The Wells Bequest

A Companion to The Grimm Legacy

By: Polly Shulman

Narrated by: Johnny Heller

Leo never imagined that time travel might really be possible, or that the objects in H. G. Wells’ science fiction novels might actually exist. And when a miniature time machine appears in Leo’s bedroom, he has no idea who the tiny, beautiful girl is riding it. But in the few moments before it vanishes, returning to wherever—and whenever—it came from, he recognizes the other tiny rider: himself!

His search for the time machine, the girl, and his fate leads him to the New-York Circulating Material Repository, a magical library that lends out objects instead of books. Hidden away in the Repository basement is the Wells Bequest, a secret collection of powerful objects straight out of classic science fiction novels: robots, rockets, submarines, a shrink ray—and one very famous time machine. And when Leo’s adventure of a lifetime suddenly turns deadly, he must attempt a journey to 1895 to warn real-life scientist Nikola Tesla about a dangerous invention. A race for time is on!

In this grand time-travel adventure full of paradoxes and humor, Polly Shulman gives readers a taste of how fascinating science can be, deftly blending classic science fiction elements with the contemporary fantasy world readers fell in love with in The Grimm Legacy.

Critic reviews

THE WELLS BEQUEST:
* "A clever, sparky adventure made of science fiction, philosophy and humor." --Kirkus Reviews, starred review

THE GRIMM LEGACY:
—School Library Journal Best Book
—Bank Street Best Book
—Tennessee Volunteer State Book Award Master List
—Texas Lonestar Reading List
—Georgia Book Award
—Green Mountain Book Award Master List
—Keystone State Reading Association Young Adult Book Award
—Missouri Association of School Librarians (MASL) Reader Awards Final Nominee List, Truman Awards

Praise for The Grimm Legacy:
* “This modern fantasy has intrigue, adventure, and romance, and the magical aspects of the tale are both clever and intricately woven, from rhyming charms to flying-carpet rides. . . . Shulman’s prose is fast paced, filled with humor, and peopled with characters who are either true to life or delightfully bizarre. Fans of fairy tales in general and Grimm stories in particular will delight in the author’s frequent literary references, and fantasy lovers will feel very much at home in this tale that pulls out all the stops.”—School Library Journal, starred review

“Captivating magic fills the pages of this exciting new novel. . . . Action fans will find plenty of heart-pounding, fantastical escapades as the novel builds to its satisfying, romantic conclusion. A richly imagined adventure with easy appeal for Harry Potter fans."—Booklist

World I want to work in

I really enjoy this series. It is one of those magical fictional worlds I would really like to visit

The voice....

What could have made this a 4 or 5-star listening experience for you?

If the narrator hadn't been so awful, this could have been an awesome book- just like the first book in the series.

How did the narrator detract from the book?

Need a new narration (not by Johnny Heller) of this book. BADLY. The voice was not authentic to the story's main character, the narrator mispronounced the name of the secondary character, Jaya, which should have been pronounced J-ai-yuh, as Jay-uh, and the narrator kept carrying over his various accents from one character to another; particularly when he spoke as Simon. Finally, for some reason, the Korean science teacher at the main characters' school sounded like she was Hispanic; and he carried THAT accent over to the main character every time. The first book in this series was well read, but I didn't even know that the girl in this one was from the first book because of the pronunciation and the way the narrator portrayed her inflections.