LitPick Review
WATCH THIS LITPICK YOUTUBE BOOK REVIEW VIDEO NOW!
Time Traitor by Todd McClimans is a riveting tale of misadventure, greed, history, and friendship.
Kristi Connors and Ty Jordan have almost nothing in common except that they both attend the same boarding school, George Washington Prep. And they both have the same history teacher, Dr. Xavier Arnold. One day, after Kristi pulls one of her many practical jokes on Dr. Arnold, she is placed in detention. Following a series of unfortunate events, Kristi discovers one of Dr. Arnold’s big secrets: he has been building and perfecting a time machine!
Meanwhile, Ty decides to do a little research on their teacher and discovers some disturbing news. It turns out that Dr. Arnold is the descendant of the Revolutionary War traitor, Benedict Arnold! Kristi and Ty begin to connect the dots, but not nearly fast enough. When another adult at their school turns out to be in league with Dr. Arnold, Kristi and Ty are unwillingly whisked back in time to the Revolutionary War. Now the two unlikely friends have to skirt battlefields, slave catchers, and more in order to find Dr. Arnold and make their way back home. They also have to stop Dr. Arnold from permanently altering history! Will Ty and Kristi make it in time? Or will they be too late?
Opinion:
The surprising twists and turns and non-stop action of this time-travel novel definitely make it worth the read! Time Traitor not only met my expectations, it blew them out of the water! This book has the capacity to appeal to a larger age group than its designated division of middle-school ages. As a high-schooler, I was wonderfully entertained!
While Ty and Kristi’s family situations are not the best, both of the characters experience growth in maturity and their way of thinking throughout this novel, leading to huge decisions at the end of their journey that neither of them would have been capable of making at the beginning of the story. Dr. Arnold can easily be labeled as the "bad guy" of the story. While he does not demonstrate adequate teaching skills, he teaches us that greed never leads to satisfaction. In his mad quest to alter history, he forgets the consequences that will ensue and becomes blind to everyone but himself.
The plot of this story was nerve-wracking and fun! I was able to keep pace with it and was never bored. Expertly woven into the action scenes and plot twists lies an underlining message that conveys: Our history is history for a reason. We can’t let our past define us because we can’t change it without consequences.
Overall, I thought this book was amazing and deserves a spot on every bookshelf! While it isn’t necessarily a book that teaches history, it is a wonderful masterpiece that anyone would enjoy reading in their spare time!
