What a cool idea! I love that they've combined Look and Find with educational facts. I usually dislike buying image searching books because once you find everything there's no point to them. Yet books with a bunch of facts are also usually unreadable and not fun for kids. What a great way to keep kids engaged and make learning fun. Even I learned new things reading this book. I will definitely look for more titles in this series.

A mash up of genres/styles: a time travel graphic novel with nonfiction text blocks. Good for a curriculum tie-in as well as just for fun reading for young Egyptologists. Recommended for 3rd-5th grade.

I really like this book. I love the way it is set out and the way that so much information is packed into such an accessible and engaging graphic novel. Really impressed with this one.

Hot on the Trail in Ancient Egypt

written by Linda Bailey
illustrations by Bill Slavin

Hot on the Trail in Ancient Egypt is a juvenile graphic novel that kept this adult interested from beginning to end. In this book, which is part of The Time Travel Guides, the bored Pinkerton twins chase after their little sister Libby who has entered the rather creepy Good Times Travel Agency. Opening the owner’s personal guide book catapults the three children into Ancient Egypt. They learn that their adventure will not end until they finish reading the book.

The layout of the book is very appealing. The fictional story is told in comic book style at the top of the page. At the bottom of the page is a drawing of an aged book (Julian T. Pettigrew’s Personal Guide to Ancient Egypt) containing nonfiction text that explains and elaborates upon what is happening in the story. For example, when an Egyptian woman invites them into her home, the nonfiction text describes the house, food, and clothing of Ancient Egypt.

I can’t stress enough the current importance of books like this to interest children in history for three reasons. First, most people are familiar with the saying attributed to George Santayana that “those who do not learn history are doomed to repeat it.” There are many horrific events in history most can agree should never be repeated. Second, sadly to say, most children are not exposed to history in their younger years in school. The school day and curriculum in public elementary school is so regimented that the focus is reading, taught in a boring and uninspired way, math, and standardized testing. I am not kidding or exaggerating when I say that as a teacher I had to sneak in science and history and hope the principal didn’t catch me. Third, history is interesting and FUN. in an age when teachers do their best to incorporate games and movement activities called “brain breaks” (to replace the recess that was taken away), we need to restore the intrinsic fun that comes through learning interesting things. In that way we create life long learners.

In addition, a book of this type actively demonstrates reasons for reading—to learn more about something you are interested in and to be carried away by a story. I particularly appreciate that Bailey gave a belated shout out to her high school history teacher: “Great work, Mr. Visch—you made it fun!” She dedicated the book to her daughter who “once did a school project on the Sphinx and has been in love with all things Egyptian ever since.” Teachers and projects do make a difference.

I would like to extend my thanks to netgalley.com and to Kids Can Press for giving me the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.


Rating: 5/5

Category: Children’s Nonfiction

Notes: 1. new edition of an older book
2. Grade Level: 3-7
3. Age Range: 8-12 years

Publication: May 1, 2018—Kids Can Press

Memorable Lines:

For drinks, try the national beverage—beer! It’s made from half-cooked bread and river water, and it’s thick, dark and sometimes a bit lumpy. You’re supposed to strain it well before serving, but not everyone does.

Down at the bottom are the farmers and laborers. Most people in ancient Egypt are at the bottom of the society—where there’s plenty of room!

Sightseeing in the middle of a getaway? This was a very bad idea. Emma and Josh tried to lure their little sister out of the pyramid.

What an ingenious concept to lure kids into nonfiction! By utilizing a time-traveling group of kids who had to read through a nonfiction tour guide of ancient Egypt in order to get home to their time, this book can appeal to fiction and nonfiction readers. My 7 year old kept going back to read this one multiple times. Great addition to home and library collections!

What a clever idea! I really loved this mix of fact and fiction, and the time-travel aspect. The only way for the kids to get home again was to read the whole travel guide - but they had a few obstacles in their way in doing so. What a neat way to introduce various non-fiction topics to younger students, I really love this idea and plan to read the others in the series and possibly acquire them for use in my classroom.

Join the Binkerton twins and their little sister, Libby as they go back in time to Ancient Egypt. As their adventure unfolds, they learn all about life in ancient Egypt. Life on the Nile was a lot more grueling than modern day life.
As the trio work through their book, their brother is taken to work on the pyramid for the pharaoh. As the sisters try and track him down, they find one adventure after another. When they finally reach their brother, they have to make a quick escape, but not before Libby decides to take a little detour into a pyramid...

This was a really cute read, and one that my kids really enjoyed. We learned how a pyramid was built, how the mummification process worked, and so much more! As we read through the book, we found that life in ancient Egypt was quite a bit different from life today. We had some fun comparing how meals are prepared, homes are built and furnished, and so much more! I would highly recommend this book to all, and especially to kids who are interested in history. The easy to follow facts at the bottom, coupled with the kids on their adventure made the entire book enjoyable, and almost made my kids forget they were actually learning something!

I guess this is a sort of re-release of an older book? We must have missed the previous edition. Anyhow, the Binkerton kids enter the mysterious Good Times Travel Agency, and when they open a travel guide, they are whisked back in time. The only way to return home is to read through the entire guide to the end. Of course, it's not that easy as they have a few adventures along the way. I liked the fact that this graphic novel was filled with legit info about Ancient Egypt- it matched up perfectly with our ancient history curriculum and hit all the essential themes of ancient Egyptian culture: politics and government, philosophy, women's roles, activities of daily life and celebrations. I happened to receive the digital galley just after we had finished reading about Egypt and it was a fun way to wrap up that part of the study.

I received this book from Netgalley in exchange of an honest review.

I just ADORE Ancient Egypt and so I was really eager to read this one when I spotted it on Netgalley. And after reading it? I want more of the Binkertons, I want more travels, I want to go to that bookstore myself and experience such a journey.

The story begins with our siblings being bored during the vacation, but that all changes when their youngest sibling runs into a bookstore. A weird bookstore with all sorts of travel information, and a suspicious old man. As chaos erupts the brother opens up a book about Egypt, and that is how the journey begins.

The book shows us the adventures of the siblings (though mostly the sisters as the brother is quickly shipped off to help with pyramid building) in Egypt. Almost each page of comic is accompanied a page of the the book they have to read so the adventure can end. Yep, they have to read the book in order for their adventure to be over. Watch our siblings search for their brother while experiencing all there is about Egypt. From food (beer as drinks) to hairstyles and crocodiles. And let's not forget about the pyramids and other cultural things. All this while they read the book (which causes some hilarious scenes as we see them run around with the book in their hands).

At times the book parts were a bit distracting, and at times it felt like one had to read the book pages before the comic pages, but in overall I quite liked them. Especially the way they were written. It mixes seriousness + comedy in a great way.

I didn't like the youngest sister, Libby. Dear heavens, that kid was annoying. Running off everywhere, bringing her siblings into trouble. Not only with the bookstore (though I have to think in the end they did quite like the journey even if it was one full of spears and heat), but also many times in the story.

The art for the comics was pretty decent. Not entirely a style I like, but it fitted pretty well with the story.

All in all, I want more adventures for the Binkertons. I would recommend this one.

This is kind of a cool way to teach about what we know about ancient Egypt, but told as an adventure. Three children are transported back to ancient Egypt, but with the book as a guide, that tells them what to expect every step of the way.

And as the book points out, although the Binkerton children are made up, the things that they saw are things that is known about ancient Egypt.

This book have danger, it has excitement, and it has humor. This isn't quite a picture book, nor is it quite a graphic novel, though it has both.

Neat way to introduce children to the world that archaeologists have found about Ancient Egypt.


Thanks to Netgalley for making this book available for an honest review.

An Engaging, Informative Adventure

This is an appealing update and reissue of 2000's "Adventures in Ancient Egypt". The hook is that the three Binkerton kids enter the slightly creepy Good Times Travel Agency. When they open a travel guide they are instantly transported to the time and place covered by that guide. The only way to return home is to read through the entire guide to the end. Then, poof, they're home.

In this book the guide is about Ancient Egypt. As soon as the kids arrive in Egypt they are caught up in distracting adventures, so it takes a while for them to read the whole book. By the time they get to the end they, and we, have a thorough overview of ancient Egypt and they, and we, have had a number of interesting experiences.

The graphic setup is very clever. Each page has a few comics style panels showing what the kids are up to - meeting locals, attending a party, exploring a pyramid. Superimposed at the bottom of each page is an excerpt from the travel guide describing what's going on. So, you can treat those excerpts as descriptions of the facts behind the adventure, or treat the cartoons as amusing illustrations of the facts presented in the guide. Either way works.

The kids are fine, although they mostly serve as a narrative device. The adventures are mild, but support the factual information. The info is crisp, clear and age appropriate. There is fun and silliness, but these aren't exaggerated "Dummies" books, and the silliness is light, not heavy-handed or stooopid.

The illustrations are also clear, with good pencils and coloring and readable lettering. Slavin is well known, especially for his Stanley the dog series, and a master of a variety of styles, but here the drawings are intended to be fairly realistic and to actually show details of clothing, households, cityscapes, and so on. In that regard they struck me as very effective.

The upshot was that this was fun, entertaining, and surprisingly info packed - a nice edu-adventure sort of package.

(Please note that I received a free advance will-self-destruct-in-x-days Adobe Digital copy of this book without a review requirement, or any influence regarding review content should I choose to post a review. Apart from that I have no connection at all to either the author or the publisher of this book.)

Twins Josh and Emma follow their little sister Libby into the Good Times Travel Agency and get sucked back in time to ancient Egypt. To get back to the present, they'll have to read all the way through Julian T. Pettigrew's Personal Guide to Ancient Egypt.

Written as a graphic novel, the book shows how the kids are getting along in an unfamiliar place and time (pretty well, all things considered), and it also gives details about the Nike, how farmers lived, how the pyramids could have been built, what people wore and ate, etc. it doesn't feel like a textbook though, and Mr. Pettigrew's guidebook is informative without being boring. The brief entries relate to the kids' adventures, so you're getting both fact and fiction.

While reading, I found this pretty similar to Scholastic's You Wouldn't Want to Be ... series, which I also enjoyed. The difference here is that you're seeing the factual information being applied in the fictional plot.

I'd definitely give this to a student (or my niece or nephew), because it's engaging and educational, but it's not dry or lecture-y.

I also like that there's a section at the end that points the reader to other resources, including museum websites.