The Time-Traveling Fashionista

Gr 5—8—Louise's love of vintage clothing leads her to answer an invitation for a sale at a building she's never seen before in her suburban neighborhood. She's searching for the perfect dress for her seventh-grade dance but instead she's whisked back onto the Titanic after trying on a gown worn on the ship. She becomes its owner, Miss Baxter, a 17-year-old actress traveling with her uncle. She enlists the help of the maid she befriends to warn the crew about their fate, but the two aren't taken seriously. Famous passengers are name-dropped but not fully developed. Fictional ones, such as the maid, fare better. Although the panic after the ship hits the iceberg is vivid, the plot seems to exist to point out details of the vessel and, especially, the clothing of the time. There is no endnote to distinguish fact from fiction. The writing is loose and bloated with unnecessary description and too much telling instead of showing. Marla and Glenda, the owners of the shop, are depicted in unflattering terms and referred to as witches even though the origin of their magic is never clear. Thirty full-color fashion illustrations add a lot to this book's appeal. It's unfortunate that the story isn't better written.—Tina Zubak, Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh, PA