Derek Norris, the uncle of 11-year-old Chris Anderson, has been missing for the last seven years. By his instructions, Uncle Derek is presumed dead. He has willed the Coach House in the village of Herbertville to Chris for any…
Duncan O'Reagan, a security agent, enters the Coach House to ask Chris, Lynne and Sam a few questions. One of them gives a false explanation to validate the will: they tell O'Reagan that they will set up a newspaper. The idea becomes…
Lynne and Sam find themselves on a planet in the galaxy Trialviron. The galaxy's ruler, a mystic head named Duneedon, feigns an apology for whisking them away. He tells them to enter a chamber for retransport. Instead, Lynne and Sam…
Lynne and Sam return unharmed to the Coach House. Together with Chris, they decide the first edition of their newspaper should tell the girls' story as a science-fiction adventure. (This, despite a note transported to the Coach House…
Chris, Lynne, and Sam feel they have enough material to launch what they call The Herbertville Chronicle. As a last-minute addition, Chris introduces a history section. His reference book is
Duncan O'Reagan commends the kids for a good first edition of The Herbertville Chronicle. Later, O'Reagan slips into the Coach House, where a message is transported to him. Chris and Sam interview O'Reagan in a successful attempt to…
Ann Blake, a Herbertville Town Councillor, stops by the Coach House to commend the kids on The Herbertville Chronicle. Chris and Sam look with suspicion as Councillor Blake donates a copy of The Official History of Herbetville, 3rd…
Chris, Lynne, and Sam reconvene at the Coach House to compare and review what they already know about the conspiracy and postulate reasons. While Sam is off on an errand, Lynne and Chris encounter Merlin the Magician, who has transported…
Chris and Lynne materialize in The Poet's Pocket. Operating the word organ is a friendly poet, Dr. Crystal Couplet, who speaks entirely in rhyme. All three share in haiku writing. Once Chris and Lynne explain the nature of their visit,…
Lynne and Chris find themselves in The Place of Change. They discover that The Official History of Herbertville, 1st Edition credits the Edwards family as one of the founding families of Herbertville. But Duneedon has circled the name…
The second edition of the Chronicle is printed. Its cover story is about Duncan O'Regan, with the headline asking, ""Who Is This Detective Working For?"" While distributing the paper, Lynne encounters two stage performers at King's…
The kids know Duneedon is leading a conspiracy to change the history of Herbertville, but they have very little evidence to go by. And that very little evidence is lost soon after Captain Hook materializes in the Coach House. With Chris…
Someone leaves the cover to The Official History of Herbertville, 1st Edition for Chris and Sam. A note gives them directions to find the contents of the book (or so it seems). Lynne returns to an empty Coach House on a mission. She…
Lynne stops by the house of Mr. Walker, who shares his memories as a soldier and as a firefighter. Councillor Ann Blake is there as well, and it is at this moment that Lynne tells the truth about Duneedon and his spectacular…
While another edition of the Chronicle is prepared for publication, the kids devise what they think will be a failsafe plan. Duneedon, in the guise of the Mayor, must attend the Herbertville Historical Society meeting, at which Lynne…
Chris sends a message to Lynne and Sam, telling them he is trapped on Trialviron's Planet of Maze. Another book character – this time the Genie from Aladdin's lamp – helps the girls to Trialviron, but not bvefore mixing up a few…
Lynne and Sam revisit Trialviron, paying a visit to Dr. Crystal Couplet. She provides a map to the girls to help them through the Planet of Maze. Once on the Planet of Maze, Lynne finds a note from Chris. He has attempted to escape…
Chris has discovered his missing Uncle Derek in the Planet of Maze. They return to the starting point of the Maze just moments after Lynne and Sam arrive. With the map in hand, the kids pilot their space cart through the maze, answering…
Everyone is back at the Coach House. Uncle Derek, rescued at last, explained that he had introduced Duneedon to the people of Herbertville as ""Mr. Don Eden."" That made it harder for Duneedon to gain control of King's Park and the…
A defeated Duneedon returns to the Coach House. He tries one more attack on those who had exposed the conspiracy, singling out Theta and Otto, before the kids return. It is apparent Duneedon wants to give them more than congratulations.…
It's been a year since The Herbertville Chronicle was first printed. Among the gifts Chris, Lynne, and Sam receive for the occasion is Uncle Derek's new invention: a two-way unit that projects words and stationary images. Chris and Sam…
Chris and Sam rush to the place where a boy had just disappeared and discover interesting artifacts. One is a map of Upper Canada (present-day Ontario). The other is a compass on which is inscribed ""To Tecumseh/From Brock."" When…
Chris and Sam come face-to-face with General Brock. He has just won a major battle over the Americans in the War of 1812. Chris and Sam introduce themselves, explaining they are looking for a boy from their own time. General Brock…
Lynne has been kept abreast of Chris and Sam's whereabouts through their two-way word-transmission system. She understands the plan to rescue the boy from the present day. An aide to Tecumseh leads Sam and Chris on the trek north…
Chris and Sam carry out their new plan to rescue the boy from their own time. They escape just as the Battle of Queenston takes place. General Brock rides to them with his blessing. Chris and Sam, along with their newly-found friend,…
Alex is now helping Lynne to prepare the next edition of The Herbertville Chronicle. It will feature stories on General Brock and other figures from the War of 1812. Before they are finished with the paper's layout, Alex and Lynne…
Lynne and Alex encounter the Evil Queen and Mirror from Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. Both insist that the Book Destroyer is only after the villains. When Lynne and Alex argue that this doesn't make sense, the Evil Queen and Mirror…
Alex and Lynne follow a trail to Dracula's castle. Once there, Dracula informs them that conflict is essential to a good story. The Book Destroyer erases Dracula, and in his wake, Lynne and Alex find a note from another book character.…
Lynne and Alex encounter the Book Destroyer. She is bent on wiping out villains and conflict from all books. But Lynne suggests that the Book Destroyer herself is a character–a character from a most uneventful book. Confronted with…
Sam informs the others that she will be moving to Victoria, British Columbia, but they will not sell their house in Herbertville. The Herbertville Chronicle readies a want ad, informing that the house can be leased. Outside, a…
Chris and Lynne want to keep in touch with Sam, but Rita dissuades them from a preposterous scheme. Sam needs to make her own friends at her new home in Victoria, British Columbia.
Sam's departure is the lead story in The Herbertville Chronicle. Before she leaves, Sam receives a surprise: Rita has decided to write a children's book about a girl who must leave her friends. It is indeed a beginning, rather than an…
Chris has returned from the library with many story poems. Using elements from all the books, he, Lynne, and Alex concoct a story of their own to fool Rita. While Chris and Lynne run off to tell their story, Alex daydreams a…
It's August, and with Alex at summer camp, Lynne and Chris must run the Chronicle alone. Their biggest trouble is finding a lead story. But a ghost provides them with more than a lead story. The note which he leaves, advises Lynne and…
Mr. Wetherby is posing a problem for Chris and Lynne. He wants to help them in every aspect of writing. Alone, he sings his disappointment on being alone during summer vacations. It's the pointer Chris and Lynne use to convince Mr.…
It's December, and the Chronicle staff receive a letter from Sam. She is expecting to visit Herbertville while her father is attending a meeting there. Sam provides Lynne, Chris, and Alex with a selection of poems that satirize famous…
Alex, Chris, and Lynne think of every possible contingency that could develop in their efforts to help the people of Trialviron. Alex and Chris are transported to The Poet's Pocket, where Dr. Couplet shows the sun revolving around the…
Chris and Alex travel to the lair of Emperor Tritan, who seems to be speaking in antiquated language. To stay on good terms, Chris and Alex overuse clichés themselves, prompting Tritan to allow the people of Trialviron to pass through…
Dr. Couplet does not want to leave her life's work on the doomed galaxy Trialviron, but Chris and Alex talk sense into her. They leave The Poet's Pocket in the nick of time. All the residents of Trialviron have transported to the…
Chris, Lynne, and Alex resign themselves to their doom on Trialviron, which would occur but for two events. One is that the countdown to Trialviron's destruction passes before an explosion can occur. The other is Sam's return to The…
