The Time Warp Trio is a children's book series written by Jon Scieszka and illustrated by Lane Smith and Adam McCauley, which describes the adventures of three boys – Joe, Sam, and Fred – who travel through time and space with the aid of a mysterious object known as "The Book". The first book, Knights of the Kitchen Table was published in 1991. An animated television adaptation was produced by WGBH Boston and Soup2Nuts and aired on Discovery Kids (later, The Hub). Plot For his birthday, Joe receives a mysterious blue book (known only as "The Book") from his magician uncle and namesake, "Joe the Magnificent". Using a number of often unpredictable and/or unintentional voice and print cues, The Book frequently transports Joe and his friends, Fred and Sam, to a variety of different times and places, from Camelot's medieval court of knights and dragons to the year 2095, where they meet their own great-granddaughters. The only way they are able to return to present-day Brooklyn, New York is to find The Book again within whatever time period they are in. Anna, Joe's sister, is also always eager to have the book (which is quite annoying to Joe). During their travels, Joe and his friends learn that The Book will eventually be inherited by Joe's great-granddaughter, Jodie, who time travels with The Book with her friends who are Sam and Fred's great-granddaughters, Samantha and Freddi, and occasionally save the boys from trouble when their paths cross. The Time Warp Trio faces many challenges during their travels as they learn how to use The Book. Characters Joseph "Joe" Arthur – An up-and-coming magician and the present-day owner of The Book, Joe is the unofficial leader of The Time Warp Trio. While his penchant for keeping The Book with him and experimenting with it results in many of their adventures, his talent for magical tricks also helps them out of many tough situations. Joseph is crafty, cunning, smooth and suave. Samuel "Sam" – A friend of Joe and Fred who contributes his intelligence and historical knowledge to the group's problems. He wears thick glasses (he is self-conscious about being a nerd) and is lactose intolerant. Sam is also wary of time travel; he is convinced their doom is imminent every time they open The Book. An amateur inventor, he is told by Freddi that he will invent something very important in the