New Book: Attack of the Giant Bugs
Yes, I know it's not poetry, but this is a fun book for eight to ten year olds, and Eli and I really enjoyed writing it.
Just this evening we were laughing about one of the endings. Yes, you have to make a deliberately silly choice, and it's a very silly ending...so I thought I'd let you have a little sneak peak. (below)
Warning: some of the book contains real science, and there's a little glossary of the insects used in the story at the back for people who are interested.
Recommended for ages 8-12
“Okay,” Frankie says. “Here goes.”
You can hear beeping from the other side of
the rubble. The self-destruct starts talking. “Does not compute, twenty three
minutes remaining, and counting.”
The others all exchange looks, but there’s
not much time for anything else before a flash of sound and light hits your
senses. When you pick yourself up off the floor, it’s hard to stand up.
And then you look down at your paws –
PAWS!?!?! You squeak in horror. Somehow, you’ve been turned into a mouse.
Other mice are turning around and around in
circles, squeaking in terror. Although a few are casually washing their
whiskers as if nothing is wrong.
“Quick, this way,” a mouse says. You’re
pretty sure it’s Frankie. She leads all the other mice through the rubble
toward you and then makes a megaphone out of old posters and a bit of wire. It
takes a bit of yelling through the megaphone, but the police do eventually come
down to see what’s happening. Once they see the mouse yelling through the megaphone,
they grin. A voice booms out very loudly. “We’d better send for Frankie’s
mother.”
#
After weeks of living at Frankie’s house, drinking
terrible potions and getting changed into rubber balls, strawberry plants and
jellyfish, you’re all turned back into people.
Back at home, you receive a mousepad with a
cat on it in the mail. On it are the words, I
survived The Great Mouse Incident. Never Again. But in the end, it’s not so
bad, because becoming a mouse made you discover your love of cheese. You move
to France and become the best cheesemaker in the world, crafting all kinds of
specialty cheeses. Royalty and celebrities are the only people who can afford
your most expensive product, Crafty Cupcake’s Camembert. Each of these cheeses
is worth a time machine. And that’s the best part, because there’s
plenty more adventure to be had - by going back in time.
If you make different choices, you can blow
up the entire museum, join the bad guys, or find your own mouse companion – a
diabolical varmint who will plot revenge against you from under the kitchen
cupboards.
#
Have a great week,
A.J.Ponder
Please ignore this blurb - it's mostly an experiment with key words - cheers!!!!!!!!! :)
One of the authors and editor of Sir Julius Award winning Lost in Te Papa and Twisty Christmas tales, A.J. Ponder is a Sir Julius Vogel award winning author in her own right with Frankie and the Netball Clone taking out best short story. Obviously A.J. has a certain fascination with genius inventors as two of her most famous characters, Lilliana Lionheart and Frankie have that in common. She has a love of science, and a BSc hons to back that up, not to mention being married to Te Papa's Phil Sirvid, the museum entomologist and white-tailed spider expert.
AJ's books include Miss Lionheart and the Laboratory of Death, The Frankie Files, Wizard's Guide to Wellington, numerous school journal stories and plays, horror short stories for adults, along with science fiction, and the odd secret spy, and super-villain.
