The grand prize winners of the new 5th generation iPod nanos are:
Aidan, 7
Alexxandra, 11
Beatrice, 10
Brooklyn, 11
Cecilia, 8
Chanell, 10
Cici, 7
Jaime, 6
Jordan, 8
Huda, 8
Luisa, 11
Mark, 10
Matthew, 7
Megan, 8
Nathan, 8
Nikki, 11
Sally, 12
Sohinee, 10
Congratulations to all!!
...and stay tuned for the results of how many hours of reading Calgary kids did this year!
That's right! August 27th is the last day to enter your ballots.
One more week to read...
One more week to get your ballots in...
One more week to win!
“Well, looks like this is it,” said Shen, picking up the last book.
“Pirates: Scourge of the Seven Seas,” said Anya. “We’ll have to be careful.”
The smell of salt filled their noses and the ground underneath their feet swayed. All around them was bright blue ocean, ropes, sails, and pirates. The pirate crew was dressed in ragged clothes with cutlasses and pistols in their belts, and shiny gold earrings in their ears. They still hadn’t noticed Anya and Shen, but seemed to be watching something that was happening in the middle of the ship.
“Yarrr!” bellowed a large pirate with an eye patch over his left eye and a brightly coloured parrot perched on his shoulder. “It’s time ya walked the plank ya no good land lubber!”
“Look!” cried Anya pointing to a small figure about to step onto the plank. “It’s Max!”
Everyone on board spun around at the sound of Anya’s cry. “More children? Get ‘em lads!”
The pirates rushed towards Anya and Shen. “Hide the book,” hissed Anya, sliding the card into her pocket. Shen quickly tucked the book under his shirt before the pirates grabbed them both and carried them to where the Captain was waiting beside Max.
“Hi guys,” said Max. “See, I told you my library card was magical!”
“Silence!” roared the Captain. “We do not allow children on board the Salty Sarrrdine!”
“Salty Sardine?” laughed Shen. “What kind of pirate ship name is that?”
“Arrrrrrrrrrr,” growled the Captain. “What’s wrong with the Salty Sarrrdine? I named it myself because I like Sarrrdines.”
Both Shen and Anya laughed. “Well it might be a good name if your ship is sailing on a pizza.”
“Pizza?” yelled the Captain. “What’s…? Arrr never mind,” he drew his cutlass from his belt. “I’ve had enough of these pesky visitors.”
“Oh please, sir!” cried Anya winking at Shen. “Don’t make us walk the plank like poor Max here!”
“Ah harrr! Great idea. The three of you will walk the plank together. Now move!”
With that Anya and Shen joined Max on the plank. Below them the sea was filled with sharks which circled hungrily. “Walk,” the Captain thrust his cutlass in their direction and the children inched forward.
Max began to whimper as he eyed the sharks and the dark water below. “Thanks for coming to rescue me, but it looks like we’re all going to be fish food pretty soon,” Max said.
“Nope!” said Shen smiling. He pulled out the book as Anya took out the library card. “Hold tight this time,” warned Anya, as all three grabbed the book and disappeared.
The children arrived back safely in the library. “Here you go, Max,” said Anya handing him the magic card. “If I were you, I’d stay out of the Top Secret section from now on.”
“Yeah,” said Max, still trembling. “I think I’ll check out a book that’s nice and safe. Maybe something about bunnies?”
The End.
“There are only two books left,” said Anya. “Max must be in one of them.”
Shen picked up the last two titles. “Exploring the World of Tomorrow and Pirates: Scourge of the Seven Seas,” he read. “I don’t like the sound of that last one.”
“Neither do I,” said Anya. “We’ve been chased by a Tyrannosaurus Rex, almost robbed by a cattle rustler, and nearly locked in a dungeon. I don’t want to think what could happen to us on a pirate ship!”
“I agree,” said Shen. “Let’s just hope Max is in the future.” He placed the pirate book back on the floor and nodded to Anya, “I’m ready.”
Anya gripped the library card tightly as the room spun. To their surprise they found themselves standing in the library still. “It didn’t work,” said Shen. “We’re still here.”
“Greetings, how may I help you?” squeaked a strange voice behind them. They whirled around to find not a librarian, but a robot!
“Yipes!” squealed Shen.
“How may I help you?” repeated the robot.
“We’re looking for Max,” said Anya.
“Is Max the name of a book?” asked the robot politely.
“No, Max is our friend, who is trapped in a book”.
“I’m sorry, I don’t understand,” said the robot. “Wait right here, please.” The robot sped off, but then quickly returned, followed by a floating desk piloted by an elderly woman.
“Thank you Unit 629.892. Who do we have here?” asked the librarian.
“These children require assistance. They are looking for their friend.”
“Of course,” the librarian exclaimed. “Max wasn’t it?”
“Yes, he’s trapped in a book,” answered Anya. “But how did you…”
“Hmm, trapped in a book. Well that hasn’t happened around here for quite some time. What book is Max trapped inside?”
“We think it’s Pirates: Scourge of the Seven Seas,” answered Shen. “We were hoping to find him here though.”
The librarian pressed a button on her desk and spoke, “Pirates: Scourge of the Seven Seas.” There was a humming sound and the pirate book materialized on the desk. “There’s an easy way to find out,” she said, opening the book. “Take a look at the pictures. Do you recognize anyone?”
The children flipped through the book when suddenly Anya exclaimed, “Shen – look!”
There, in a picture of a mean looking pirate crew, stood a very worried looking Max. “He is in the book. I guess that means we will have to visit the pirates after all!”
“Well, good luck children, and remember the plank isn’t always as bad as it seems.”
Shen brought out the book they had used to travel to the future and Anya brought out the card. “Thanks!”
Shen said to the librarian, “We didn’t catch your name.”
“Just call me Anya,” the woman said smiling as the room began to spin.
“Anya!?” they gasped, but before they knew it, they were back in their own time staring at the final book on the floor. “Was that….me?” whispered Anya in shock.
“She did look awfully familiar,” said Shen. “What did she, I mean you, mean when you said the plank isn’t always as bad as it seems?”
“I think we’re about to find out,” Anya answered nervously. “Let’s go get Max.”
To be continued…
“Third time’s the charm, right?” asked Shen selecting another book from the floor.
“I hope so,” answered Anya. “What’s the title of this one?”
“Knights and Castles,” said Shen, his eyes lighting up. “I’ve always wanted to visit a real castle!”
“It looks like you’re going to get your chance,” said Anya, “but remember, we’re there to find Max, not to explore castles.”
“Well if Max is in a castle then we’ll just have to explore it anyway,” smiled Shen, as Anya took out the card and reached for the book.
By now they were used to the spinning room and the bright flash of light, but they were not prepared for what awaited them as they arrived smack in the middle of a royal court.
There was a terrible commotion around them as women in long, beautiful gowns and men in fancy clothes or shining armour cried out in surprise.
“Sorcerers!” bellowed a man wearing a large golden crown. “Guards, seize them at once!”
“He must be the King,” whispered Shen to Anya as the heavy tramping of the guards drew near. “Maybe they’ve captured Max already?”
Ten men in heavy armour surrounded Anya and Shen. The leader, a tall knight, drew his sword and pointed it at the children. “You’re coming with me sorcerers! You’ll be spending a very long time in our dungeon.”
“Well at least you’ll get to see part of a castle,” whispered Anya.
“I think I’ve seen enough already,” said Shen.
“Seize his book of spells!” shouted the King, pointing at the book in Shen’s hands.
“Oh no!” said Anya. “We’ll be trapped here forever without the book!”
“Do you still have your cell phone?” whispered Shen. Anya nodded. “When I say now, take a picture of the King.”
“Your Majesty!” shouted Shen. “You are right. We are sorcerers, but we are only looking for our friend Max. If you let us go we promise we won’t use our magic. If you do not we will trap you in our magic box forever!”
“Bah,” snorted the King. “I’m not scared of you!”
“Now Anya!” shouted Shen.
Anya raised her cell phone and snapped a picture of the surprised King. Everyone in the room gasped as the camera flashed. “Behold,” said Anya showing the king the picture she had just taken on the cell phone’s screen.
“Zounds!” cried the King. “It’s me. I’m trapped in their magic box!”
“That’s ridiculous, you’re…” began the Queen.
“Release them at once!” shouted the King before she could finish.
The children needed no further encouragement. Anya took out the library card and took hold of the book in Shen’s hands.
Soon they were standing in the library once again. “Time travel sure is dangerous,” said Anya.
“I know,” said Shen. “But we still haven’t found Max. Let’s see what’s next.”
To be continued…
“Wow,” said Anya, “no wonder this part of the library is Top Secret. We’d better hurry and find Max before someone catches us!”
Shen read the title of the second book, “The Wild West. Well at least there won’t be any dinosaurs this time.”
“That’s true, I just hope that the cowboys are friendlier than that Tyrannosaurus was,” added Anya. “Here we go!”
Clutching the library card, Anya reached out and touched the book in Shen’s hands. Once again the room spun, there was a brilliant flash of light, and the two children found themselves standing on a dusty dirt road in the middle of a busy town somewhere in the old west.
“What in tarnation?” exclaimed a man in a cowboy hat standing nearby. “Where did you youngin’s come from?” He eyed their blue jeans and sneakers suspiciously. “Those’re some mighty fancy duds you’ve got there, where abouts you from?”
“Calgary,” answered Anya, unsure of what to say. “We’re just visiting to find our friend Max.”
“Visiting?” snarled the cowboy. “I thought you said you was from Calgary?”
As Anya and Shen looked around they realized where they were. “This is Calgary?”
“What’s that fancy thing in your hand?” the stranger asked pointing to the magical library card. “Looks like it might be worth somethin’. You’d better let me hold onto it for safe keepin’.”
“No thanks!” said Anya. “My friend and I were just leaving.”
“You’d best hand it over right now,” growled the stranger, his hand going to the six-shooter on his belt.
“Is there a problem here?” The gunslinger spun around to find a man in a red uniform with a strange hat standing behind them.
“It’s a mountie!” cried Anya.
“Constable McKay,” answered the police officer turning to the stranger.
“Snake Eye Sid, you are under arrest for the theft of one hundred head of cattle,” said the Constable as he approached the group.
“Shucks Constable, that weren’t me,” said Sid.
“We found them at your camp outside of town, Sid,” answered the Constable sternly.
“Awww dang- it!” said Sid, as the Constable handcuffed him.
“Now run along home children,” Constable McKay told them leading Sid away.
“Wait, Constable,” exclaimed Anya. “We’re looking for our friend Max. He’d be wearing strange clothes like us and would have just arrived a little while ago.”
“Sorry kids, I haven’t seen anyone like that around here. Say, where are you kids from?”
“Never mind!” said Shen quickly, not sure what the law said about time travelling. “We’ll just be going now!” He and Anya disappeared with a bright flash of light.
“Woooooweee…” said Sid. “I knew that there card she had was worth somethin’!”
To be continued…
“Your library card can’t let you travel back in time!” hissed Anya.
“Can so!” shouted Max.
“Then why haven’t you used it?” asked Shen.
“Because the books I need are in the Top Secret section of the library and we’re not supposed to be back there,” replied Max.
“There is no Top Secret section! You’re just saying that so you won’t have to show us,” accused Shen.
“Fine, I’ll prove it.” Clutching his library card, Max snuck behind a shelf at the back of the library. Before Shen and Anya could follow, there was a bright flash of light from behind the shelves. Anya and Shen looked at each other in surprise. “What was that?” they asked in unison.
Checking quickly to make sure no one was looking, the two children rushed behind the shelf. To their shock they didn’t find Max, but five books lying on the floor with Max’s library card.
“Where is he?” gasped Shen. “You don’t think his card really works, do you?”
Anya picked up the card. “It has some strange symbol on it. And look! So do the books,” she said pointing to the shelves around them. “I wonder what it means. Do you think there really is a Top Secret section?”
Shen picked up one of the books from the floor. “Exploring the World of the Dinosaurs,” he read aloud. “I wonder how this works?”
“Let me see,” said Anya, grabbing for the book. As soon as she touched it, the room began to spin around them. There was a bright flash of light and they were no longer in the library.
Instead of books, they were now surrounded by tall trees and large leafy bushes. “I think Max’s card really does let you travel through time,” whispered Anya.
“I think so too,” answered Shen. “Where are we?”
“I think you mean when are we?” said Anya, looking at the dinosaur book in Shen’s hands. “The card must make us travel back to the time when the book is taking place. Max must have dropped his library card when he travelled into the book and that means he’s trapped in one of them!”
Shen put his hands around his mouth and bellowed, “MAX! MAX, ARE YOU HERE?”
They listened. There was a loud crash somewhere in the trees ahead of them. “Max?” asked Anya timidly. There was another crash and the ground shook.
“I don’t think that’s Max!” cried Shen as the crashing grew louder and louder. The trees parted and there was a mean, hungry looking Tyrannosaurus Rex bearing down on them. “Quick use the card!” shouted Shen.
Anya took the card in one hand and touched the book Shen was still holding with the other. The jungle swirled around them and just as the dinosaur’s horrible breath hit them, there was a flash of light and they were back in the library.
“That was way too close,” gasped Shen. He reached down and picked up another book from the floor. “When to next?”
To be continued…