I recently included Click’d in my post of upcoming Children’s and Middle Grade Reads for Fall. Click’d has been on my radar for a couple of months, and I was thrilled when Disney Book Group sent me an advance reader copy through NetGalley. The synopsis appealed to me because it’s about a young girl, Allie, who is interested in technology and coding. Allie designs an app called Click’d which helps kids form friendships with other kids who share common interests.
Allie designs Click’d at a summer camp that is all about coding and plans to enter it into a Games for Good competition, once she proves how Click’d helps bring people together and make new friends. Her app quickly goes viral once school starts up and before she knows it, everyone knows who she is. She is famous in her school. But when she discovers that Click’d has a glitch, a big glitch, that could spell trouble for a lot of people, she’s forced to figure out a way to fix it ASAP or temporarily pull the plug, disappointing everyone and giving up her newfound popularity.
First, let me say that I loved that the protagonist is a female character who is into coding. I would like to see more female characters written this way, with intelligence and a desire to learn and explore and invent things. Allie was a great character and one I think girls could look up to. She was not only smart, but she was kind and, in the grand tradition of Disney stories, she learns a lesson or two about the importance of friendship and doing the right thing.
That’s not to say that this book was cheesy. It wasn’t. Yes, it’s a Disney book but it was very real for middle grade fiction. This book tackles friendships and how they may be strained by a summer long absence as well as the importance of trust between friends. There was also an interesting relationship between Allie and her arch nemesis, Nathan. Although they are competing against each other to win the Games for Good competition, they find themselves able to compromise when necessary in order to get out of a sticky situation.
Was it predictable? Sure. But that doesn’t mean it wasn’t good. If you are looking for a new read for your middle schooler or if you have a kiddo in your life who is interested in science, computers, and coding, then pick up Click’d. It’s a good story with a good lesson.
Click’d releases on September 5, 2017.
Kaitlin Scirri