Underground

Do you like the idea of time travel? I do. It is one reason why I wrote the Time Chair Diary.

The Time Chair Diary is a time travel series of books, that teaches history through an eyewitness approach. This witness is a time traveling girl. Her name is Ell Evans, and she is a precocious eleven years old when she sits in the time chair and takes off for 18th century America.

There are two Time Travel Diary books; Book One is titled Big Battles in Trenton. And book two is titled, Underground.

I have, finally, recorded Book 2 so that you can listen to it as you drive, sit on an airplane, or lie in bed at night. At the same time, I also updated it. So this will be a revised edition, with a new cover.

The purpose of the Time Chair books is to teach specific history. These are not grand historical fiction novels, that give you a panoramic view of an era of the past. These are more detailed views of specific events. For example, Book one, Big Battles in Trenton, is all about how Washington turned the American War for Independence, also known as the American Revolution, from a losing war, into a winner. How did he do that? He led the army across the Delaware, on Christmas night, 1776, and took back Trenton, and voila! The revolution was saved.

The second Time Chair journey takes place in 1854. Before the civil war. This plot is about the Underground railroad, and the fantastic Harriet Tubman.

The amazing Ell is our protagonist in both books. She becomes friends with the Old Man, who invented and engineered the time chair. There is also the other time traveler, Martin, who is always there to figure things out when they go awry.

And something always goes awry.

Oh yes, then there’s that dog, Plato; he also is along for the ride. In Big Battles in Trenton, we first meet Plato. He is a red and white Springer Spaniel. In this book, Underground, we are introduced to the mystery that is Plato. Exactly where does this dog come from, and how is it he keeps reappearing, even after he dies!

What is not a mystery is that Plato is faithful to Ell. They have one of those cosmic attractions that no one can figure out. You just have to accept it.

The segment you are about to hear is from Chapter 11, Home for a Spell, which is the final chapter of book two.

It is here that I give my philosophy about the study of history. And of time travel, which I use as a metaphor of the teaching of history. The teacher needs to be responsible about what they teach. To politicize history is an evil. Therefore, time travel is used as a device to suggest to students that they must be thorough in their studies of the past. I encourage people to read primary sources so that they get an eye witness view of the great events of the past.

My goal in all my historical fiction, is to put the reader’s feet on the same path as the historical characters in the story.

Enjoy this clip from Underground. Next week I will upload a full chapter.