Nick of Time: A Novel [Hardcover]

Anne Lindbergh (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 1994 | Age Level: 10 and up

Jericho and his friends, Alison and Bunny, follow a mysterious boy named Nick back through the wall of the kitchen into a strange world of the future.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Jericho, age 13, lives in New Hampshire with his father and his eight-year-old sister, Maple. Theirs is no ordinary home: Dad, aka Fugleman ("in German, it means some kind of leader"), turned it into a progressive school shortly after Maple's birth--when the siblings' mother abruptly deserted them. Jericho meets Nick, a blond, blase fellow who transports himself from the year 2094 via a height chart on the kitchen wall. Visiting Nick's time, Jericho enters a dull, albeit strange era (uniformity is key, yet men wear makeup). Lindbergh ( Travel Far, Pay No Fare ) aims for witty and cerebral in Jericho's first-person narration and in the dialogue, but her attempts fall short. For example, the copious supply of footnotes, which clarify minor story points, proves more annoying than informative ("If you're expecting me to tell you what the roach tasted like, forget it. I didn't ask Maple because I didn't want to know"). Although time-travel is a popular motif with the target audience, this work may not fly. Ages 8-12.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From School Library Journal

Grade 5-9-Jericho, 13, is startled to see a strange boy standing in the kitchen at Mending Wall, the school his father operates out of their New Hampshire home. Then the boy, Nick, backs into the kitchen wall and vanishes! It turns out that he comes from the year 2094, and the wall is a gate to the future and back. But only four people are able to use it: Jericho, Nick, and two Mending Wall students, Alison and Bunny. Alison, unhappy because her jet-setting mother has remarried and wants to remove her from the school, finds herself drawn to Nick's time. While Jericho, who has a crush on her, schemes to keep her from leaving, she plans her escape into the future, where she will become a member of Nick's family. In the meantime, Jericho grows closer to Bunny, and the two cooperate to cover Alison's tracks when she disappears. The fast pace and fresh, funny delivery make this time-travel story appealing. Jericho's irreverent, typically adolescent attitude toward life (and adult authority figures) will create immediate rapport with the book's intended audience. His asides to readers, which are found in footnotes scattered through the text, are both enlightening and amusing. A must-read for fans of light fantasy.
Mary Jo Drungil, Niles Public Library District, IL
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 10 and up
  
• Hardcover: 204 pages
• Publisher: Little Brown & Co (Juv); 1st edition (May 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0316526290
• ISBN-13: 978-0316526296
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.6 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,205,246 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4.0 out of 5 stars Something to Relate to!, December 10, 1999

By 

Desiree Wright a.k.a. Renita =) (Orlando, Fl (Originally Bronx, NY Baby! )) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Nick of Time: A Novel (Hardcover)

I think this was a great book! I am fourteen years old and I can totally relate to this book. It contains your average teenagers problems and conflicts like: family problems, violence, and most important to me, love. What makes it so interesting and eerie, is when Bunny and Jericho surprisingly wind up in the future of where they are currently living. How? Read the book! At first, I chose this book because I liked this guy named Nick, but i really enjoyed it, and I am so glad I chose it.

4.0 out of 5 stars Pretty Good, October 25, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Nick of Time: A Novel (Hardcover)

Doesn't live up to her other books but still very good.

4.0 out of 5 stars another hilarious Anne Lindbergh book, July 1, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Nick of Time: A Novel (Hardcover)

At an alternative school run by his father, Jericho meets a boy from the future. It seems that Nick has traveled through time and come through a wall in the building. Jericho and some of his schoolmates have a remarkable adventure through time, while his best friend Alison tries to evade going to charm school. The narration is hysterically funny, but the story has some weak points and this book is not quite up to par with Lindbergh's other writing.