On Etruscan Time - Hardcover

Barrett, Tracy

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0805075690 ISBN 13: 9780805075694

Publisher: Henry Holt & Co, 2005

Synopsis

While spending the summer on an archaeological dig near Florence, Italy, with his mother, eleven-year-old Hector meets an Etruscan boy who needs help to foil his treacherous uncle's plan to make him a human sacrifice--one thousand years in the past.

About this title

About the Authors

Tracy Barrett is a professor of Italian language and literature at Vanderbilt University. She is the author of Cold in Summer, a Bank Street Best Children's Book of the Year and a New York Public Library Book for the Teen Age, and Anna of Byzantium, an ALA Best Book for Young Adults. Tracy lives with her family in Nashville, Tennessee.

Visit Tracy Barrett at her website: www.tracybarrett.com

Tracy Barrett is the award-winning author of several books for young readers, including the Sherlock Files books, King of Ithaka,Cold in Summer, and Anne of Byzantium. Her books have been named an ALA Best Book for young adults, a Bank Street best children's book of the year, and a New York Public Library Book for the Teen Age, among many other honors. She is a professor of Italian language and civilization at Vanderbilt University and lives with her family in Nashville, Tennessee.

Reviews

Grade 5-8 -Eleven-year-old Hector feels invisible. His parents don't listen to him and don't seem to care that he doesn't want to go to Italy for the summer with his mother. When they get there, he begrudgingly finds himself enjoying helping at the archaeological dig where she assists as an Etruscan-language specialist. When Hector uncovers a strange stone with an eye carved into it, he is unprepared for what happens next. That night in the darkness of his bedroom, he realizes that the stone is glowing and beckoning him back to the archaeological site--and back in time to help an Etruscan boy named Arath from being ritually sacrificed. Barrett's accurate description of the archaeological dig and the details of Etruscan daily life are well researched and interesting. The plot holds excitement and suspense as readers wonder if Hector will find a way to save his friend. While reluctant readers may find the Italian and Etruscan words and phrases difficult to field, a glossary of terms for each language is appended. This is a good choice for kids who are interested in time travel or history.-Anna M. Nelson, Collier County Public Library, Naples, FL
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Gr. 5-8. Eleven-year-old Hector would rather spend the summer in Tennessee with his friends, but, as usual, no one listens to him. Instead, with the rest of his family involved in different projects, Hector will travel to Italy with his mother, an ancient-language specialist invited to assist an archaeological dig of an Etruscan village. Hector becomes more enthusiastic once he is allowed to apprentice on the dig, where he unearths a mysterious stone that propels him, through dreams, to Etruscan times. Through terrifying time-warp trips between now and then, he meets and tries to save a young boy from possible execution. Some readers may get bogged down with the time-travel logistics and the sophisticated background history, but Hector's frustration about being "invisible" to grown-ups will reverberate with most kids, and Barrett's vivid details, particularly the day-to-day work of archaeologists, will capture readers interested in ancient civilizations. Appended material includes an author's note explaining more about Etruscan life, as well as Etruscan and Italian glossaries. Gillian Engberg
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Edition details

• Publisher: Henry Holt & Co
• Publication date: 2005
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0805075690
• ISBN 13: 9780805075694
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 176