In Due Time Series

Three middle schoolers travel back in time on a madcap adventure with the help of a library book in this laugh-out-loud start to the brand-new series, In Due Time. Going, Going, Gone opens in the library at Sands Middle School where strange things are happening. Vikings burst out of bookcases, Albert Einstein appears out of nowhere, and is that Jackie Robinson tossing a baseball in the corner of the room? When Librarian Valerie Tremt tells three students that one of the library books, The Book of Memories, is actually a time travel portal, the kids don’t believe her at first. But when they ask to see a dinosaur as proof and suddenly there is a terrifying T-Rex in the library, they realize she isn’t kidding around. Now that he can time travel, twelve-year-old Matt knows exactly where he wants to go. In the summer of 1951, Matt’s grandfather Joe was on the path to becoming a major league baseball player. But at a 4th of July BBQ, Joe danced a little too close to the edge of a swimming pool and—splash!—he fell in and hurt his ankle. What should have been a minor injury turned out to be a career-ending one. Always the optimist, Joe used to say, “Because of the accident, I met the girl I was going to marry, so it was all worth it.” Matt wants to go back in time to prevent the accident from ever occurring, so his grandfather can have the career he deserved! But can he successfully alter his grandfather’s past without changing his own future? Only time will tell…

Grace sneaks onto Apollo 11 with a little help from some surprising allies in this fourth wacky novel, part of the all-new In Due Time series. “Graceless Grace” is the smartest seventh grader at Sands Middle School, but she’s constantly being teased for stumbling over doorjambs and knocking over lunch trays. And lately, the name-calling has been even worse. So when Ms. Tremt offers to lend The Book of Memories to Grace for an extended trip, she decides to go completely out of this world. She travels back to 1969 to stow away on Apollo 11 and become the first kid, the first female, and maybe even the first person to walk on the moon. Take that, teasers! Sneaking onboard Apollo 11 without messing up the mission requires some serious brainpower. Luckily, Grace has something NASA doesn’t—a time portal. She opens up The Book of Memories and assembles her dream team: Isaac Newton, Albert Einstein, and Hypatia of Alexandria, and works with them to reduce the cargo just enough to safely board the rocket. Apollo 11 leaves the atmosphere with 6,099,920 pounds of space ship and eighty pounds of middle school girl. Grace impresses Neil Armstrong with her smarts and dazzles the world with her spacewalk. After all, you can’t face-plant in zero gravity! But when Grace returns to the present, she’s dismayed to discover NASA has covered up her historic achievement. There is no mention of her in history books, no record of her spacewalk. Some things in history can’t be changed, explains Ms. Tremt, but people can change. And now, “Graceless Grace” has the confidence to redefine her reputation!

Luis takes The Book of Memories home and things get crazy in this third zany novel, part of the all-new In Due Time series. When librarian Valerie Tremt gives student Luis Ramirez a chance to go back in time, he knows just what he wants to do. He plans to go back to 1696 and see exactly where Captain William Kidd left buried treasure, and then return to the spot and retrieve it. He’ll be rich and famous! But when he returns from his time traveling adventure without any treasure, he is inconsolable. To make matters worse, his older brother Rafael doesn’t believe he time traveled at all. Luis decides there’s only one way to convince him. He brings The Book of Memories home to show Rafael, despite Ms. Tremt’s warning that the book is never to leave the library without her permission. Luis ignores her warning—after all, it’s just a book. What could possibly go wrong? Turns out—a lot. When Luis wakes up to find a Viking, Charlie Chaplin, and King Tut wandering around his house, he realizes Ms. Tremt’s warning was no joke. The good news is now Rafael believes him. The bad news is that it’s not going to be easy to get these historical figures back to their proper time periods, especially because none of them want to go home! Can Luis find a way to put everything—and everyone—in the right place before time runs out?

Ava learns to live without technology when she travels back in time to 1891 in this wacky fifth book in the In Due Time series. When Ava Larsen gets the chance to travel back in time, she knows exactly where she wants to go—back to 1991, when her mom had a chance to move to Hollywood. Ava is sure if she lived in Hollywood, she could be a star! But when the time-traveling Book of Memories sends her back to 1891 instead, it’s less of a dream and more of a nightmare. No Internet, no texting, and how will she ever survive without her video games and reality TV shows? Ava is not the type of girl to “rough it”—she needs to get back to the present, and fast! But maybe a little time in this distant past is exactly what Ava needs to learn to be more present in the future...

Kai travels back in time to Hawaii at the turn of the twentieth century in this wacky sixth book in the In Due Time series. When class clown, Kai Mori, gets an opportunity to travel back in time, he’s ready to make a big splash! He and his crush, Maria, dive straight into turn-of-the-century Hawaii to meet Kai’s great-great-aunt Akemi, his first relative to emigrate from Japan. But when bad guy, Tim Raveltere, follows them through time, it’s up to Kai to use his quick wit for more than just making Maria laugh. Will Kai save the day or will his great plans bellyflop as badly as his comedy routines? Join Kai and Maria in the latest wacky time travel adventure from Sands Middle School!

School librarian Ms. Tremt sends Jada and her friends back to 1977 to learn a valuable lesson in this second zany novel, part of the all-new In Due Time series. Now that librarian Valerie Tremt has given her students access to a time travel portal, they are all abuzz thinking about where they should go. But Jada doesn’t want to go anywhere special. All she wants to do is go back to last week and study for the spelling test she failed to make her parents happy. Why does she need to know how to spell? She’s going to be a famous fashion designer when she grows up. With a twinkle in her eye, Ms. Tremt says Jada can use The Book of Memories to go back and pass her test, but instead of going back in time one week, Jada ends up in 1977! Lava lamps! Disco music! Huge bell-bottom jeans! And everyone is talking about a cool new movie called Star Wars. Jada finds herself in the designer’s studio where her Aunt Katie is an intern. She watches as Katie learns just how important spelling can be—no matter what career you choose. And just when it’s time to head home, Jada finally realizes all the endless possibilities that come with having a time machine so she decides to make a quick trip to ancient Egypt to get some fashion tips from Cleopatra. But being in the past is so thrilling that Jada almost misses the deadline to return home. Could she get stuck in ancient Egypt forever?