THE TIME MACHINE

A girl decides to build a time machine to make amends in David-Sax’s picture book.

Last Thursday, Bailey said “The Thing” to Nia that made her cry. Ever since, Bailey has wished she hadn’t. To that end, she tries building a time machine to go back and unsay The Thing. The trouble is, building it isn’t easy, and she needs help—and the only person who always has time for her is Nia. Thankfully, Nia appears to help her finish the project. Once they’re done, Bailey talks about her plan and sincerely apologizes to Nia, who accepts her apology. Smith’s illustrations are bold and bright, showing Bailey with curly hair, plaid red shorts, and a white T-shirt, and Nia with long black hair, a pink top, a gray skirt, and pink ballerina flats. The various characters are depicted with large eyes, beautifully expressive faces, and a range of brown skin tones. An introductory page offers helpful questions to discuss before, during, and after reading, and at the end, the author offers great tips for how to apologize. The ambiguity about The Thing helps to avoid distracting young readers with unnecessary details; instead, the work focuses on what it feels like to say something hurtful and to figure out how to make it right.

A thoughtful tale about how saying sorry doesn’t need to be complicated.