Review Detail

Fans of Avalon (by Shelly Roberts) will be sure to like Cunninghams Cynthias Attic series. Gus and Cynthia are just about as opposite as night and day. Gus (Augusta Lee, but dont you dare call her that) is a tomboy with a good appetite and a penchant for climbing trees. Cynthia is a more genteel girl and not nearly as adventuresome. But its Cynthias attic that sets them off on an adventure of a lifetime.

At first, its the old trunk in the attic (and the ancient clothes therein) that catapult them back in time to the days when their grandmothers were little girls. In fact, they run into their great-grandmothers, who think they are their grandmothers (just think about it a minute, youll get it)!

While exploring and trying (somewhat unsuccessfully) to stay out of trouble, they discover that Clara, Cynthias grandmother, once lost her Aunt Belles beautiful locket and has been upset about it ever since. They vow to go back and make sure that doesnt happen this time around.

The mystery gets even bigger once the locket is safe again; what really happened to Aunt Belle? Why did she really disappear? Can they reunite the family? The girls travel back and forth in time and even travel on an old ocean liner (where they meet a young ghost and ultimately save Aunt Belle).

Suspension of disbelief is key to enjoying this quick read, but I dont anticipate it being a problem for the young girls this book is targeted towards. Readers aged 8 and up will appreciate the friendship between Gus and Cynthia and eagerly turn the pages to find out what mess they will get into next.

The end of the book sets up the next one and is bound to hook readers to the series (I understand the next book comes out this year).