Hi everyone, I hope you are all enjoying the build up of suspense I’m planning for you this month of August. Well, as the title reads, this week’s post is a short booklist of my Top Five Tween Time-Slip reads to date!! If you want to find out which titles made the final list, go one, press the button below…
So, without further ado, here are my top five time-slip reads for tweens:
My very first proper time-slip read, Trouble in time by Adele Broadbent (Scholastic; 2014) is a story that set the bar quite high for me with its unique New Zealand landscape and language. We meet twelve-year-old Ben Jackson who is not happy to be turned out of his room when his great-grandad comes to stay. An unexpected turn of events leads Ben back in time to 1935 when Poppa was his age. The adrenaline-pumping adventure that ensues to find his way back becomes a mission to save lives in one time zone, memories in another and the future of an entire city. This interesting read is not your usual time-travel story where the hero gets stuck there until they accomplish something. It’s more of a time-jump from one childhood to another, but with a bit more danger than expected!! What I really liked was the idyllic New Zealand setting and how it differed in the great-grandfather’s childhood in 1935. If you are like me, you’ll enjoy the distinct change in scenery and the story!! The themes of friendship, and dealing with bullying, are ones that ring true no matter the time or era, and Adele Broadbent has created an amazing tale for me!!
Valentine Joe by Rebecca Stevens (Chicken House; 2014) was the next best time-slip read. Rose goes to Ypres in Belgium to visit the graves of those who died in the Great War. There, the name of one boy stays in her mind: fifteen-year-old Valentine Joe. That night, Rose hears marching and when she looks out of the window, she sees a young soldier. What follows is an intriguing tale of time travel to the battlefront of World War One in Ypres. An exceptionally written story of loss, love and moving on from the past into the future. Rebecca Steven’s description of the war zone at that time brings a very vivid picture to the mind. Sad and poignant, but a lovely story. Reading war stories, especially when they’re time-slip ones, takes the reader to a point in history that affected the lives of so many thousands of people and showcases their humanity. I felt that Stevens did an exceptional job of this.
Bridge of time by Lewis Buzbee (Feiwel & Friends; 2012) comes in third best for me. Edgar nominee Lewis Buzbee created a wrinkle in time through which two middle schoolers travel back to the summer Mark Twain spent in San Francisco. Best friends Lee Jones and Joan Lee have a lot more in common besides the twist on their names. Just before they embark on a boring class trip to Fort Point, they each learn their parents are getting divorced. Fort Point is too boring for them so they steal away to discuss this new Divorce Stuff. What follows is an afternoon nap in a lighthouse, waking up to find the Golden Gate Bridge gone and meeting a young man named Sam Clemens who is on the run from a mysterious stranger. Danger is everywhere and readers are kept on the edge of their seats trying to figure out if this story has a good ending or not!! If you’re after a fast-paced adventure with a twist of time-slip, then this is the book for you!!
My next fave is The House on Hawthorne Road by Megan Wynne (The O’Brien Press Ltd; 2019). This is another unique time-slip tale which is actually to do with a LOT of slipping from one era to another. We meet young Beth who is missing her life in London and adjusting to life in Dublin. When she discovers that a boy called Robbie, from the 1950’s, is slipping through time and into her house, things start to get REALLY weird! Beth and Robbie create havoc together, learn about their different worlds and manage to help each other when they’re down. This was a really good story for a debut novel. Beth and Robbie are memorable characters. It reads a bit like Tom’s Midnight Garden with references into our modern era. I hope tweens and their parents enjoy this read as much as I did!!
The last title is Time-travelling with a hamster by Ross Welford (HarperCollins Children’s Books; 2016). This is one that involves an actual time-machine. Not a TARDIS, but something that resembles a laptop and a tin tub from your local garden centre. Al Chaudury’s dad has invented one you see. It’s about to change the world, well, Al’s life at any rate. Al Chaudury has a chance to save his dad’s life – but to do it he must travel to 1984. This astonishing and original novel will make you laugh, cry, and wonder – and wish you could turn back time, to start reading it all over again. I’ve always enjoyed a good time-travel story and this one felt like several packed in one!! There are some hilarious scenes with his dad as a young boy and the school scenes were quite funny too. I liked the descriptions of Al’s Indian heritage and especially that of his grandfather. He sounded like a really cool person – in both dimensions he’s mentioned!! A fun adventure that I think both girls and boys will love!!
Well, friends, those are my Top Five Time-slip reads. Others have come but not made the list yet. If you have one in mind, I’d love to hear your suggestions!
Stay safe and keep reading
Miss Mahee
Miss Mahee's Library of Reads 