The Victorian Revolution (Time Travel Twins, 5)
This fifth episode of the Time Travel Twins series sends Thomas and Scarlett back to the 1st May 1851, and the Great Exhibition in London. The twins are after facts and details to enable them to win a national writing competition, and they find them a-plenty. Of course, plenty also goes wrong.
Separated on arrival, the twins fall, if not on their feet, then into interesting situations: Thomas being educated by Karl Marx with his feisty daughter, Jenny, and Scarlett in a carriage with Princess Vicky, the eldest daughter of Queen Victoria, on the way to the grand opening. They experience opposite ends of the social spectrum, Marx’s family living in poverty in a one-room, attic flat, while Vicky’s inhabits the ‘gleaming new’ Buckingham Palace. When Thomas and Jenny finally escape their Latin lessons, they head for the Crystal Palace, but having no tickets soon find themselves under arrest. Scarlett enjoys a leisurely tour of the treasures of many lands while Thomas and Jenny end up being thrown into a Victorian gaol cell to await transportation to one of them. Disaster is averted when Scarlett, aided by the Princess, manages to effect their release. All’s well that ends well, although Thomas has lost his time-travelling device, which may turn out to figure in a follow-up novel.
The Time Travel Twins books capture the thrill and the reality of finding oneself in a different time and place: ‘The city really did stink!’ Handled with verve, both narrative and characters never hesitate to dive straight into the crises this strange disjuncture can create. The language is simple, funny and engaging, the children assertive, the period detail excellent and the whole illustrated with rather wonderful black-and-white drawings. A fun and informative read for children aged 8 – 12.
