The Trolley to Yesterday

by John Bellairs

Book Overview

John Bellairs, the name in Gothic mysteries for middle graders, wrote terrifying tales full of adventure, attitude, and alarm. For years, young readers have crept, crawled, and gone bump in the night with the unlikely heroes of these Gothic novels: Lewis Barnavelt, Johnny Dixon, and Anthony Monday. Now, the ten top-selling titles feature an updated cover look. Loyal fans and enticed newcomers will love the series even more with this haunting new look!...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0142402664
• ISBN13: 9780142402665
• Release Date: January 2004
• Publisher: Puffin Books
• Length: 183 Pages
• Weight: 0.40 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.5" x 5.1" x 7.8"
• Age Range: 8 to 12 years
• Grade Range: Grades 3 to 7

Customer Reviews

One of the better Johnny Dixon books

If you're a fan of these books than you have to read The Trolley to Yesterday. It is one of the best of the Johnny Dixon books. I read these books when I was in elementary and middle school. Sometimes I even go back and reread this one to just remember. This is a great series for young readers. I loved it and I think you will too.

A great read from one of my favorite childhood authors!

I am in the process of collecting all of John Bellairs books because I loved them so much when I was younger. I just finished reading this one as I added it to my collection and I was reminded of how great of an author John Bellairs was. I think every child should give his books a chance because I'm sure they will get hooked on reading for life!

Bellairs' most ambitious novel.

Well, Johnny, Fergie, and the Prof are back at it again. Only this time their adventure lies on another continent, in another century.This is John Bellairs at his absolute peak of creative ability. The cast of characters ranges from an amusing, tongue-in-cheek ancient Egyptian god (in the form of a floating bird statue of course), and an inventor who's harebrained schemes rival that of the professor's, to the more frightening gothic images of medieval ghosts, and talking stone heads. The locations are more exotic than ever before. And the fact that the main characters find themselves in the middle of the Ottoman Turkish siege of Constantinople, lends itself to a great deal of drama almost by default.True, Bellairs asks the reader to suspend their disbelief a little more than ususal, (I mean, how likely is time travel in an old trolley?) but the rewards are even greater than normal.The most different, and also the best of the John Bellairs collection.

Another Tale From the Master of Young Adult Fiction!

Johnny, Fergie, and Professor Childermass are back and it seems the cantankerous old coot has something special in his basement. A time machine! Well, actually a Time Trolley! When Johnny and Fergie notice the Professor acting strange they decide to investigate, instead of finding the Prof one step closer to insanity they find that he has an honest-to-God time machine that allows him to travel to Constantinople right before its fall to the Turks! The Professor has a hair-brained, but well intentioned scheme to alter the course of history (and save more than a few helpless souls) but alas, things do not always go according to plan. With grand, Bellairsian style the inseparable trio come across ghosts, statue guardians, Turkish hordes, and a really cool thingamajig that allows them to fly only by uttering a few simple words. With any John Bellairs book you know you're in for a treat, and although The Trolley to Yesterday is amongst some of the master author's lighter works it never fails to entertain. So if you're a fan of the fantastic hop aboard The Trolley to Yesterday!

AY CARAMBA! Professors in time!

For my first comment, I must say this: Any book featuring a god of Upper and Lower Egypt is really, really cool.When said book is by John Bellairs and features 1)Well-done historical fiction, 2)Absolutely groovy plot, 3)Unforgettable characters, and 4)Time travel using a truly funky trolley, well, the book's really extremely cool, then.This was Bellairs' first foray into historical fiction. I don't know whether he was trying to diversify or merely experimenting with a different genre, but the book was the first cool historical fiction book I ever read. Constantinople is vividly described, and many useful tidbits of information are scattered through the book -- such as the Seven Hills of Rome -- which everyone should know in case they run into a Guardian (read the book, then you'll get the joke).This book also supplied the hilarious quote "Now, when Justinian was king --and boy, did they have the parties then!" -Brewster . Everyone should read this book as an excercise in, er, good books. Really good ones.