Stitches in Time Travel, written by Peter G. Reynolds and illustrated by Michelle Simpson, is a middle-grade children's fantasy book that follows a young girl named Charlotte who is spending Christmas with her Nana. Charlotte is less than thrilled about her time in the old manor house and is quick to try to remove herself from repetitive stories about women with whom Charlotte wasn't even going to pretend she could line up. Given an heirloom of a quilted blanket, Charlotte soon finds herself transported from under its intricate designs. Now in a mostly familiar space with a totally unfamiliar group of people, Charlotte discovers her past and is able to connect with the legacies of her great-grandmother, grandmother “Nana”, and her own mother in ways she never imagined possible.

Stitches in Time Travel is a book that is incredibly easy to get on board with. Peter G. Reynolds writes with fantastically descriptive prose that is age-appropriate but still miles ahead of so many other middle-grade stories I've found. More than just a story of Charlotte, Reynolds walks us through privilege and class, war, and discord within families that cast the mold of entire futures when those same children become adults themselves. The illustrations by Michelle Simpson complement the writing well, bringing pieces of the story to life through original sketches. As a parent with a family legacy that spans these same generations, I found the book carried a great deal of weight as I read it to my own little Charlotte who simply has a different name. As all beautiful stories do, this has gorgeous takeaways that are worthy of embroidery on their own quilts. Without one of our own though, I foresee this book being read for many Christmases to come.

Stitches in Time Travel: A Magical Trip Through Time Kids Book by Peter G. Reynolds tells the story of a young girl, Charlotte, and her younger sister, Beatrix, who have to spend Christmas at her grandmother’s (Nana) large old, ramshackle home. On Christmas Eve, Nana cajoles Charlotte into listening to one of her tales of when she was young. Reluctantly, Charlotte listens to how every girl in their family, when she was ten years old, would sew another patch onto the family’s patchwork blanket. Declining to help her Nana add another patch that very night, which would ensure a visit by the Christmas Angel, Charlotte retires to her room with the quilt. When she falls asleep under it, she returns in time to visit her great-grandmother (in Victorian times), her grandmother (in a bomb shelter during World War II), and her mother (at a time of strained relations between her mother’s parents), as young girls themselves.

Reynolds has chosen to depict the evolving scenes very much in terms of the people present in them. For instance, when Charlotte visits her great-grandmother in Victorian times, the portrayal of how the kitchen maids speak to each other, and to the housekeeper, is very evocatively done, clearly showing the class distinctions of the time. The strains of war on those hiding in the bomb shelter, and the sheer grime and grittiness of it all, are poignantly displayed in the scene with her grandmother. In the scene with Charlotte’s mother, the domestic conflict between Charlotte’s parents is graphically expressed through the slamming of the car door outside by her father, as he leaves after an argument with his wife.

Peter G. Reynolds’ illustrated Stitches in Time Travel is a delight for anyone (and especially for any child) who appreciates (family) history. Focusing very much on the relationship that Charlotte is able to establish with each woman in the brief amount of time that she is given to visit them, the surrounding context in each case is drawn with care. Apart from the main story itself, Stitches in Time Travel serves as a restrained commentary on the evolution of society over time. I found that both levels of writing worked well for me, with Reynolds’ style being warm and compassionate throughout. Stitches in Time Travel is highly recommended, not only for 7 to 12-year-olds but for a wider audience as well.