Welcome to Storyville on the YBR where you’ll find works of fiction and non fiction for young readers.
1) There’s No Place Like Home for the Holidays (added November 10, 2013)
2) There’s an Elephant in my cubby
3) A Meal fit for a King
There’s No Place Like Home for the Holidays
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Introducing Ottley the elephant, a series of stories for primary grade students about an elephant who lives in a book…but sometimes steps out of the pages of his story to have an adventure.
Somehow the book that was in the envelope on Mr. Charleston’s desk must have fallen out because he found it on the floor when he walked into his classroom right before his students were to arrive. Mr. Charleston picked up the book and put it back on his deck.
While Mr. Charleston was getting ready for a special science lesson, his students were arriving.
“Put your coats on the hooks and store your book bags in your cubby” Mr. Charleston said. “We have a lot of exciting work to do today.”
After Julie Ann hung up her coat she put her book bag in her cubby, but as soon as she did, her book bag popped out onto the floor. She tried to put it in her cubby again, but for the second time her book bag popped out of her cubby.
“There must be something wrong with my cubby,” Julie Ann thought.
She took a look inside her cubby to see if something got stuck inside and her eyes grew larger by the second. She called out to Mr. Charleston, “There’s an elephant in my cubby!”
The other children all stopped what they were doing and turned to look at Julie Ann.
“What did you just say?” Mr. Charleston asked.
“I said ‘there’s an elephant in my cubby’!”
“That’s impossible,” Mr. Charleston said. “Your cubby is too small for an elephant.”
“It’s not too small for a small elephant,” Julie Ann replied.
Mr. Charleston went over to Julie Ann’s cubby to take a look for himself. He jumped back when he saw two little eyes look back at him.
“You’re right, Julie Ann,” Mr. Charelston said. “There is an elephant in your cubby!”
Suddenly all the other kids were gathered around Julie Ann’s cubby to take a look.
Samantha, one of Julie Ann’s friends asked, “How did an elephant get into your cubby, Julie Ann?”
“I have no idea,” she answered.
“How are we going to get him out?” Robert asked. “Does anybody here speak elephant?”
“We’ll have to think for a minute,” Mr. Charleston said. “The little fellow is probably too scared to come out with all of us standing around.”
“Too bad we don’t have any peanuts for him,” Lonny said.
“Oh, no,” Jared said, quickly. “No. Peanuts aren’t allowed because some of us have allergies.”
“Good point, Jared,” Mr. Charleston said. “But I think the best thing we can do is take our seats and get to work. Maybe then the elephant will come out of Julie Ann’s cubby.”
The children went to their places. Mr. Charleston asked his students for words that started with a soft C.
“Cheese, Tiara said.
“Chilly,” Diana added.
“Chicken,” Addyson said.
“Good words,” Mr. Charleston said. “Now how about some words that start with a hard C.”
“Cold starts with a hard C,” Bryan called out after he raised his hand.
“Candy, does, too,” Emily said.
Before anymore words with a hard C were called out, Billy pointed to the back of the room and said, “Look, the elephant came out of the cubby!”
All the children turned around to look. They didn’t say a word. Suddenly the elephant spoke up.
“What are you all looking at? Haven’t you ever seen an elephant before?” the elephant asked.
The children all gulped.
“A talking elephant!” Emma called out.
“I sing, too,” the elephant added.
“Do you have a name?” Mr. Charleston asked.
“Of course I have a name. My name is Ottley.”
“Where are you from, Ottley?” Julie Ann asked.
“I’m from page six.”
“Page six? Where is page six,” Samantha asked.
“Page six is between pages five and seven.”
“I don’t mean that,” Samantha went on to ask. “Where do you live?”
“I live in Africa.”
“Africa is far away,” Julie Ann said. “How did you ever get here?”
“That’s what I would like to know. One minute I’m in the water surrounded by my father, my mother and my sister, Olivia…and the next thing you know I’m here. By the way, where am I?”
“You’re at Smith Clove Elementary School,” the kids cried out.
“I have no idea what a school is,” Ottlley told the children. “And I am sure you are all nice kids, but I would like to get home. I’m certain my family wondered where I went.”
“Do you want us to take you back to Africa?” Patty asked Ottley.
“I don’t think that would be possible, Patty,” Mr. Charleston said. “We have to use our thinking to see how we can help Ottley get home.”
The kids started thinking.
“Books have pages,” Julie Ann said. “And Ottley said he was from page six. Maybe he’s from a book.”
“You might be right,” Mr. Charleston said. “Why don’t we check the books on the book shelf to see if we can find the right book.”
The children looked through all the books but didn’t find the right one. And then Julie Ann looked over at Mr. Charleston’s desk and saw another book. She look at the cover of the book and the title of the story’s name was: Ottley the Elephant has an Adventure.
“I think this is Ottley’s book!” she said showing Ottley the book cover.
“That’s me on the cover!” Ottley cried out.
Julie Ann gave the book to Mr. Charleston. He opened it to page six and showed the page to the children. There was a father, mother and little girl elephant standing in the water. They were looking around for Ottley.
“So, this is your book. Now all we have to do is find away to get you back into the story.”
“Why not open the book to page six and place it on the floor,” Rachel suggested.
And that’s what Mr. Charleston did. He opened the book and put it on the floor. Ottley walked over and stood on page six.
“Here goes nothing,” Ottley said as he took a deep breath.
There was a little puff of grey smoke. When the smoke cleared, Ottley was gone.
Mr. Charleston picked the book up and there on page six was Ottley surrounded by his family. They were all smiling. Mr. Charleston showed the page to the kids and Ottley winked back at them.
After the kids got all their work done, Mr. Charleston read Ottley the Elephant has an Adventure to the class. And guess what? The book was all about how Ottley got stuck in a cubby at Smith Clove Elementary.
When word reached the villagers of Arcadia that the king had died, the people were sad because King Andrew had been a very good king. Even though Kind Andrew had been on the throne of Paceminterra for over 30 years he had never visited Arcadia because it was such a small town many miles from the palace where the king lived. Nonetheless the people of Arcadia loved their king very much.
The village’s sadness turned to joy when a man dressed in the royal colors arrived on a beautiful white horse with a message from the new king.
“Good people of Arcadia,” the messenger called out, “in one week’s time the new king, King Landon, will be paying you a visit.”
On hearing that the villagers broke out with a cheer that echoed far into the land.
“The king is coming to visit us!”
“Three cheers for King Landon!”
“Hip, hip hooray!”
“Hip, hip hooray!”
“Hip, hip hooray!”
“The king hopes you will spruce up the village, make your gardens tidy, and prepare a meal fit for a king,” the messenger said. “And to show his appreciation, the family that prepares the best meal will be rewarded by King Landon.”
In all the excitement the people failed to ask what the reward was going to be. But that was secondary. The fact the king was actually going to pay the people of Arcadia a visit was the real reward.
Once the king’s messenger was out of sight, the mayor of Arcadia announced that there would be a special town hall meeting that very night.
“At eight o’clock this evening we will all gather in the town hall to discuss how we will prepare for the king’s visit. A week is not a lot of time, so we must all work together to make the king’s visit one he will never forget.”
At the appointed hour the people of Arcadia had filled the town hall. Old and young alike were crammed into the tiny meeting place. The room was filled with the sound of laughter as the people expressed their excitement.”
The mayor call the meeting to order and in record time hands went flying up to volunteer to work on the “Spruce Up Arcadia” team.”
At daybreak the people of Arcadia were all up working. Fathers and sons were replacing missing roof tiles and broken shutters. Mothers and daughters were on their hands and knees weeding their flower gardens.
And so it went from sun up to sun down. And when not working on their own homes, the people were working together on painting the town hall, planting flowers in the town square, and sweeping and scrubbing the paved streets.
When the people weren’t work on the “Spruce Up Arcadia” team, they were working feverishly in their kitchens preparing a meal fit for a king.
And while the people of Arcadia were not wealthy, they were not poor. Well, there was one poor family living in Arcadia. The Fowlers. Thomas and Mary Fowler lived in a small house on the outskirts of Arcadia. Although the house was neat and clean it was a bit rundown. The roof needed repair, the chimney was missing some bricks, and the floor boards were worn and warped.
Thomas and Mary were not old, but they were not young. Even though Thomas and Mary never had any children of their own, they had helped raise more than three dozen children who had been orphaned as a result of a great war that had gone on across the stretch of water that separated the kingdom of Paceminterra and the warring nations of Malady and Triste. All the money Thomas earned as a blacksmith went to putting food on the table for his many adopted children. And all the food was prepared by Mary, who also did the washing and ironing.
Thomas and Mary didn’t do all the work on their own. They had taught the children who lived under their roof to lend a helping hand. But one by one as the children who called Thomas and Mary father and mother left to make a life for themselves.
And although all the children who had lived with Thomas and Mary were special, one child in particular was extra special to them. Her name was Margaret. When she arrived at the Fowlers she was very young. She was also very sick. Mary spent many a sleepless night holding Margaret in her arms close to her heart. Thomas did his part too, spending many hours taking Margaret for long walks in the forest that surrounded Arcadia.
One day a young wealthy woman came through Arcadia and saw Margaret playing in the front of the Fowler house. The young woman was looking for a girl to serve her. The young woman promised that Margaret would be well taken care of.
Mary’s heart nearly broke when she said good-bye to Margaret and Thomas struggled to hold back his tears. But Mary and Thomas knew that this young woman would take care of Margaret and give her things they could never afford to give her.
Thomas and Mary never saw Margaret again. They never stopped loving her, though.
The Fowler’s neighbors could not think of anything but what special meal they would offer the king when he visited Arcadia.
The aroma of slow-cooked and savory meats, the smell of warm-baked bread, the scent of cinnamon and other spices used in pies and cakes hung over Arcadia.
Thomas and Mary had but one chicken, an old cow, a small vegetable garden, and only a small amount of flour. And because they didn’t want to sacrifice their only chicken even for the king, Mary was willing to use the chicken’s eggs to make an omelet filled with cheese she made from the cow’s milk and with the vegetables Thomas had tended in the garden. Mary also used the little flour she had to make a cake.
The meal Thomas and Mary had prepared for the king was slight and simple compared to the luscious meals their neighbors had prepared. There was no way the king would select the Fowler’s meal as the best meal.
With excitement pulsing through the air of Arcadia, the people stood out in front of their tidy homes waiting for the arrival of the king. Just around noon a young boy who had been posted near the entrance of Arcadia came running into the town square yelling, “The king is coming! The king is coming!”
All the people stood at attention craning their necks to be the first ones to see the king, but instead of seeing the king come into view, the people saw a very old man, stooped over, walking with a crude cane.
The old man stopped at the first house and inquired whether the people of the house could possibly offer him some food since he was very, very hungry.
“I have walked for two days and in that time have not had anything to eat. If you would be so kind to offer me something to eat I would be most grateful.”
The first family told the old man they had nothing for him.
“Go to the house next door. We’re sure you will find something to eat there.”
The old man was greeted at the next house and told they had nothing.
“Go to the house next door. We have nothing here for you.”
And so it went as the old man went from door to door. He was told to go knock on the door at the house across the way, only to be told to keep on walking.”
“But I smell such lovely food coming from your kitchen,” he would say.
“You do have a good nose old man,” he was told, “but the food you smell is being saved for the new king.”
The old man would shake his hand and mumble under his breath that the people of Arcadia were not very kind people.
When the old man arrived at the Fowlers he fully expected to be turned away, but to his surprise Thomas invited the old man in.
“We don’t have a great table like our neighbors, but what we have we are happy to share with you,” Thomas said.
“It would be an honor to serve you,” Mary added.
“But what about the king?” the old man asked.
“I’m sure the king will get his fill at our neighbors’ houses.”
“What about the reward the king plans on giving to the family that prepares a meal fit for a king.”
“A king is just a man. No better than you. No worse than you. And at this moment you are in need of food and we have food we are willing to share.”
While the old man ate he asked Thomas and Mary about their lives. He wanted to know if they were happy.
“We are happy because we have each other,” Mary said.
“And I’m sure your children bring you happiness,” the old man said.
“We had many young boys and girls we called our children,” Thomas said. “They are gone now.”
“I am sure you must miss them,” the old man remarked.
“We do. We miss them all. Especially Margaret.”
Thomas and Mary told the old man all about Margaret as he took a big bite of cake. He listened closely, nodding his head and smiling.
When the cake was finished, the old man stood up and extended his hand to Thomas and gave a warm hug to Mary.
“I must be on my way.”
Mary packed up the last bit of cake, a piece of fruit and a slice of bread in a cloth bag and gave it to the old man.
“It’s not much, but it should keep you nourished until you arrive at another town,” Mary told the old man.
Meanwhile the people of Arcadia waited and waited for the king’s arrival. By the time the last ray of light disappeared from the sky, the people of Arcadia realized the king was not coming. They were very disappointed.
Before then sun came up the next morning, the people of Arcadia woke to the sound of a trumpet.
“People of Arcadia,” a voice called out, “it is time to get up and greet your king!”
A startled…and groggy group of villagers stumbled out of their homes. To their amazement they saw a grand carriage pulled by two majestic white horses. A groom opened the carriage door and out stepped the young king.
The men bowed and the women curtsied before standing up.
The young king looked at the faces in the crowd.
“And where are the Fowlers this fine morning?” the king asked.
“They live on the outskirts of Arcadia,” a man called out.
“Would one of you good people be so kind as to fetch them for me?”
Two young boys went running off to get the Fowlers. They returned with them.
Thomas and Mary stood before the young king.
“So you are the Fowlers.”
“Yes, your majesty we are the Fowlers. I am Thomas.”
“And I am, Mary.”
“And you do know who I am, don’t you?” the king asked them.
“You are the king,” Thomas said.
“Are you sure?”
“We have no reason to doubt you,” Mary added.
“Sometimes our eyes can play tricks on us. I am the king today, but maybe I wasn’t the king…yesterday.”
Thomas and Mary were confused.
“Let me explain,” the king said. “What if I told you that yesterday I was an old man with a hungry belly? And what if I told you that you were the only people to invite me in to your house to share your table?”
“You are the old man who had supper with us yesterday?” Thomas asked.
“I am. And you and your wife presented me with a meal fit for a king. And for that I am not only grateful, I am also happy to say that I am here to present you with your reward.”
The villagers of Arcadia looked on with complete and utter surprise because they couldn’t believe their eyes. But it was true. The king was rewarding the Fowlers, more for their kindness than for the meal they had offered him.
“Before I bestow my reward on you,” the king said, “I want to introduce you to the woman I will be taking as my wife in a fortnight.”
The king went over the carriage and took the hand of the young woman who had up until that moment been sitting quietly behind a silk curtain. The young woman stepped out of the carriage and the puzzled look on Thomas and Mary’s faces turned into big smiles.
“Margaret? Is that you?” Mary asked.
“Yes it is.”
Thomas and Mary were stunned to see Margaret standing their looking every inch a princess.
The villagers of Arcadia looked on in disbelief. Young Margaret, the girl who used to sweep out their cottages, clean the milk pans, and hang out their laundry, was going to marry the young king?
Margaret warmly embraced Thomas and Mary. She told them that the woman who had stopped at their home those many years ago was actually King Andrew’s wife and the mother of the new King Landon.
The villagers began to mumble among themselves.
“Whatever in the world will be their reward,” the people kept saying.
“Your reward Sir Thomas and Lady Mary will be to join us at the palace where you will be given a beautiful cottage. All your worldly needs will be taken care of. Margaret and I want you to be there on our wedding day, and if our marriage is blessed with children, we want you to help us raise your grandchildren.”
The following day men from the palace returned to Arcadia to help Thomas and Mary pack their belongings. Two weeks later Thomas and Mary were in the great church at the palace where they sat in a place of honor at the marriage of King Landon and his new bride, Queen Margaret.
A little over a year after the wedding, Queen Margaret gave birth to twins. A boy and a girl. She named them Thomas and Mary.
And yes. They did live happily ever after.
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