Frozen in Time by Ali Sparkes

Sparkes, Ali. Frozen in Time. EgmontUSA, New York, 2010. 320 pages. $15.99. ISBN 13: 978-1606840771

Book Trailer from author's website, alisparkes.com

Got a love for time travel? The 1950s? Sci fi adventure? Throw in mystery, espionage, humor, and friendship, and you’ll enjoy Frozen in Time by Ali Sparkes. It won the Blue Peter Book of the Year award and the Book I Couldn't Put Down prize. These were judged by a panel of young readers, ages 8 to 9 years old. (Read an article on the Blue Peter HERE.)

Here's the story...

A brother and sister, Ben and Rachel, have no ordinary summer vacation. They stumble upon a hidden vault, a bomb shelter located under the property grounds where they are staying. In it, they find a girl, boy, and a dog who have been sleeping in a frozen state (cryonic suspension) since the 1950s. The girl and boy are actually Ben and Rachel's great aunt and great uncle, Polly and Freddy. The pair had disappeared years ago. Their scientist father disappeared too, leaving the world to believe that he must have been responsible for their death. But the newly awakened children reveal that their father was working on a top-secret project and had put them into the vault to protect them. Since he meant to join them and never did, the four children begin to solve the mystery of what happened to him and why he left them alone, frozen in time.

Thoughts...

This book holds plenty of thrills and laughs as the four struggle to go unnoticed in the town, library, and school (clothes, lingo, and meals are quite different nowadays). This element alone would have made for an entertaining book, but with its charm, warmth, and wit, I am Ali Sparkes's latest fan. She also delivers a fair share of thrills and chills, and perhaps some irony when the kids begin to race against time to save Freddy and Polly. The pair appears to be meeting the same fate as the laboratory rats that, well, let's say, didn't quite make it (I won't spoil the punch). Will it be too late?

Fabulous story!

Link to Ali Sparkes's site HERE.