"I won't never forget that September time when I didn't want to go to school and Big Papa came in his time machine to take us way, way back." Big Papa's time machine is his car, which not only serves as the means for getting the young Black boy to school, but also becomes a vehicle for his grandfather to share stories from his own past about times he was afraid and faced his own fears. The stories Big Papa recounts, touching on African American history in his lifetime, come alive through both the conversational narrative and the sketchy, stylized illustrations showing scenes from the past beside more detailed pictures showing the grandfather and grandson riding in the car. The distinctive voice also serves to show the closeness of the relationship between the two -clearly this is a child who has enjoyed many family stories told by Big Papa as he imparts a lifetime of experience and wisdom. (Ages 5-8)

A beautiful journey into African American history: Discover the true meaning of being brave in this tender and whimsical picture book from Daniel Bernstrom (One Day in the Eucalyptus, Eucalyptus Tree; Gator, Gator, Gator) and Shane Evans (Chocolate Me!) that follows a grandfather and grandson traveling through time and discovering their own African American history.

When a little boy is feeling afraid to go to school one day, his grandfather, Big Papa, takes him away in his time machine--a 1952 Ford--back to all of the times when he was scared of something life was handing him. "That's called being brave," Big Papa says over and over.

Full of heartfelt moments and thrilling magical realism, Big Papa and the Time Machine speaks to the African American experience in a touching dialogue between two family members from different generations and emerges as a voice that shares history and asks questions about one family's experience in 20th-century black America.

"Wasn't you scared?"

"Oh, I was scared," Big Papa said. "Sometimes you gotta walk with giants if you ever gonna know what you made of. That's called being brave."