Parents' Guide to Out of Time (1996)

Book Caroline B. Cooney Historical Fiction 1996
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Common Sense Media Review

By Monica Wyatt , based on child development research. How do we rate?

age 13+

A preposterous but entertaining yarn.

Parents Need to Know

Why Age 13+?

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age 13+

Based on 1 parent review

 

 

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age 17+

Based on 1 kid review

 

 

See all 1 kid review

What's the Story?

In the sequel to Both Sides of Time, Annie is now back in the present. She soon travels back in time. The simplistic, breathless plot is pulpy but entertaining, and will painlessly leave an impression of social conditions during the 19th century.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say ( 1 ):
Kids say ( 1 ):

The cliffhanger ending of Both Sides of Time forgotten, Annie begins this book in the present; this will disappoint readers who left the first book eager to find Annie in a different time. Nevertheless, fans will love the escape thriller that follows.

Complete with irredeemably evil villains and a kind, innocent girl imprisoned in the asylum only because she was born ugly, the story won't tax readers' brains to distinguish the good guys from the bad; the characters are all one-dimensional. The ridiculous story could come from an early silent movie. Yet readers will learn even more about the restrictions against women in the late 19th century and other inequities of the time than they learned from the first book.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about the restrictions against women and girls in the 19th century. What has changed since then? Do you think boys and girls (and men and women) are treated equally today?

Book Details

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