Earhart Amelia - Amelia Earhart and the Flying Chariot

STEVE SHEINKIN

Text copyright 2019 by Steve Sheinkin

Illustrations copyright 2019 by Neil Swaab

Published by Roaring Brook Press

Roaring Brook Press is a division of Holtzbrinck Publishing Holdings Limited Partnership

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All rights reserved

Library of Congress Control Number: 2018944867

eISBN 978-1-250-14900-8

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First edition, 2019

Book design by Neil Swaab

For Annayour Amelia Earhart Halloween costume helped inspire this book!

The bell rang. The kids cheered.

Okay, guys, Ms. Maybee told her fourth-grade class, see you Monday!

Everyone got up and started shoving stuff into backpacks. Except for Abby and Doc. They stayed slumped in their chairs.

Between school, soccer, and fixing history, it had been a tiring week.

Ms. Maybee walked up to them. I know Im fascinating, but you really do have to leave.

Abby yawned. Doc nodded sleepily.

They stumbled toward the library, eyes half closed. They shuffled past the checkout desk.

Abby and Doc! The ones who broke history!

That woke them up a bit. They turned to see whod spoken.

It was a girl. About nine, their age. She stood in front of the librarians bulletin board, which was filled with photos of students in their Halloween costumes.

Im homeschooled, but they let me use the library. Ive heard about the strange things that have been happening. Abe Lincoln becoming a pro wrestler! Abigail Adams on a pirate ship! It was you, right? The ones who broke history?

It was really more Lincolns fault, Doc said.

Thats what I heard, Sally said.

Weve been trying to fix things, Abby said.

Must be fun! Sally shouted.

Abby and Doc looked at each other. They werent sure if they were supposed to talk about this. And anyway, they didnt have the energy to explain.

Well, it was nice to meet you, Abby said.

Yeah, Doc said. See you.

They trudged between tall shelves to the back of the library.

Sally followed. Where are you going now? The Wild West? King Arthurs Court?

Were going to wait for our mom, Doc said.

Oh.

They stopped in front of the door to the storage room.

Shes a teacher here, Abby said. We sit back in this storage room after school, do homework and stuff, till shes ready to leave.

Sally smiled. Well, guess Ill get back to my reading. See you later?

Yeah, Doc said, yawning. Sure.

Abby and Doc went into the storage room and shut the door. The small space had bookshelves, a table, two chairs, and a tall cardboard box that somehow took Abby and Doc to times and places they read about in history class.

People from history could use the box, too. Thats how all the trouble began. Abraham Lincoln had jumped out of the box and announced he was quitting historyand became a pro wrestler instead. Doc and Abby convinced him to go back to being president of the United States. But other people from history saw what Lincoln had done. If Lincoln could travel through time, so could they. Abigail Adams, the first lady, joined a pirate ship. The cowboy Nat Love flew to the moon.

Getting everyone back where they belonged was exhausting. All Doc and Abby wanted to do now was rest.

They threw down their backpacks and fell into the chairs. Abby took off her glasses, folded her arms on the table, and rested her head in her arms. Doc put his feet up on the table and tilted his head back. His baseball hat dropped to the floor.

They both closed their eyes, hoping for a nice long nap.

Which they would not get.

Wake up, sleepyheads! Time to go home!

Docs chair tipped back, and he crashed to the floor.

Whaaaa? Abby groaned, wiping drool from her mouth. Oh, hi, Mom.

Their mom stood in the doorway. She laughed.

Its Friday, said Doc, lying flat on his back. No homework.

Abby reached for her glasses.

They werent there.

Instead, right where shed left the glasses was a pair of goggles.

What? Abby asked. Where are my glasses?

And my hat, Doc said, looking around. Wheres my hat?

Abigail, their mom said, please tell me you did not lose your glasses.

I didnt!

Where are they?

I dont know.

Thats the definition of lost, last I checked. Their mom sighed. Do you still have that old pair in your bag?

I hate those, Abby moaned.

Just till you find your good ones. Get your stuff together, both of you, and meet me in my classroom.

Abby reached into a pocket in her backpack and pulled out the glasses shed gotten in kindergarten. They had goofy tiger-stripe frames. She put them on.