Lily Tripp: Diary of an Accidental Time Traveler, by Amelia Tait

     The first book by British author Amelia Tait, Lily Tripp is a cute story about a young girl who is facing some challenging life situations - a bully, a crush, a bestie (or is she...?), an annoying boy who keeps annoying her, and...oh, every New Year's she wakes up in a different year! Not just a slightly different year, but a completely different century! Lily describes her time in places like Ancient Rome, but throughout the story she actually finds herself in 1621 and 1972 - two very different times in history. Everyone she knows travels with her, but only Lily realizes she is time traveling. Her friends and family exist in each new place, but they don't realize they truly belong in the present.

    The book is written from Lily's perspective (first person), in the form of her writing in her diary. Some of the entries are quite short, but it's tough to find time to write when you've been cleaning the chamber pots all day (there is no indoor plumbing in 1621...ewww!). Author Tait does a nice job writing in Lily's voice, so overall the book flows very nicely from start to finish. 

    However, the entire story centers on a few characters (mentioned above); a bully (named Georgia), a bestie (named Poppy), a crush (named Ollie), and an annoying boy (who never seems very annoying to me...named Joey). All of this is fine, but then there is the time traveling part of the story...and I'm not sure why. It doesn't really add anything to the story overall, or to any of the characters, in my canine opinion. Tait manages the different times and places pretty well, with one or two facts about a place kind of forced into the story unnaturally. But really this is a decent story about a soon-to-be-13-year-old who is trying to figure out her life. This is the setting of a lot of books for young readers like you, and some authors can turn that into reading gold, right? 

    Lily Tripp is funny and likeable, and there are a couple of laugh-out-loud moments in the book. It isn't a bad book, but not a must-read, either. I liked it, but a few times wanted to finish so I could start my next favorite read. Probably best for middle grade readers, but a late elementary reader could manage it, too. Warning: You may find yourself wanting to re-read your Dork Diaries books again! 

3 paws and a wag!