cover image Willie’s Redneck Time Machine

Willie’s Redneck Time Machine

John Luke Robertson with Travis Thrasher. Tyndale Kids, $9.99 trade paper (272p) ISBN 978-1-4143-9813-6

Duck Dynasty scion Robertson teams with novelist Thrasher (the Solitary Tales series) for the first in a four-book series of choose your own adventure–style stories. At the outset, readers assume the character of Willie Robertson, who heads the Duck Commander company. Written in second-person, the narrative places readers among Robertson family members, confronting a variety of dilemmas and choices. Time travel is the plot device; “you” discover an outhouse in the Duck Commander warehouse that turns out to be the titular time machine. Story variants range wildly over millions of years, from the eras of dinosaurs and Noah’s ark through the 1990s with its fashionable mullets and on to 2319, when people use fantastical devices such as “controllocks” and “batter shatters.” As with the TV show, humor leavens many of the scenarios. Tying everything together is the simple message that care for family and friends and love of God are key elements of living a good life and making good decisions. Ages 8–12. (Oct.)