Home Sweet Rome

March 15, 2013
Time-traveler Mira returns in a perilous mission involving the Renaissance, the Inquisition and banned books. When Mira receives another postcard from the past, she knows her mother--who continues to journey through time in an attempt to prevent a disastrous, potential future event--needs Mira's help. This sequel follows the established format of the previous tale (Lost in Paris, 2012): Mira must decipher messages left by her mother regarding a historical person and event while moving in and out of various moments in time. Transported to Rome in 1595 during the Inquisition, Mira determines that she must aid Giordano Bruno, a scholarly monk soon to be condemned for heresy. Before long, Mira is masquerading as a boy, transcribing Bruno's book for a prominent cardinal and mingling with the painter Caravaggio. Moss' elaborate descriptions evoke Italy during the Renaissance era, detailing the architecture and the art as well as providing small vignettes of everyday life. She also introduces another element of intrigue to the series when Mira discovers Bruno is a fellow time traveler. Devastated after witnessing Bruno's execution, Mira feels compelled to preserve Bruno's ideas for the future, devising a daring plan to save his writings. Mira's latest quest leaves readers pondering what other discoveries in the past await this dauntless time traveler. (author's note, bibliography) (Fantasy. 10-14)

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May 1, 2013

Gr 6-9-In this sequel to Lost in Paris (Sourcebooks, 2012), Mira, her brother, and their father receive a cryptic message from their mother, who is still hidden somewhere in the fabric of time on a secret mission. Mira's gift for time travel transports her to 16th-century Rome through touchstones, though she still can't seem to control how or when, and she hobnobs with famous artists like Caravaggio and his forward-thinking circle of philosophers and scientists. Moss's writing is conversational, accessible, and engaging. Small sketches dot the pages, adding to the book's charm and appeal. The historical figures are given genuine voices, and Rome's present and past topography leaps off the pages. Struggling readers within the book's target audience may find the blend of real and fictional characters, the fast-paced jumps between the present and past, and the theories of time and space confusing. Mira's Jewish heritage and stance against anti-Semitism are only briefly mentioned in the story, unlike in Lost in Paris, where they help drive the narrative. Readers will continue to root for Mira, an intelligent, creative, and vulnerable protagonist with strong convictions to do what is right.-Elly Schook, Jamieson Elementary School, Chicago

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