The Time-Traveling Fashionista and Cleopatra, Queen of the Nile

November 15, 2013
Continuing her winning strategy of combining history with fashion, Turetsky this time takes her 12-year old heroine to Cleopatra's palace in ancient Egypt. Louise, a dedicated follower of vintage fashion, thoroughly enjoys the Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton film Cleopatra when her substitute history teacher screens it in class. She's even more enthusiastic when she again visits Marla and Glenda's latest Fashionista Sale and is transported back in time to the Cleopatra movie set. Louise revels in the beautiful costumes and in meeting Elizabeth Taylor herself, but then she makes a serious mistake. Putting on an Egyptian-style necklace, she suddenly travels even further back in time to ancient Egypt, from which she fears Marla and Glenda cannot rescue her. Worse, Louise soon realizes that any servant of Cleopatra's lives in danger of death at any time. Her fortunes grow darker when she cannot find the necklace that will enable her to return to the movie set and eventually to the present. Will Louise have to live out her life in ancient Egypt? The author delivers another suspenseful and exciting plot that serves as an immersive history lesson for her young audience. She defies convention and depicts Cleopatra as she really was: Greek not Egyptian, and not terribly pretty, but highly intelligent and shrewd. Suspense, history and fashion add up to plenty of fun. (Fantasy. 8-12)

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January 1, 2014

Gr 5-8-Calling all fashionistas! Fans of this series and those new to it will enjoy this installment, which takes 12-year-old Louise Lambert to the land of the pyramids. Louise, a devoted fan of vintage clothing, is excited about finding the perfect dress for an upcoming party to welcome her crush and his family to town. Followers of the series know better than to believe that a trip to the Traveling Fashionista Vintage Sale will end simply with a great outfit. When Louise tries on a Grecian frock, she is transported first to the set of her favorite classic movie, Cleopatra. It is from there that her adventure truly begins with the discovery of a pearl necklace. When she tries it on, she finds herself in ancient Alexandria as a servant to Cleopatra. Here, instead of worrying about her next history exam, she worries about helping the famed queen evade sinister murder plots. Can Louise keep history as is it should be and return to her present-day life unharmed? Turetsky blends history with fashion and the normal happenings of a seventh grader seamlessly, making Louise's adventures intriguing and even believable. The beautiful, full-color illustrations of the fashion pieces are woven into the book and bring the story to life. Readers will be hard pressed not to want to learn more about Cleopatra after finishing this story and will anxiously wait to see where Louise's sartorial choices will take her next.-Betsy Davidson, Cortland Free Library, NY

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January 1, 2014
Vintage-clothing-lover Louise's third time-traveling adventure takes her to the Old Hollywood set of Cleopatra; then, inadvertently, to ancient (and dangerous) Egypt, where the real Cleopatra is her boss. There, Louise sees some spectacular sights and fashions, as demonstrated in Suy's full-page color illustrations. The plot is formulaic and the writing lackluster, but fans will enjoy learning about these two stylish periods. Reading list.

(Copyright 2014 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)