#chapter books

[sonicthedestiel]

So i published my version, "The Scorpion and the Toad"

its on amazon

or it will be in a few hours...

first time publishing.. i dont like money but alas we must survive obviously its free to read right here but i tweaked it a bit and added to it i think its good- hope someone else does too <3

A scorpion, not knowing how to swim, asked a frog to carry it across the river. “Do I look like a fool?” said the frog. “You’d sting me if I let you on my back!”

“Be logical,” said the scorpion. “If I stung you I’d certainly drown myself.”

“That’s true,” the frog acknowledged. “Climb aboard, then!” But no sooner than they were halfway across the river, the scorpion stung the frog, and they both began to thrash and drown. “Why on earth did you do that?” the frog said morosely. “Now we’re both going to die.” 

“I can’t help it,” said the scorpion. “It’s my nature.”

___

…But no sooner than they were halfway across the river, the frog felt a subtle motion on its back, and in a panic dived deep beneath the rushing waters, leaving the scorpion to drown.

“It was going to sting me anyway,” muttered the frog, emerging on the other side of the river. “It was inevitable. You all knew it. Everyone knows what those scorpions are like. It was self-defense.”

___

…But no sooner had they cast off from the bank, the frog felt the tip of a stinger pressed lightly against the back of its neck. “What do you think you’re doing?” said the frog.

“Just a precaution,” said the scorpion. “I cannot sting you without drowning. And now, you cannot drown me without being stung. Fair’s fair, isn’t it?”

They swam in silence to the other end of the river, where the scorpion climbed off, leaving the frog fuming.

“After the kindness I showed you!” said the frog. “And you threatened to kill me in return?”

“Kindness?” said the scorpion. “To only invite me on your back after you knew I was defenseless, unable to use my tail without killing myself? My dear frog, I only treated you as I was treated. Your kindness was as poisoned as a scorpion’s sting.”

___

…“Just a precaution,” said the scorpion. “I cannot sting you without drowning. And now, you cannot drown me without being stung. Fair’s fair, isn’t it?”

“You have a point,” the frog acknowledged. “But once we get to dry land, couldn’t you sting me then without repercussion?”

“All I want is to cross the river safely,” said the scorpion. “Once I’m on the other side I would gladly let you be.”

“But I would have to trust you on that,” said the frog. “While you’re pressing a stinger to my neck. By ferrying you to land I’d be be giving up the one deterrent I hold over you.”

“But by the same logic, I can’t possibly withdraw my stinger while we’re still over water,” the scorpion protested.

The frog paused in the middle of the river, treading water. “So, I suppose we’re at an impasse.”

The river rushed around them. The scorpion’s stinger twitched against the frog’s unbroken skin. “I suppose so,” the scorpion said.

___

A scorpion, not knowing how to swim, asked a frog to carry it across the river. “Absolutely not!” said the frog, and dived beneath the waters, and so none of them learned anything.

___

A scorpion, being unable to swim, asked a turtle (as in the original Persian version of the fable) to carry it across the river. The turtle readily agreed, and allowed the scorpion aboard its shell. Halfway across, the scorpion gave in to its nature and stung, but failed to penetrate the turtle’s thick shell. The turtle, swimming placidly, failed to notice.

They reached the other side of the river, and parted ways as friends.

___

…Halfway across, the scorpion gave in to its nature and stung, but failed to penetrate the turtle’s thick shell.

The turtle, hearing the tap of the scorpion’s sting, was offended at the scorpion’s ungratefulness. Thankfully, having been granted the powers to both defend itself and to punish evil, the turtle sank beneath the waters and drowned the scorpion out of principle.

___

A scorpion, not knowing how to swim, asked a frog to carry it across the river. “Do I look like a fool?” sneered the frog. “You’d sting me if I let you on my back.”

The scorpion pleaded earnestly. “Do you think so little of me? Please, I must cross the river. What would I gain from stinging you? I would only end up drowning myself!”

“That’s true,” the frog acknowledged. “Even a scorpion knows to look out for its own skin. Climb aboard, then!”

But as they forged through the rushing waters, the scorpion grew worried. This frog thinks me a ruthless killer, it thought. Would it not be justified in throwing me off now and ridding the world of me? Why else would it agree to this? Every jostle made the scorpion more and more anxious, until the frog surged forward with a particularly large splash, and in panic the scorpion lashed out with its stinger.

“I knew it,” snarled the frog, as they both thrashed and drowned. “A scorpion cannot change its nature.”

___

A scorpion, not knowing how to swim, asked a frog to carry it across the river. The frog agreed, but no sooner than they were halfway across the scorpion stung the frog, and they both began to thrash and drown.

“I’ve only myself to blame,” sighed the frog, as they both sank beneath the waters. “You, you’re a scorpion, I couldn’t have expected anything better. But I knew better, and yet I went against my judgement! And now I’ve doomed us both!”

“You couldn’t help it,” said the scorpion mildly. “It’s your nature.” 

___

…“Why on earth did you do that?” the frog said morosely. “Now we’re both going to die.”

“Alas, I was of two natures,” said the scorpion. “One said to gratefully ride your back across the river, and the other said to sting you where you stood. And so both fought, and neither won.” It smiled wistfully. “Ah, it would be nice to be just one thing, wouldn’t it? Unadulterated in nature. Without the capacity for conflict or regret.”

___

“By the way,” said the frog, as they swam, “I’ve been meaning to ask: What’s on the other side of the river?”

“It’s the journey,” said the scorpion. “Not the destination.”

___

…“What’s on the other side of anything?” said the scorpion. “A new beginning.”

___

…”Another scorpion to mate with,” said the scorpion. “And more prey to kill, and more living bodies to poison, and a forthcoming lineage of cruelties that you will be culpable in.”

___

…”Nothing we will live to see, I fear,” said the scorpion. “Already the currents are growing stronger, and the river seems like it shall swallow us both. We surge forward, and the shoreline recedes. But does that mean our striving was in vain?”

___

“I love you,” said the scorpion.

The frog glanced upward. “Do you?”

“Absolutely. Can you imagine the fear of drowning? Of course not. You’re a frog. Might as well be scared of breathing air. And yet here I am, clinging to your back, as the waters rage around us. Isn’t that love? Isn’t that trust? Isn’t that necessity? I could not kill you without killing myself. Are we not inseparable in this?”

The frog swam on, the both of them silent.

___

“I’m so tired,” murmured the frog eventually. “How much further to the other side? I don’t know how long we’ve been swimming. I’ve been treading water. And it’s getting so very dark.”

“Shh,” the scorpion said. “Don’t be afraid.”

The frog’s legs kicked out weakly. “How long has it been? We’re lost. We’re lost! We’re doomed to be cast about the waters forever. There is no land. There’s nothing on the other side, don’t you see!”

“Shh, shh,” said the scorpion. “My venom is a hallucinogenic. Beneath its surface, the river is endlessly deep, its currents carrying many things.” 

“You - You’ve killed us both,” said the frog, and began to laugh deliriously. “Is this - is this what it’s like to drown?” 

“We’ve killed each other,” said the scorpion soothingly. “My venom in my glands now pulsing through your veins, the waters of your birthing pool suffusing my lungs. We are engulfing each other now, drowning in each other. I am breathless. Do you feel it? Do you feel my sting pierced through your heart?”

“What a foolish thing to do,” murmured the frog. “No logic. No logic to it at all.”

“We couldn’t help it,” whispered the scorpion. “It’s our natures. Why else does anything in the world happen? Because we were made for this from birth, darling, every moment inexplicable and inevitable. What a crazy thing it is to fall in love, and yet - It’s all our fault! We are both blameless. We’re together now, darling. It couldn’t have happened any other way.”

___

“It’s funny,” said the frog. “I can’t say that I trust you, really. Or that I even think very much of you and that nasty little stinger of yours to begin with. But I’m doing this for you regardless. It’s strange, isn’t it? It’s strange. Why would I do this? I want to help you, want to go out of my way to help you. I let you climb right onto my back! Now, whyever would I go and do a foolish thing like that?”

___

A scorpion, not knowing how to swim, asked a frog to carry it across the river. “Do I look like a fool?” said the frog. “You’d sting me if I let you on my back!”

“Be logical,” said the scorpion. “If I stung you I’d certainly drown myself.”  

“That’s true,” the frog acknowledged. “Come aboard, then!” But no sooner had the scorpion mounted the frog’s back than it began to sting, repeatedly, while still safely on the river’s bank.

The frog groaned, thrashing weakly as the venom coursed through its veins, beginning to liquefy its flesh. “Ah,” it muttered. “For some reason I never considered this possibility.”

“Because you were never scared of me,” the scorpion whispered in its ear. “You were never scared of dying. In a past life you wore a shell and sat in judgement. And then you were reborn: soft-skinned, swift, unburdened, as new and vulnerable as a child, moving anew through a world of children. How could anyone ever be cruel, you thought, seeing the precariousness of it all?” The scorpion bowed its head and drank. “How could anyone kill you without killing themselves?”

[autismdogg]

Magic Tree House #1-10 (1992-97)

[jonathan-cranes-mistress-of-fear]

Man-bat is one of Scarecrow's favorite rogues. This is canon now.

5 Scarier Stories for a Dark Night || Scanned at 300dpi

[fightingwithallreality]

Colorado Summer (1999) written by Larry Bograd and Coleen Hubbard, illustrated by Sandy Rabinowitz [source]

[rememberingmermaids]

The covers of each of the books in the twelve-book Little Mermaid novel series that was released in 1994. Here is a link to a site with summaries for each book summary

[thatsbelievable]

Meet Waffles & Tanya!

See that kid on the left? That’s Wen, but his mom calls him “Waffles.” Because he likes pancakes. She thinks that’s funny. Anyway, monster-movie buff Waffles has to spend the summer with his Grandpa in Shriekport, Maine. Lucky for him, Grandpa used to be a makeup and special-effects artist for monster movies, and he’s got a whole basement full of props that need organizing.

See the kid on the right? That’s Tanya, and she lives next door to Grandpa. She also accidentally broke one of Grandpa’s windows, and offered to help him organize his basement in return. Tanya loves monster movies, too (you name it, she’s seen it), so digging through the movie props isn’t exactly a punishment.

Tanya and Waffles hit it off, and it seems like it’s going to be a great summer for the two friends, which is usually when something unexpected and decidedly awful happens. And that something is called The Monstrous Adventures of Mummy Man and Waffles, the spooky middle-grade novel written by me (Steve Behling) and illustrated by Robb Mommaerts.

I’d be grateful if you’d check it out! Which you can do so quite literally at your library! Click that link to see if your library carries it. If not, you can ask your librarian to order it! Libraries and librarians are awesome.

You can also order the book HERE. And right now, it’s on sale directly from HarperCollins!

[disneyfairiesparadise]

THIS JUST IN FAIRY FANS: DISNEY IS OFFICIALLY MAKING A PREQUEL BOOK FOR THE MILARION LOVE STORY! ALREADY PREORDERED MY COPY!

[glimmerkey]

Scholastic - Pokemon Chapter Books

[picturebookshelf]

Magic Tree House: Blizzard of the Blue Moon (2006)

Story: Mary Pope Osborne -- Art: Sal Murdocca

[charliecanchill]

I don't like school but I enjoyed reading these books. I still like all of these, honestly

[sailorplutoirl]

I think there's a difference between Sunset and the Dazzlings

I remember in that The Mane Event chapter book based on Rainbow Rocks at a bookstore which I never bought.It had like a spot at the end where you could write your feelings sort of like a diary. It said something like "Do you ever feel like doing the same thing over and over again?" Like in reference to the Dazzlings, and if you look at the Dazzlings vs. Sunset, you can see a big difference.

Sunset Shimmer changed. The Dazzlings didn't.

Throughout Rainbow Rocks, and in between, Sunset had to change and work towards being a better person. It was hard and messy and people didn't forgive her right away all of the time, but it was what ultimately defeated the Dazzlings in the End.

The Dazzlings on the other hand? They simply used basically the same tactic they used for like 1,000 years. Yes they were immediately liked, and it yielded results and they got scarily far, they were ultimately defeated because they underestimated Sunset's ability and want change.

They recognized that Sunset did something bad, and was ostracized for it and for good reason. They used it against her to shut her down and make her feel insecure. It was Sunset who had to take the long messy road of change and commit to it, and and as stated before, she was the one that asserted herself when it was needed, and was the one that carried The Rainbooms in that final battle. (The only one who didn't have one of those bum-ass outfits might I add. She at least looked the least terrible out of The Rainbooms.)

Maybe they knew Sunset was a threat, but underestimated that she was a threat that could get back up.

Even in like their powered up forms. Sunset's form is one that came with her redemption and solidifies her as a Rainboom. The Dazzlings were using projections of their original forms from 1,000 years ago. Maybe they were stuck in the past.

While the Dazzlings were immediately adored, it was fake and evaporated after the spell was lifted, while when people start to warm up to Sunset, although it takes a while, it's real.

Whether or not it was intentional, I may never know, but I like this.

But not this wtf

When I figure out how to redesign these it’s over for y’all these girls deserve so much better than the outfits they got BECAUSE

[butterflyangel2002]

I got this book a while ago and went back to reading it after months of burnout and being busy. Usually I don’t finish chapter books after reading the first few pages, but after going back to this I want to read more. It’s a very loving, tender, relatable, and perceptive book that I highly recommend. The author written this book with love. For a while now, I’ve been on a journey discovering myself and this book has really helped me in embracing my sensitivity more and I think others should do the same 💗🫶🏾

[anumacy]

Crying inside

[jonathan-cranes-mistress-of-fear]

Yes, that is a sock-puppet.

5 Scarier Stories for a Dark Knight || Scanned at 300dpi

[therollingquill]

This is one of the exhilaratingly fun stories I have ever had the pleasure of writing and i revisit it often in my mind. Do you love cats? Books? Strange, cat run book worlds under the local library? Check this one out, and I promise you will love it!

The Brothers LeStray: Coley, Gregory: 9798834853275: Amazon.com: Books

[chronicsymptomsyndrome]

Shoutout to anyone that liked these books as a kid. I hope we’re all healing okay.