I liked this one, but it was just too short for my satisfaction (glad I had the sequel on hand already). It’s a middle-grade level book, with fairly large text and short chapters, which was great for my still-easily-taxed brain. Aleca is almost ten and feeling down because she’s not particularly skilled or talented in any one thing. Then one day at school something very strange happens- everyone around her freezes, as if time had stopped (it did). Aleca feels like she made this happen, but how? At first she uses her newfound ability to play pranks on people she doesn’t like, sleep in extra, finish homework last-minute, and (gasp) cheat on an exam. Soon regrets all (well, most) of that, especially when her eccentric great-aunt arrives for an unexpected visit. Aunt Zephyr explains what’s going on and warns her not to freeze time again, that it can have dangerous consequences. But of course Aleca is sorely tempted to do it again. Nothing bad can happen if she uses it for good, to save someone, right . . . ? Wrong!
Fun, but just when it got more interesting, the narrative stopped on kind of a cliffhanger- Aleca’s birthday party coming up, which I was particularly interested in, and she suddenly discovers maybe someone else knows about her ability (which is supposed to be kept strictly secret). So I started reading book two right away.
Borrowed from the public library.
