Ready for a time travel/historical fiction book? Let's go back in time to 1999!
Was I the best version of myself today? this is a question Michael ask himself everyday. Michael is living in Delaware in the summer of 1999. The fears of Y2K are looming and Michael feels like he must prepare for the worse case scenario. One day Michael and his babysitter, Gabby, come across a teen who seems a bit out of place, his clothes are strange, and he claims he is from 200 years into the future. How did it get here? A sibling argument. Ridge just had to prove his brother wrong and ends up using the time machine his mother has been working on to prove a point. Now in the 1999s he wants to see a few things before he decides to go back, but time travel is complicated and the machine that brought him here is no longer working properly. Could Ridge be stuck in 1999 forever? Will Ridge tell Michael what happens with Y2K? Read this fun middle grade read from award winning author Erin Entrada Kelly. 3.5 Stars

As a fan of Erin Entrada Kelly's other books, I really wanted to like this one. I love the idea that readers today are asked to consider that they are living through historical moments whose significance may only be understood in the far future. However, it felt like all the references to 1999 were for adults not children. I can't see any of my students enjoying this book.

Absolutely beautiful and heartwarming story. The characters are relatable and loveable. Appreciated the realism in the anxiety depictions. The time travel added an element of fun, but it's really the amazing characters that make this one something you need to pick up.

The First State of Being has an interesting premise -- it's just before Y2K and Michael Rosario is super anxious about the impending crisis (he just knows things won't go well). At the same time, he and his babysitter meet a boy who claims to be from the future. I enjoyed this book but not as much as Erin Entrada Kelly's previous works. I'm not sure it will appeal to students.

I listened to the audiobook with the actual narrator (not voice galley) and enjoyed it.

I really enjoyed this book! This book centers around a storyline of time travel but mixed in between the pages are stories about love, love of family, love of friends and living “your one precious life”. It’s a thought-provoking and engaging read.

2.5 stars, rounding down to 2. Interesting premise, but somehow, the execution never really worked for me. I can see others liking this, but it was only just okay for me.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a digital ARC of this book in exchange for my honest thoughts about it.

It’s not always easy to live in the moment, something Michael Rosario knows all too well. But when his delicate world is disrupted by a visitor from the future, he soon realizes that everything he thought was important might not be what really matters. This book was full of heart and life lessons, and will make a fantastic addition to any classroom library!

Stunning book with fascinating time travel science and endearing characters. Michael's fear and shyness are relatable, and it is wonderful to see him triumph in the end. Loved the interaction between Michael, Gibby, and Ridge, and there are great adult characters with Michael's mom and Mr. Mosley. The transcripts from 2199 are a neat way to convey a futuristic tone while also showing the increasing panic of Ridge's family. Great sci-fi book with a lot of heart.

Michael, the main character of the First State of Being, worries a lot-about his mom, who works three jobs to make ends meet, about his baby sitter, Gibby, who he has a crush on, about Y2K. It's a lot. Then one day, a kid shows up in his apartment complex claiming to be a time traveler and Michael and Gibby have to figure out how to get him back to his own time. This a fun read with interesting characters and terrific 1999 cultural references. I think kids are going to love this one!

I enjoyed this book more than I thought I would! The characters were interesting and very relatable. Every kid thinks that they can't make a difference in the world but by just living they can find their way and this book proves that!

A MG time travel story.
9️⃣9️⃣
It’s August 1999 and Michael Rosario lives in Fox Run Apartments in Red Knot, Delaware. He’s anxious about a lot of things: the Y2K crisis, his mom’s job loss and his crush on his babysitter, Gibby. When a disoriented teen named Ridge shows up claiming he’s from the future, Michael realizes that there’s more to life than stockpiling for the future. Ridge knows what will happen, but won’t tell Michael and as they try to get Ridge acclamation to 1999 and get him back home, he learns more about himself in the process.
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As always Erin does a phenomenal job creating characters that are relatable, even from the year 1999. Michael (not Mike)’s anxiety and worries happen with our students everyday and many will see themselves in him page after page. The last part of the novel where we see the future of our characters was superb. Fans of When You Reach Me will love this book.

CW: anxiety, death, grief

This is another example of adults probably loving a book more than kids will. This will be great for a class read aloud, but I don’t see it being a hit in free choice reading unless booktalked really well. It dragged for me a bit, which is surprising since it was short.

Erin Entrada Kelly is a gift to children's literature. I have enjoyed every one of her middle grade novels and this was no exception. Her characters are fully realized and relatable. Her writing isn't simple but not overly complicated, challenging the reader while being digestible. I think this will be a win for many young readers (and adults).

I loved this sweet sci-fi 90s Middle Grade book! In 1999, the sweetest and most anxious boy named Michael is trying to prepare for his biggest fear - the Y2K crisis - by stealing and stockpiling goods under his bed for his mama and himself. He’s lonely and scared, and I just wanted to hug him through the pages and tell him everything was going to be okay. He’s surrounded by (mostly) kind people at his apartment complex, like Gibby (his babysitter) and Mr. Mosley (the maintenance man and a good friend).

In the far future, a kid named Ridge lives in a world in which time travel is theoretically possible although ethically debated. His mother is a top tier scientist and, as a result of a heated argument with his brothers, he attempts to travel to 1999 - and succeeds, arriving in the middle of Michael’s apartment complex.

I was unprepared for how hard this book would tug at the heartstrings! This is more than a science fiction time travel book. It can actually be read at different levels, as a heartwarming story, as an inspiring tale, or as a look at what it actually means to live in the present. Time travel can be a difficult trope to pull off well for any audience, but middle grade can especially get bogged down in some of the theories (after all, this isn’t the Back to the Future generation anymore). I did notice that I was skimming over a lot of the futuristic timeline chapters (so. many. acronyms.), and I think they would also be frustrating and/or boring for middle grade readers. Thankfully, the 90s timeline does the heavy lifting in keeping the reader’s attention.

This is one of those books that I would recommend to adult readers, especially if they were teens in the 90s! The references alone spoke to my soul, but the characters spoke to my heart and will remain there for a long time. Grades 4+

I chose to read this book to support the author during a difficult time. And I have zero regrets. This book is fantastic. We all need to learn to live in the first state of being. Hopefully this book helps many kids get there!

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for this ARC.

Michael is twelve and is very, very worried about Y2K. This story takes place in an apartment complex in Delaware in the summer of 1999, and he and his sometimes babysitter (though he’s too old for a babysitter) have just met a boy named Ridge from the future. A quick read, this story speeds by in a heartfelt and compelling narrative, full of characters that stay with you long after the last page is turned. Kelly has always written stories about beautifully awkward children, and this is no different, as readers watch Michael fumble on the cusp of young adulthood. The grief of everyday people, a wave of 90s nostalgia all interspersed with peeks into Ridge’s family in the future through their log books and conversations, it come together to provide a perfect slice-of-life with a side of time travel. It is beautiful to watch Ridge shake Michael out of his anxiety-ridden state and into a “first state of being.” I love this book and I’m going to buy it for the school library. I definitely think it is a contender for the 2025 Newbery.

Time travel is complicated, for sure. I am still thinking about that crazy ending. I don't know how Erin Entrada Kelly is able to create such different characters so very well. The Gibby twist. I'll definitely be upselling this one.

The First State of Being is an incredible MG book that will have kids (and adults) on the edge of their seats! Michael, Ridge, Gibby, and Mr. Mosely are unforgettable characters that will have you laughing, crying, worried, relieved, and thinking about the relationships you have in your own life. This book is great for readers who enjoy sci-fi/fantasy, but also great for readers who prefer realistic fiction. Ridge is a character living in the future who travels to the best decade ever... the 1990s! He has fun learning about the 90s for a while, but has many challenges to overcome including illness and difficulty returning to his own time. Michael is a quiet kid who tries to stay out of trouble, but realizes he's been making some poor life choices. Through their time together, both Ridge and Michael learn a lot and both learn to appreciate what they have and focus on the first state of being. I highly recommend this book to all readers!

The First State of Being is a little more "sci-fi" than my kids and I usually read, but we have loved Erin Entrada Kelly's books in the past. I'm so glad I gave this one a go! I was a little older than Gibby in the summer of 1999, so this brought back a lot of memories of that time period in my life. (Note to Ms. Kelly: the Dale Earnhardt reference during the Eloise was a bit jarring when I realized what Ridge *didn't* say -- well done!)

I loved how this one wrapped up so beautifully, weaving all the loose ends together. I think I'll want to do this one together as a read-aloud or listen to the audiobook when we get to that section of American History later this spring so I can see the look on their faces (and explain all the references!).

4 stars

This is another great effort from a proven middle grade author.

Despite the fact that it's his birthday and it's even 1999, Michael, the m.c., is absolutely NOT partying like the song demands. Instead, he's experiencing some real stress over what he views as the impending Y2K disaster. More seasoned readers will LOVE the various period specific references, but Michael's stress is sure to bring up uncomfortable memories of how some folks actually responded around this time. The good news is that Michael's stress is somewhat offset by a crush on Gibby, his babysitter and near peer, and Ridge, a peculiar individual who just appears in their community one day...from the distant future!

The time travel elements, historical connections, and correspondence/writings from the future make this a unique (in a good way) middle grade effort, though they also result in a slightly more complex read relative to the audience. This is one of the main reasons I'll be recommending it to my students.

Michael is worried about a lot of things -- school, friends, his mom who is working three jobs, and especially the impending Y2K disaster. As a 12 year old, he knows he shouldn't need a babysitter but he doesn't mind hanging out with 15 year old Gibby during the summer since he has a huge crush on her. When Ridge shows up, claiming to be from 200 years in the future, they aren't quite sure what to make of him. (We, as the reader, know that he is from the future thanks to alternating chapters set then.) Once they believe him, Michael hounds Ridge to find out what will really happens as 1999 turns to 2000. Ridge just wants to see a real mall. This is a fabulous time travel book for grades 5 & up, especially the end. Highly recommended.