This edition published in Great Britain in 2008 by Quest, an imprint of Top That! Publishing plc, Marine House, Tide Mill Way,Woodbridge, Suffolk IP12 1AP, UK

www.topthatpublishing.com

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All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or byany means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the publisher.

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ISBN 978-1-84666-699-5

A catalogue record for this book is available from the British LibraryPrinted and bound in China

Creative Director – Simon Couchman. Editorial Director – Daniel Graham. Art Editor – Matt Denny.Written by Gordon Volke. Illustrations by Neil Reed and Robert Nicholls.

Consultant Editor - Dr Neal Spencer

4

December 25th, 1915

Happy Christmas to my new journal and friend.

White Christmas

We are having a white Christmas this year – but without anysnow! The frost this morning was the thickest I have ever seen. Itcovered everything with a freezing layer of dazzling white, turningthe leafless trees into icy skeletons and spiders’ webs into glitteringpatterns of enchanting beauty. The breath from the horsesbringing people to church hung in the air like clouds.

Reverend Thomas, who has taken over Father’s duties whilehe is away at The War, came striding out of the vestry and slippedover. I saw his legs go right up in the air in front of him before hehit the ground. Fortunately, he was wearing so many heavy robesthat he did not hurt himself. He is such a boring man, I could nothelp but laugh at his misfortune.

Mama and my twin sisters, Lydia and Kate, clubbed togetherto buy me a special Christmas gift. It is a brand new set of artmaterials, complete with its own carrycase. I am thrilled with it.Drawing and painting are very important to me. As well as beingmy hobby, I use this method to illustrate my scientific findings and keep a record of all the things I see and do.

⁄Mama with Lydia and Kate.

The choir

were in fine

singing voice at

this morning’s

church service.

NOTE:

I don’t know Mama’s age.

She will never reveal it!

The twins are almost

seventeen. They think they

are very superior to me

because I am only fourteen.

5

Children from the village called after church this morning,singing Christmas carols. It is an old custom that has beencarried out since the Middle Ages. Cook, as always, hadprepared some special treats for the carollers (plus one or twoextra for my younger brother, Tom, and myself). When I heardour little visitors singing these words, I felt the past coming alive:

Talking of the past coming alive, I have a secret to reveal to you,my new journal and friend. I will write more tomorrow. I amfatigued from today’s festive frivolities.

My ten-year-old brother,

Tom. I have much

more in common

with him than I do

with my sisters!

‘Away in a manger, no crib for a bed,

The little Lord Jesus laid down His sweet head.

The stars in the bright sky looked down where He lay,

The little Lord Jesus, asleep on the hay.’

This is my house in

Little Waltham. It looked

very festive covered in a

thick layer of frost.

6

December 26th, 1915

Visiting the past is a highly dangerous business!

A New Adventure

Before he went off to France to serve as an army chaplain,Father used to conduct scientific experiments in the summerhouse at the bottom of our garden. I used to help him. We areboth passionate about knowledge and learning everything wecan about this amazing world in which we live.

One day last summer, experimenting on my own in Father’sabsence, I found a strange machine, powered by a mysteriousgreen crystal, hidden in the shed adjoining the summer house. Itis a TIME MACHINE! Father built it and left it there for me todiscover when he went away. I have already used it to visitdifferent periods in the past and have recorded first hand what Ihave seen. Tom comes with me on these exciting journeys. Hestumbled on the secret by accident, and the price of his silence isto allow him to share my adventures. (I do not mind. He is abright and cheerful companion.)

Dearest Father and the summer house - my favourite place in the whole world.

The shed inwhich the

time machineis stored.

I miss Father

more than words

can describe.

Morning

7

Other than my little brother, however, I do not want anyone to know that we have the ability to go time-travelling.If news of Father’s amazing invention ever leaked out, itsunique knowledge-gathering powers would be lost forever.

A telegram arrived just after breakfast this morning, brought byan army courier. My blood ran cold as we assembled in thesitting room to read it. Was it one of those terrible messages thatevery family dreads, informing them that their loved one hadbeen killed in action? Mercifully, no! Father was due to comehome on leave in the New Year, but the fighting has greatlyintensified and he cannot get away. We are all heartbroken.They said this war would be over by Christmas. I fear they arewrong and it will drag on for years.

Recruiting posters like this can be seen all over

the village. Men are joining the army in droves.

Soon, there will not be enough left at home to

work on the land and in the factories. Women will

have to do their jobs. That will upset a lot of

people, including Mama. She believes ladies should be

ladies and do very little. I do not agree. Women are

the equal of men and should be treated as such!

A recruiting poster for the war.

Tom keeps pestering me to go time-travelling again duringthese Christmas holidays. I promised him we would visit thewonders of ancient Egypt. But, at the moment, I am having secondthoughts about this promise. Visiting the past is a highly dangerousbusiness and I am fearful something dreadful might happen!

WAR NOTE: Poppies are abundant on the killing fields that surround the trenches.

Mortar shells expose the seeds, giving them the light that they need to germinate.

Afternoon

Poppies

8

December 31st, 1915

The greatest danger of time-travelling is getting stuck in the past.

New Year’s Eve

Uncle George is coming to visit us tonight. He is Father’s twinbrother (twins run in our family). The two of them look veryalike, but they have very different characters. Dearest Father isgentle, rational and passionate about science. Uncle George islively and funny and mad about history. In fact, he is a professorof ancient history at his university. I expect, as it is New Year’sEve, he will drink too much of Mama’s finest port and have tostay overnight.

Here is a portrait of Uncle George. It makes you smile just to look at him. If he

were a nursery rhyme character, he would be Old King Cole.

REMEMBER!

Charge crystal!

Morning

Uncle George

9

The greatest danger of time-travelling is getting stuck in thepast. The crystal that powers the time machine comes fromanother world. I imagined this would make its powers infinite,but it is not the case. After being stranded on a previous timetravelling expedition, I learned that the crystal needs an electriccharge to maintain its potency. So, this afternoon, I will takesteps to make sure that Tom and I do not get caught out again.

This afternoon, I arranged a method for charging the crystalusing some of Father’s equipment. I am pleased to report that itappears to be working. The pulsating green light emitted by thecrystal is growing brighter and stronger by the hour.

I have learned a great deal about the capabilities of the timemachine since my earlier explorations. By studying Father’sscientific notes I have compiled the following technicalinstrument instructions:

The circular disc must be turned to specify the following:

MYA = Millions of Years Ago;

BC = Before Christ (a date that

comes before the date of Jesus’ birth);

AD = Anno Domini (a date that

comes after the date

of Jesus’ birth).

This is the crystal. Father saw it fall to Earth one night and

picked it up from the ground next morning. Fully charged,

it is immensely powerful. It can transport the time

machine through eons of time in a matter of seconds.

Midday

Earlyevening

Success!

Calendar dates within a specific year can be entered on

these smaller dials for date sensitive time travel.

Any location on Earth is described by two

numbers – latitude and longitude. Set

these ‘coordinates’ on

the larger dials to

navigate to precise

geographical locations.

These number dials represent the year.

Lydia and Kate were allowed to stay up and see in the NewYear, but I was banished to bed along with Tom. We weredeemed ‘too young’ to stay up until midnight. If only they knewwhat we get up to when we go time-travelling!

Uncle George came down to breakfast this morning lookingas if he had been run over by the omnibus that goes from thevillage to town twice a week.

‘Are you all right, Uncle George?’ I asked, mischievously.‘I drank far too much of your mother’s finest port last

night,’ he groaned.Mama tried to change the subject by reading from the

morning paper. The article remembered the much-loved poet, Rupert Brooke, who died in April last year. With tears f illing her eyes, she recited the beginning of his poem ‘The Soldier’:

If I should die think only this of me

That there’s some corner of a foreign field

That is forever England.

Balderdash and piff le! There is nothing romantic about dying ina war. It is horrible and sad and totally avoidable. I cannotunderstand why our king, the German kaiser and the Russian

10

January 1st, 1916 - New Year’s Day

War is horrible and sad and totally avoidable.

Balderdash and Piffle!

Tom’s new kite.

I copied this

picture of

poet Rupert

Brooke from

the newspaper.

Happy NewYear!

The front line.

tsar cannot get together and sort out their differences instead ofexpecting millions of ordinary people to die on their behalf.They’re all part of the same family, after all!

By late morning, Uncle George had recovered sufficiently totake Tom kite-flying on Old Oak Hill. Then he made a date tomeet me at the summer house after lunch.

‘I have something to show you,’ he whispered, mysteriously.It was a beautiful Egyptian artefact, a model boat made out ofwood and complete in every detail.

‘It was found in a tomb,’ explained Uncle George. ‘People inancient Egypt believed they needed things from this life to helpthem in the next. This boat would have enabled the dead tojourney across the river to the sacred city of Abydos.’

‘Why are you showing me this, Uncle?’ I asked, curiously.‘I just thought you might be interested,’ he answered, casually.‘I’ve been made ‘Head of Ancient Egyptian Studies’ at the

university and so I gain access to these magnificent treasures fromtime to time.’

As Uncle George departed this evening, he gave me a shabbyleather-bound book on ancient Egypt. I think Uncle Georgeknows about the time machine and is hinting it should be used tovisit ancient Egypt!

11

The ancient Egyptian model boat.

Uncle George is

very cunning. He

knows that a gentle

hint can be far

more persuasive

than instruction!

Lateentry!

In the aftermath of the Christmas and New Year festivities thehouse was very still this morning. Lydia and Kate were stillrecovering from their late night and Mama was visiting anelderly friend, with Tom, in the village. I decided to takeadvantage of the peace and quiet to set about reading the oldleather-bound book that Uncle George gave to me last night.

I took the book to the summer house and upon opening itwas surprised to discover a considerable amount of sand inbetween the faded pages. Stranger still, the detailed descriptionsthat adorn every page are in Father’s distinctive handwriting!

Over the next couple of hours, I pored over the contentsof Father’s book. Although I have only scratched the surface, thelevel of detail is outstanding! (The book contains far moreinformation on ancient Egypt than the history books I use atschool.) Most interestingly, I have learned that Egyptiancivilisation lasted for 3,000 years. That’s over a thousand yearslonger than our own civilisation! I had no idea that there wereso many interesting people and places to see.

We had school exams at the end of last term. According to myreport, I was ‘outstanding’ at mathematics, science, history andgeography … but ‘poor’ at Latin. I hate Latin! I know it is thekey to the past and the language of scientific classification, butsomehow I cannot get my mind to cope with its stupid wordorder and ever-changing word endings. Mama now expects meto spend the remainder of the Christmas holidays revising myLatin and trying to catch up. How can I escape?

12

January 2nd, 1916

Egyptian civilisation lasted for 3,000 years!

Father’s BookWhy was there

so much sand in

the book?

Midday

I hate

Latin! I reallyhate Latin!

Evening

The book contains over 500 pages, all of w

hich have been penned in Father’s own hand.

It must have taken him

years to compile this m

any field notes and observations.

13

Not to scale

A map of the River Nile, showing some of the important places built beside it. I copied it from Father’s book to make a nice page for my journal.

A Map of Ancient Egypt

Luxor

Aswan

Philae

Giza

Western Desert

Eastern Desert

Mediterranean Sea

Red Sea

Abydos

Valley of the KingsThebes Karnak

Alexandria

Abu Simbel

Cairo

Heliopolis

Memphisand Saqqara

UPPEREGYPT

N

S

EW

LOWEREGYPT

The River Nile

14

With Tom’s constant nagging, my own aversion to Latinrevision and a new-found desire to know more about ancientEgypt, I have made up my mind to go time-travelling again!

1. Be prepared for visiting a strange environment. I shall need food, water,

camping equipment and many other items essential for survival.

2. Keep a record of everything I see. Father’s invention gives me unique access

to the past. I will be experiencing history at first hand. I must preserve all

my findings in the form of notes, sketches and paintings so I can discuss

them with Father when he returns.

3. Make sure Tom and I always get back safely!

4. At all times, everything must be kept secret!

The time machine is fully equipped, the crystal is pulsating like atiny green star and Tom is strapped into his seat. So this is it!Ancient Egypt, here we come!

January 3rd, 1916

Shopping reminder :

It is the twins’ birthday soon and I must buy them both a decent present – I completely forgot last year!

First light

Time Travel - The Golden Rules

3.05pm

Food provisions:

Christmas cake,

tinned meat, chocolate,

biscuits (assorted),

water, tinned soup,

dried fruit.

Kit items:

• Art materials Ω

• Matches Ω

• Rope Ω

• Tent Ω

• Tin opener Ω

• Compass Ω

• Mallet Ω

• Water canteen Ω

• Tinderbox Ω

• Lamp Ω

• Fuel Ω

• Penknife Ω

• Cooking pot Ω

• Emergency flares Ω

Am I following inFather’s footsteps?

15

The First Journey to Ancient Egypt

2648 BC

Illustration Note: This is the stone sculpture of K

ing Djoser that I observed being com

pleted.

Note the long, false beard he w

ears on his chin. It is a sign of his kingship.

16

Day 1, Saqqara, 2648 BC

Today we witnessed the final stages of construction of the very first pyramid.

Djoser’s Step Pyramid

We landed with a BUMP on the outskirts of a place calledSaqqara in the year 2648 BC. After concealing the time machinewith a wigwam framework of large palm leaves, Tom and I bothwanted to witness the final stages of construction of the firstgreat Egyptian monument, the Step Pyramid.

The scene before us as we approached the pyramid construction site was awe-inspiring! Thousands of people were toiling together, pulling ropes and sliding wooden rollers under enormous blocks of limestone to move them across the sands.

Field Notes & Observations:

The Egyptians are willing workers.

Tom and I watched in amazement as

the great lumps of stone were

moved about by sheer human

strength and determination.

Ibis birdsare abundantin ancientEgypt.

A shaduf -an early Egyptian

lifting device.

MYS

TERY

NOTE

:Th

e lan

ding

disl

odged

a pi

ece

of p

aper

tuc

ked

away

in a

noo

k of t

he t

ime

machine

. It

read

: ‘Re

mem

ber

–yo

u cann

otch

ange t

he c

ours

e of h

istor

y!’ a

nd w

as w

ritt

en in

Fat

her’s

han

dwriting

.

Approximate Pyramid

Dimensions:

Height: 60 metres

Area: 121 x 109 metres

Workers building the enclosure wall thatwill eventually surround the pyramid.

17

Day 7, Saqqara, 2648 BC

Oh, how foolish can you be! Tom and I travelled back toancient Egypt wearing our everyday clothes. As soon as westepped out of our time machine, we stood out like sore thumbs!They do not like outsiders here, so we were soon arrested by thePharaoh’s soldiers and sent to work on the pyramid site!

Despite being prisoners, we are not being badly treated.They want us to work hard, so it is not in their interest to starveus or beat us. During rest periods, I have managed to sketch this picture of the construction site.

The pyramid is being built for King Djoser. He is a rich andpowerful pharaoh and this is to be his tomb when he dies. Theperson in charge of this massive project is a man called Imhotep.According to Father’s book, he’s a genius – a royal official, adoctor, a priest, a far-seeing philosopher and, above all, abrilliant architect.

We must try to

escape … but that is

easier said than done!

I am very

worried about

Tom. He is

only a boy and

these long

hours labouring

in the hot sun

are making

him ill.

The Step Pyramid

Add ‘appropriate

attire’ to golden rules

of time travel.

18

Mercifully, we were sent to work inside today. We were given the job of clearing up after the stonemasons, who are justadding the finishing touches to a huge statue of Pharaoh Djoser.It was no fun sweeping up the choking dust and rubble, but atleast it was cool. Tom brightened visibly out of the glaring heat.

No wonder this country worships Re, the sun, as its chiefgod. It is an all-dominant presence. Either side of the Nile, theexpanses of burning, arid desert go on for miles and miles. It isonly the flooding of the river every spring and summer thatallows Egypt to exist at all. The floodwater leaves behind a richdeposit of mud and silt, which keeps the valley fertile and allowsa wide variety of crops to be grown.

Unlike my sisters, who eat very little in order to preservetheir ‘hourglass’ figures, I am very fond of my food. Cook says Iam her best customer. Lydia and Kate say I am a ‘glutton’ and a‘dumpy little thing.’ Whoever is right, I am on a prisoner’s dietnow and growing thinner by the day. But there is a good side tothis sad state of affairs. The shackles around my wrists, used torestrain me overnight, are becoming looser as I lose weight.Soon, I shall be able to slip my hands out of them and escapelike that man, Harry Houdini, whom Uncle George so oftenmentions.

I saw Imhotep, the pyramid architect, today. He was pacingup and down along one side of his pyramid, deep in thought andlooked very agitated. I wonder what problem is troubling him?

Day 18, Saqqara, 2648 BC

Today we had some relief from the burning Egyptian sun.

The Statue of Djoser

The donkey is

an important

load carrier in

ancient Egypt.

Chrysanthem

um:These decorative flow

ers grow

on sunny sites throughout the region.

Blue Lotus

Abundant in

well-drained

areas. The

shape and

form of these

beautiful

flowers

remind me

of Cook’s

dumplings!

Papyrus: The ancient Egyptians use this tall plant to make paper.

It grows on the banks of the River Nile.

Um

brella Plant:This is a tall plant with

foliage like the supporting ribs of an umbrella.

Ancient Egyptian

Flora:

19

My fellow workers are amazed by my ability to draw and paintthe things around us. Although we cannot understand eachother’s language, they point and smile excitedly at my pictures. Iwould like to give them some as keepsakes, but I barely have enough time and energy to do these for my journal.

There is an abundance of plants and flowers in the areas close tothe Nile. If my dwindling energy levels permit I will attempt toidentify and illustrate the most common species for my journal.

The River Nile is the lifeblood of ancient Egyptian civilisation.

The yearly flooding enabled farmers to grow crops and plants close to its banks.

Day 19

Day 22

Stonemasons at work on the

life-sized statue of King Djoser.

Interesting Note:

Father’s book

says that over

90% of Egypt

is desert.

Statue of King Djoser.

Quest is an imprint of Top That! Publishing plc, Tide Mill Way, Woodbridge, Suffolk, IP12 1AP, UKwww.quest-books.co.uk Copyright © 2008 Top That! Publishing plc. All rights reserved

Printed and bound in China0 2 4 6 8 9 7 5 3 1

Dear Reader, Since the discovery of my father’s time machine, my

brother Tom and I have secretly travelled back throughthe ages, to experience history at first hand.

In this book, I have recorded my field notes and obser-vations of the ancient Egyptians as I encountered them

going about their daily business. I can assure you that this account is not the ramblings ofan over-imaginative teenager, but an accurate record of

real people, living in an extraordinary time.I hope that in some small way my account of this won-drous adventure will not only thrill, but also help to fur-

ther your knowledge of the ancient Egyptians.Yours, in scientific endeavour,

Miss H. Gray