On Etruscan Time

Cold in Summer #2

by Tracy Barrett

While spending the summer on an archaeological dig near Florence, Italy, with his mother, eleven-year-old Hector meets an Etruscan boy who needs help to foil his treacherous uncle's plan to make him a human sacrifice--one thousand years in the past.

Genres: Fantasy, Middle Grade, Science Fiction, Young Adult, Historical Fiction, Time Travel, Childrens

172 pages, Hardcover

First published May 1, 2005

About the author

Tracy Barrett has written more than twenty books for children and young adults. She’s much too interested in too many things to stick to one genre, and has published nonfiction as well as historical fiction, mysteries, fantasy, time travel, myth and fairy-tale retellings, and contemporary realistic novels. She knows more about ancient Greece and Rome and the European Middle Ages than anyone really needs to know, can read lots of dead languages, and used to jump out of airplanes.
  Tracy grew up near New York City, and went to college in New England and graduate school in California. She majored in Classics and earned a Ph.D. in Medieval Italian. She was awarded a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities to study medieval women writers and won the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators Work-in-Progress Grant in 2005. She taught Italian and other subjects at Vanderbilt University for almost thirty years. She lives in Tennessee with her 6’7” husband, a rescue cat, and two Cavalier King Charles Spaniels.

Reviews

[April Helms · Rating 3 out of 5]

A young boy is first disappointed by the prospect of having to go to Italy instead of staying home with his friends all summer, but a series of strange incidences at an archeological site have him digging for answers. A main theme is independence, and of Hector’s struggles to get adults around him to listen.
It is very easy to read and follow, even with the liberal sprinkling of Italian, French, Etruscan and other languages; there is a glossary in the back of the book that helps with translation, but the majority of the phrases can be gleaned at from context when they are not explained on the pages.
I found it enjoyable overall. There’s a lot of historical fact stuffed in the pages, but it never comes across as too “weighty.” I think teens will be able to follow and learn. I think younger teens especially will sympathize with Hector’s feeling that adults never listen to him. I’m no expert of Etruscan history, but the Italian, from what I know of the language, is accurate.

[N.K. Aning · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very good book for kids. The author spins a very enjoyable tale.

[Aj Lawton · Rating 3 out of 5]

In the book, "On Etruscan Time" There is a young boy named Hector. Hector is 11 years old, Hector is visitng his mother in Italy. His mother is a archeologists. Onc Hector was visiting, his mother was in the middle of an operation. He was bored and spotted a rock. This rock was very unique, it wasn't just any ordanary rock. The rock had a symbol of an eye. Hector didn't think anything was that special about it. But all the sudden he got interested in it. He finds that whenever he is holding the rock he is traveling in time to when the Etruscan's lived in the area. When he is traveing he meets a boy named Arath who is 12 years old. Arath is the son of the priest and next to be the priest, although his uncle Cai is jealous and wants to kill Arath. Arath knows that his life is in danger because his uncle wants him dead, so he asks Hector to help him. Hector is sent back to present time and the opereation his mother is involved with is about to get shut down, so Hector must prevent the opereation from shutting down. That summer, Hector is switching between two different worlds helping his new friend survive and helping his mother.

[Hannah Ens · Rating 4 out of 5]

Picked this up at a library sale, saw it was on the 2008 William Allen White master list, figured it had to be decent, and ended up really enjoying it! Wonderful middle grade book that deals with feeling powerless amidst change and making your voice heard, along with a great story about an impossible friendship that spans centuries. It gets into the idea of sacrifice by ancient civilizations (namely the Etruscans), but it's on part with what middle schoolers already learn about the Mayan and Aztec civilizations. Plus it managed to make archaeology sound exciting to me, which is saying something. Great quick book with opportunities to incorporate social studies/geography/history lessons or further research; this can easily be read in one sitting.

[Jami · Rating 2 out of 5]

It was kind of slow for me. I picked it up because it was short read and had information about Etruscans and archeology, but I was kind of disappointed. I wanted more information about the Etruscans. It ended up being more of a sci fi book which is probably partly my fault since I didn't read the book description very carefully.

[Susan Chapek]

This author writes in several genres, and I happily read all of her books.

[Oletta · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great fantasy story for Intermediate students.

[Alvi Rahman Shovon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Easy going excellent novel.

[Shannon · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's a little funny how much the concept of "time" has been on my mind. When I started this book, I didn't even think about the fact that the word "time" was in the title or that I finished a book yesterday that dealt with saving versus using our time. Still, it was an enjoyable book that fits into the oeuvre I seem to be pursuing unintentionally.

I read this book because I enjoyed The Sherlock Files by this author - and, quite honestly, because the author lives in Nashville and teaches at Vandy, which I think is cool. The main character in this book is Hector, an eleven year old boy who has left his home in Nashville to spend the summer outside of Florence, Italy. Sounds lovely to me, but not so much to an eleven year old who is leaving behind friends and familiarity.

Hector's mom is a linguist who specializes in ancient languages like Etruscan, so they are in Italy to assist with an archaeological dig. Hector finds an unusual object and begins time traveling back and forth to the pre-Roman Etruscan civilization. As an art history major, I loved this. It was neat to picture an Etruscan community since we know so little about this ancient culture.

But I also liked Hector. Throughout the book, he feels like no one listens to him. He didn't want to go to Italy, yet here he is. He feels like whenever he expresses his opinion, it is disregarded or goes completely unheard. This made me think about whether I feel heard - by my loved ones, my friends, by God. It also made me want to be sure my daughters feel heard. I'm not the greatest listener sometimes because emotions can make me uncomfortable and because I can get too focused on tasks at hand and not make time to stop and listen. So this book made me want to be sure my children feel like I listen to them. Another adult points out to Hector that just because he doesn't get what he wants doesn't mean he wasn't heard. I want to be sure I do a better job of clearly communicating that in my own life. I can hear someone without agreeing with them.

While this book made me think about this broader concept, I should not imply that it's a deep book. It's not. It's a straightforward, fun read, especially for historical or art fans.

[LCL Children'S · Rating 3 out of 5]

Hector is not excited about accompanying his mother to Italy for an archaeological dig -- he'd rather be hanging out with his friends all summer, sleeping until noon, playing video games, and going to the pool. But he can't help but be interested in the dig site, especially when one archaeologist encourages him to help out, showing him how to excavate in a practice area that's not part of the official dig site. When Hector discovers an eye-shaped token, the archaeologist dismisses it as a modern piece, probably dropped by a tourist, and allows Hector to keep it. The token proves to be more ancient, and more magical, than anyone could have guessed. It transports Hector back to Etruscan times, where he meets a boy named Arath, the original owner of the token. Arath is in trouble, and it seems that Hector has been brought to that time specifically to help him. But what can one boy from the the twenty-first century do?

I found this an all-right-but-not-great read. As an adult reader, I was more interested in the adults' backstory than in Hector's time-travel adventures. And as far as young readers are concerned, the book gets off to a rather slow start. Unless they have a particular interest in archaeology, they're not likely to keep going for the promise of more adventure later in the book. It's not a bad story, just not one that's particularly compelling. --MT

[Amanda Murphy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found this book well written and interesting. It develops quickly but believably, has likable characters, and has some educational value. And everything turns out just as it should, which can't be overlooked. I enjoyed it a great deal. I'll be forcing my children to read it this summer (cackle!)

[rr]

Another YA gem from Tracy Barrett. This one continues with some of the characters and themes from Cold in Summer, but now Barrett has merged a contemporary setting (21st century Italy) and an historical one (Etruscan times). I was delighted by the way in which Barrett wove into her narrative tantalizing bits and pieces of what we know about Etruscan history, archaeology, art, and language.

[Cheryl · Rating 3 out of 5]

Hector is not happy to be spending his summer vacation in Italy with his mother at an archaeological dig. He has nightmares about Arath , an Etruscan boy who died thousands of years ago. Arath is begging for Hector’s help to save his life.

[Keri · Rating 4 out of 5]

A young boy joins his mom on an archeological dig where he finds an unusual rock with a painted eye one it. This rock brings him back in time to an Etruscan city where he is asked to help prevent a young boy from being murdered.

[Leane · Rating 1 out of 5]

I had to read this book for 6th grade lit. circles. The result? Now I'm dreading lit. circles. This book is super boring and confusing. I don't recommend it for students in the classroom, they probably won't enjoy it. It's slow, at times hard to follow, and just not worth it. Sorry.

[Patricia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Tracy Barrett's story transports readers to a little-known era of ancient history readers will enjoy learning more about. She handles the complexities of time travel in this story well!

[Cws]

JAR5-Bar

[Haley · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this book. It is a story about a boy named Hector who goes on an adventure to save a boy, Arath, from the past! I highly recommend this book!

[Leia Horton · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very educational about this people group in ancient Italy.

[Magda · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm not sure whether or not I picked this because I enjoyed the same author's Anna of Byzantium, but I enjoyed this time-traveling tale.

[May · Rating 4 out of 5]

9/23/11

[Sumaita Ahmed · Rating 2 out of 5]

-_________- I am sorry. This book is just too lame and stupid. I found it very slow. Ending was okay though. So many things in the book happened 'somehow'. I wish the writer wrote exactly how. :''((

[Oree · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book, it was amazing. It pulls you in a lot, and leaves you with A LOT of cliff hangers at the end of a chapter.

[April · Rating 4 out of 5]

my 4th favorite mark twain book