Ava Hilton – The Lost Track of Time
BY AVA HILTON; PHOTOGRAPHY BY RICK COOPER
One of my favorite books, The Lost Track of Time by Paige Britt, is about a girl named Penelope who dreams of becoming a writer. She loves to moodle and daydream but her mother criticizes her about wasting time. Her mother is a professional meeting planner and the schedule her mom creates fills every minute of Penelope’s life. She forbids Penelope from visiting their neighbor, Miss Maddie, who lets Penelope daydream and moodle.
Penelope realizes that the more she pays attention to time, the less time she has. She thinks if she comes up with a really great idea for a story, her parents will think her stories are important and give her more time to write. But her plan does not work. As her mother eliminates all time to moodle and daydream, her ideas disappear.
One day, there is a hole in Penelope’s schedule. Just as her mother’s pen touches the paper to fill in her empty schedule, the doorbell rings and Penelope bolts out the back door to Miss Maddie’s house. Over a cup of tea, Penelope explains to Miss Maddie that she has run out of ideas to write about and her mother is going to throw away the notebooks she had collected ideas in for years. Without her idea notebooks, she is afraid she will never become a writer.
Then Penelope mysteriously falls into a hole that leads her to the Realm of Possibility. She learns of the Great Moodler and sets out to find her in hope that she has the answers to Penelope’s important questions. In her journey, she meets Chronos, an evil ruler who controls everyone by making them Clockworkers and punishing them for idling. Can she break the spell of the clock tower, or will Penelope and her friend, Dill, become Clockworkers for the rest of their lives? Can she free the Great Moodler and the Fancies, or will ideas and possibilities be lost forever? Penelope takes a courageous Flight of Fancy going beyond The Shadow of Doubt and finds answers to her questions.
I love this book because it teaches us that anything is possible and that we need to believe in and make time for ourselves. Good ideas may not be the best ideas for us if they are not our own. And, most importantly, it reminds us that moodling and daydreaming are valuable in life.
About Ava Hilton
My name is Ava Symone Katherine Whitsitt Hilton, and my life is related to The Lost Track of Time. Like Penelope, I had a schedule for days and days until there actually was a hole! My mom forgot to fill it in and my life changed. Now I have more moodling and day dreams.
I am 9 years old, and attend University Academy in Mrs. Bruckschen’s third grade class. My BFF is Alyssa. Being part of the Firebalzz Band was so much fun this year. I played the guitar and sang backup when Rock and Roll Academy had its concert. I also enjoy running, gymnastics, piano, horseback riding, drama, and working as a mermaid at the Days Inn Beach. I want to be a fashion designer. Playing with my Bengal kitty, Marley, is my favorite thing to do.