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This book is a wonderful introduction for middle school readers to classic fiction. H.G. Wells is the original author and Terry Davis has done a good job condensing the book for YA. The graphics/illustrations are well done, colorful, and convey the essence of every scene. For example, to illustrate time travel, there are striations spanning two pages emphasizing movement.

The Time Traveler (he does not have another name) has created a time traveling machine. He is met with contempt by his peers, until it works. Once in the future, he meets the Eloi (a small, simple people), Weena (a girl), and the Morlocks (an evil people/creatures who eat the Eloi). While in the future, he meets these people and tries to ascertain where he is. He decides that he must return to the present to tell the others of his success but his time travel machine is being held in deep in the Morlock cave. He manages to return, tells his tale, and realizes he wants to return to the future.

Not being an H.G. Wells fan, I liked this short and to-the-point retelling of his book. It reads like a comic book but with a classic story to support the pictures. A little gruesome is when the Time Traveler realizes that the Morlocks eat the Eloi. I would use this in the classroom to springboard into other classic tales and have them read the "real-deal" and then make their own short book.

At the end of the book are items to aid the reader. There is a short bio on Wells and Davis, a glossary, discussion questions, writing prompts, and a pointer to the website called Facthound.com to explore more items related to the book. All good things to keep kids engaged in reading. ( )