Language: G (0 swears, 0 ‘f'); Mature Content: PG (Some bullying. Divorce is a main theme); Violence: G
BUYING ADVISORY: EL, MS - ADVISABLE
AUDIENCE APPEAL: SEVERAL
11yo James is thrilled when his mom announces that she plans to enter the school's cake decorating contest, something he has wished she would do for years. However, his joy is short-lived as she also announces that she is moving out. James now has to navigate splitting his time between his dad's house and his mom's new apartment. He wishes desperately that he could live inside some of his favorite memories of when his family was whole, complete, and happy. He makes a new friend at school named Yan. When he tells her he wants to go back in time so that he can live in his happy memories, Yan sets to work building a time machine. As Yan works on the time machine, his mother practices her cake decorating and his Dad starts to rebuild an old motorbike, James begins to see for the first time that his parents are people just trying to find their own happiness. When the day finally comes and James is presented with staying in the present or traveling back to live in his old memories, he will find that the decision is harder than he first thought.
I enjoyed this story which weaves together space themes as it navigates the difficult topics of divorce and coming of age. As James reexamines his own memories, he starts to love and accept his parents in a new way. He also learns that memories can be unreliable. Sometimes we remember only the parts we want to remember and forget the parts we don't. The book dragged a bit at times but for the most part, I enjoyed it.
The book is set in Australia. James' mother is Chinese-Australian. Yan is a Chinese immigrant.
Reviewer: A. Snow, Librarian
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