My 9 year old daughter is a voracious reader and enjoyed the choose-your-own-adventure style Escape From a Video Game books by this author, so I thought she'd enjoy this book. Unfortunately, she did not. She didn't relate to the main character and lost interest in the plot once it became centered on gangsters and bullies. The plot was also confusing and muddled. She didn't finish the book (which is unusual for her). The time machine concept is fun, but the plot, protagonist, and writing style just didn't excite my kids. It's not a bad book, just not our cup of tea. ( )

I received a free advanced copy of this book from the LibraryThing Early Reviewers giveaway in exchange for an honest review. This is a funny scifi/adventure/historical fiction mashup. Fans of Brady’s other series Trapped in a Video Game or fans of books like the Middle School the Worst Years of My Life series or Last Kids on Earth, will enjoy this book. The story follows Liam as he buys the world’s worst time machine from the garage sale of a quirky scientist in his neighborhood. Once he powers it up, his parents go missing and a different Thomas Edison who turns out to be a gangster in training from the 1930s shows up. He gets help to try and put everything right again from his friend Elsa who seems to know a lot more about fixing time machines then Liam would have ever guessed. Quick, fun read. ( )

This clever book was given glowing reviews by my ten-year-old son, who is a voracious reader and requested more of this series. The plot keeps readers engaged with its flip-flopped premise and humor, including a Cheetos-munching time-traveler stuck in the wrong era. ( )

Liam Chapman's book report on Thomas Edison is due tomorrow, but he simply doesn't want to read the book, so instead, he visits the garage sale of a notoriously eccentric inventor. While he is there, he purchases a box labeled "World's Worst Time Machine," and that gives him the idea to visit Thomas Edison in the past so he can tell Liam what he needs to know for his book report. Liam's friend, Elsa (not from Frozen) tries to tell him to just read the book, but Liam doesn't listen and follows the directions in the box to get the time machine working. Liam's success comes with problems when a boy named Tommy Twinkles shows up from the past.

World's Worst Time Machine is a zany middle grade novel filled with scifi adventures, over the top gangsters, and modern day bullies. The action is fast and furious as Liam and his friends try to correct the problems he has caused. Interesting illustrations add to the story and the "Meet the Cast" section at the end ties the characters to real life figures in history. There are many themes explored in the plot, not the least of which is the idea that shortcuts often lead to more problems than they are worth. Overall, World's Worst Time Machine is a fun romp with lots of excitement and conflicts to keep the reader interested all the way through the post credit scene at the end of the book. ( )