Title: The Christmas Time Travelers II: The Professor’s Journey
Author: L.M. Haynes
Publisher: Clever Publication
ISBN: 978-1989942246
Genre: Illustrated Children’s Book
Pages: 26
Reviewed by: Barbara Bamberger Scott
Pacific Book Review
In this charming children’s tale, The Christmas Time Travelers II: The Professor’s Journey, four dogs, a time machine and a curious and well-meaning professor will visit ancient Bethlehem on a very special night.
Professor Malcolm McDougal lives in the pleasant, almost old-fashioned town of Coventry, in New England. Two years ago on Christmas Eve, his three furry canines – Lily, Benji and Karat – were transported by his special invention – a time machine – and took a remarkable trip to Bethlehem. Lily returned with a small scrap of the blue blanket wrapped around the baby Jesus accidentally caught on her collar. Now Christmas is coming around, and a fourth pet has joined the group – Jem, a sweet but very restless puppy. The Professor begins to imagine that he could also make that journey, to see with his own eyes what his pets saw two years before. He rushes to the costume shop just in time to garb himself in authentic looking shepherd’s robe, belt and head covering.
After he activates his invention and disappears to the past, the dogs, curious, hop into the machine. Jem’s excitement causes a paw to hit the start button. Thus they will all wind up in Bethlehem, very identifiable because of the bright star shining overhead, and all will witness the holy child and his mother being visited and adored by a group of reverential shepherds. The wise Professor will take two significant actions before returning to the present, demonstrating valuable lessons about the best way to remember his life-changing experience.
L. M. Haynes is both the author and illustrator of this engaging tale, a successor to his first on this theme, The Christmas Time Travelers. He has created soft, colorful drawings which bring the dogs very much to life, from their bouncy moves to their sweet, deep dark eyes. The pictures also serve to convey the mystique of that long-ago manger scene.
His book would make a zestful read-to, neatly written in simple language that has the power to keep the attention of younger children. At the same time, it can be read by older ones, posing some questions for lively discussion in family or classroom, about such issues as time travel, Biblical events, and the best use of our modern, ubiquitous cell phones.
