Summary
This middle grade novel follows a middle school fashion blogger named Rose whose mother just passed away and she is sent to live with her grandmother. However, amidst making friends and avoiding school bullies, she finds herself traveling back and forth in time to the Elizabethan court. Stranger occurrences then ensue that lead her through the mystery surrounding the identity of her father.
Likes
- Subject matter. I had no idea this was a novel that would be partially set in one of my favorite time periods to research: the Tudor Era. The author did her research about the setting, which made the plot more believable and provided the reader with an effective teaching opportunity about the history of the era.
- Protagonist. The main character Rose, to me, was a breath of fresh air; she had unique interests and talents, which I think makes for a believable MG character!
- Parallel stories. While I think this could be stronger throughout the story, I appreciate the parallels the author draws between what the protagonist experiences in her time travel as well as in her own time.
Dislikes
- POV change. I thought it was third person limited for the first hundred pages or so, but then the narrator focuses on another character and her thought process on occasion. I think the author did this to show how the main character did not know something and how she needed to eventually uncover the mystery from the other person’s knowledge. I just thought it was a little inconsistent.
- Info dumping. This can be a hard thing to avoid, especially in time-travel novels, due to the need for catching the reader up about information about the era/setting. I caught some parts where there were expositions of information that I think could have been spread out more or found out by the protagonist on her own (so that we can learn with her).
Author
Kathryn Lasky has written over 130 children’s picture, fantasy, and history books (many of which I was surprised to see on my own bookshelf!) A list of her books can be found here on her author website.
Recommendation
This would be a good starter novel for MG readers who are looking for time travel mysteries or stories about the Tudor Era. There are also quite a few references to gardening that young green-thumbs may enjoy!
