The Rhythm of Time

February 1, 2023
In this entertaining novel centering Black tweens by noted musician and filmmaker Questlove and bestselling author Cosby, the gift of a supersmart phone is a godsend...until it's very much not. Philadelphia seventh grader Rahim Reynolds wants to be a rapper like Four the Hard Way, his favorite '90s group, but if he's not getting bullied at school, his history professor father's strict anti-tech, all-books policies make things hard at home. Bestie and home-schooled neighbor Kasia Collins, in contrast, lives in a tech-filled wonderland and is the genius behind most of her home's innovations. A space-time traveling phone that uses secret government satellites is just the latest invention she tests on her occasional guinea pig, Rahim. When he accidentally dials himself into 1997, Kasia never doubts her ability to get him back, but time is very literally working against them as Rahim disregards her warnings and interferes with almost everything. He quickly befriends his preteen father, sneaks into a Four the Hard Way concert, changes familial and global history, and causes a wormhole that wreaks havoc. Kasia, meanwhile, must deal with government agents and two sets of worried parents while figuring out how to get Rahim home. A semisuccessful return to the present quickly reminds Rahim of how good he had it before. The conclusion of this charming collaboration sets the stage for larger stakes in future adventures. Art not seen. Time-travel hijinks and '90s rap references abound in a fun and funny series starter. (Science fiction. 10-13)

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February 20, 2023
Musician Questlove and author Cosby collaborate on a speculative adventure steeped with 1990s references and time-travel logistics. In contemporary Philly, hip-hop enthusiast Rahim Reynolds, a seventh grader, yearns to become a famous rapper, but his history professor father’s anti-technology stance stands in the way of his laying down or uploading tracks. His homeschooled best friend Kasia Collins, meanwhile, lives in a wildly automated household next door, and is a gifted builder and hacker in her own right. When Kasia gives Rahim a vintage-style phone that she’s created—and routed through several top-secret government satellites—using it teleports Rahim back to June 1997, three years before his long-disbanded favorite band, Four the Hard Way, broke up. As Kasia works to bring Rahim back to their present, attempting to stay a step ahead of government agents, Rahim ignores her warnings to avoid interactions in 1997, befriending his father as a young man and imperiling his timeline—and the future. Layering references to popular culture with speculative surrealism, the creators conjure an engaging love letter to the ’90s that gives way to a heartwarming story of love and support. Characters read as Black. Final art not seen by PW. Ages 10–up.