Minty is a young girl spending the summer with her godmother, who lives opposite a grand, old house. Her days are filled with exploration, and she finds herself drawn to a sundial in the gardens, where she encounters...ghosts, perhaps? I loved the initial setup, but the middle section felt a little sluggish. Then, towards the end, everything seemed to resolve rather rapidly. There were many aspects that appealed to me, but I wish more time had been devoted to developing them, and perhaps less fo...

When Minty's mom, Kate, drops her off at her aunt's place in Belton, she's totally up for it. Minty's used to doing her own thing since her mom's always working, so she sees this trip as a cool adventure. She's hoping something exciting will happen while exploring Belton House, this huge, fancy place where her aunt lives. Maybe even ghosts! But when her mom leaves to go home, everything changes. Minty gets thrown into this crazy situation where she has to travel through time to rescue people stu...

'Light and Shadow by turns, but always Love.' My first time reading *Moondial* to prepare for the 2017 Newark Book Festival and a panel on Nottinghamshire's literary heroes. Helen Cresswell definitely earns that title. This novel reminds me of Philippa Pearce's *Tom's Midnight Garden*, playing with time slips and ghostly characters from both the past and the future. We experience everything directly through Minty Kane, the main character. Cresswell lets us see Minty's thoughts and feelings cl...

Minty is dealing with the grief of losing her father. While her mother works, she spends the summer with an aunt, but then further tragedy hits. Minty explores Belton Hall, a real National Trust property where her aunt is employed, and soon discovers she can travel in time. There, she meets a kitchen boy with a terrible cough and a wealthy girl from the hall who has a birthmark on her face and is experiencing some pretty awful bullying. This story was adapted into a TV drama years ago, and I ima...

Reading *Moondial* again was pure nostalgia for me—all those childhood time-travel fantasies came rushing back. After first discovering Helen Cresswell's story of ghosts, time slips, and bravery, I was surprisingly eager to visit country houses. Not every eight-year-old dreams of Chatsworth for their birthday, but I was determined to have an adventure just like Minty. Now, as an adult, I truly appreciate how atmospheric and spooky *Moondial* is, and how Minty deals with complex and frightening s...

This month's children's classic recommendation comes from Victoria over at the BookTube channel, Eves Alexandria, and she's chosen Helen Cresswell's *Moondial*.

I owned "Moondial" back in the '90s, and even watched the TV show adaptation. Helen Cresswell's story of Minty, Tom, and Sarah is one of my all-time favorites and has genuinely stayed with me. I decided to reread "Moondial" on a whim recently, and I still think it's absolutely brilliant some 25 years later! It's one of those timeless stories packed with intricate details. Everyone should read this book, kids and adults alike; you absolutely won't be disappointed. Highly recommend for anyone look...

This story centers on Araminta (or Minty, for short), who discovers she possesses a peculiar gift: she can see ghosts. After her mother is involved in a car accident, Minty is sent to stay in the countryside with an elderly aunt. Her aunt lives on the grounds of an old stately home, now open to the public. While staying there, Minty befriends World, a local groundskeeper, who tells her she must help the past residents of the home find peace, as they are lost souls. Minty meets these residents th...

Nostalgia fuels most of my rating for *Moondial*—it was a childhood favorite and a book that genuinely sparked my own writing. It's so wonderfully odd, atmospheric, and full of secrets. Unfortunately, rereading it as an adult, it leans a bit *too* heavily into the mystery. Very few of the questions raised actually get answered, and some really intriguing details that seem super important are just...dropped. It reads more like someone spinning a captivating bedtime story on the fly than a fully r...

Okay, so this is like, a *slightly* spooky story about a girl who travels back in time. Every night, she goes to this garden where there's a sundial – actually, it's a 'Moondial' – and she ends up going back in time to meet a boy and a girl from way back when. I honestly really loved reading Helen Cresswell's *Moondial*. Definitely a good pick if you're looking for a slightly creepy time travel book!