A Time Apart

by Diane Stanley

Book Overview

The last thing Ginny wants is to be sent away....But when her mother is diagnosed with a life-threatening illness, she's packed off to England to stay with Hugh, the father she hardly knows. Hugh is... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 068816997X
• ISBN13: 9780688169978
• Release Date: January 1999
• Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers
• Length: 256 Pages
• Weight: 0.90 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 5.7" x 8.5"
• Age Range: 10 to 14 years
• Grade Range: Grades 5 to 9

Customer Reviews

Summer in the Iron Age

Considering the popular "reality TV" shows, and the experiments of living in earlier times in programs like "Victorian House," this book should be flying off the shelves. It is the story of Ginny, a thirteen-year-old girl from Houston, whose parents are divorced. When her mother has to undergo chemotherapy, Ginny is sent to England, where her father is working at a university. Expecting to spend a comfortable summer in London as a visiting professor's daughter, Ginny is shocked to discover that she will join him at his "project" of living in a Celtic Iron Age village. If Ginny finds it hard to be enthusiastic about living with 14 strangers in one wattle and daub roundhouse, she is even less pleased with the primitive foods and her "job" as the baby sitter for 5-year-old Daisy. The book is well researched and historically accurate, and the backdrop of Celtic culture is fascinating. Additionally, the skills Ginny acquires in living the Celtic life, and the need to reflect on the stark differences between Iron Age and modern life help her to find her own balance. This book is a refreshing change of pace from most young adult literature, which suffers from a current rash of brutally accurate coming-of-age books and escapist magic-drenched fiction. I highly recommend this book, whether for enjoyment, school, or youth reading circles; it poses a variety of issues for consideration.

Loved it

I just finished A Time Apart and I loved it. It's about a girl named Ginny who is sent to live with her father in England while her mother recovers from cancer treatment. When she gets there, she finds out that she and her father will be living on a farm modeled after Iron Age villiages with no electricity, modern tools, or contact with the outside world. The book shows how she is slowly adapting to her new life and finding a different side to her father from the one she knew. I really enjoyed this book. I would recommend it kids/teens ages 11-14.

I LOVE IT

This book is truly fascinating. I recommend all you to somehow read this book. It truly a GREAT book. Listen to me. It is a good book. I won't tell you any details so that You as readers will find out. Oh I hope I can find another book like this one it was a great good book. I really loved it. Now Listen to me you might think I'm lieing. But think again. I not! So read this spectacular book. I liked it so much I bought instead of just reading it from the library. It is a truly fascinating book. PLEASE read it.

One Girl's Life Is Turned Upside Down Overnight....

A Time Apart is a captivating story about 13 year old Ginny Dorris. When school lets out, Ginny is looking forward to a summer of relaxation and drama camp. Then, when Ginny finds out her mother has cancer, she is packed off to live with a father she barely knows who is conducting an Iron Age project in England. Ginny finds herself living with a group of strangers in a replicated Iron Age farm, cut off from modern life. As Ginny struggles to keep her mind off her mother and get along with her father (not to mention the rest of the Iron Age community), she discovers that living in the Iron Age isn't as bad as she expected it to be, and even finds herself reluctant to leave. A Time Apart is a beautifully written book. The author describes Iron Age life vividly, so that you have a clear picture of the community in your head throughout the entire book. Unlike many other books, this one never has a dull moment; I often had trouble putting it down. The bottom line is, this book's a winner. Try as I might, I can't find any flaws with it.

One Girl's Life Is Turned Upside Down Overnight....

A Time Apart is a captivating story about 13 year old Ginny Dorris. When school lets out, Ginny is looking forward to a summer of relaxation and drama camp. Then, when Ginny finds out her mother has cancer, she is packed off to live with a father she barely knows who is conducting an Iron Age progect in England. Ginny finds herself living with a group of strangers in a replicated Iron Age farm, cut off from modern life. As Ginny struggles to keep her mind off her mother and get along with her father (not to mention the rest of the Iron Age community), she discovers that living in the Iron Age isn't as bad as she expected it to be, and even finds herself reluctant to leave. A Time Apart is a beautifully written book. The author describes Iron Age life vividly, so that you have a clear picture of the community in your head throughout the entire book. Unlike many other books, this one never has a dull moment; I often had trouble putting it down. The bottom line is, this book's a winner. Try as I might, I can't find any flaws with it.