School Library Journal Review
Gr 4-7-By Margaret Peterson Haddix. Jesse's mother asks her to take a daring journey outside of the only world she knows to help save the children of 1840 Clifton. Jesse realizes it is really 1996 and the life she has known is a cleverly reconstructed tourist site. (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Horn Book Review
In an intriguing and fast-paced first novel, Haddix tells the story of Jessie, a child growing up in 1840 in a small town. When children begin dying of diptheria, Jessie learns that it is not 1840; it is 1996, and she is an exhibit in a living history museum controlled by scientists. In a tense, satisfying narrative, Jessie escapes, retrieving medicine for the children and drawing public attention to the cruelty of the exhibit. From HORN BOOK 1995, (c) Copyright 2010. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Booklist Review
Gr. 4^-7. What if the costumed workers at historical sites really lived there, and tourists watched them through hidden cameras rather than from pathways? What if those workers and families were not allowed to leave, ever? Jessie lives in the 1840s, or so she believes until her mother sends her on an escape mission outside the fence, where it's 1996. The suspense and the cataloging of differences as they appear to Jessie are the best parts here. The resolution of the plot, which includes the revelation that the inhabitants have been used for scientific experimentation, comes too fast, but the quirky twist on time-travel fiction will keep the attention of readers. --Mary Harris Veeder