw her quiet little life into a tailspin. Her secret was used as an incentive for the upcoming musical competition, the All-County Choral Corral, which left Ms. Finkleman with no choice but to dive back into her Rock 'n Roll past. She received a little help from two of her students: Bethesda and Tenny Boyer, who is a huge rock fan.

This was an interesting story because not only do you get a glimpse into the lives of the Ms. Finkleman, the students and other characters but also a little insight about them. I don't think when Bethesda decided to solve the mystery of Ms. Finkleman did she really think of about how it would affect her teacher. Bethesda is smart but she didn't think of her teacher's privacy and that maybe it wasn't a good idea to use her life as an assignment. While I think Ms. Finkleman really enjoys her quiet life immersing herself in classical music, there was a small part of her that seemed like it was missing. It's another part of the mystery that would be uncovered later. Despite, Bethesda's meddling, I think getting back into Rock 'n Roll allowed Ms. Finkleman to reconnected with a time in her life she may have wanted to forget but turned out to be exactly what she needed.

Ms. Finkleman wasn't the only one redefining herself. Due to the musical selection for Choral Corral, many of the students were gaining both a sense of fun and freedom along with all the hard work of practicing. They were learning a lot about themselves and what they can accomplish. I found this story to be well-written and fast-paced, it's an interesting and humorous story about the centers around music, a mystery and life.