Grasshopper Magic by Lynne Jonell

Author:Lynne Jonell [Jonell, Lynne]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 978-0-307-97469-3
Publisher: Random House Children's Books
Published: 2013-05-27T16:00:00+00:00

The four Willows leaped over the fields, keeping their heads pointed forward, their bodies almost flat. This was the long, low bounce. But bounding through the fields was like getting whipped with a million blades of grass. After a while it started to hurt.

They stopped after the third field to adjust the bungee cords that strapped Celia to Tate’s back and Derek to Abner’s.

“My face is getting scratched to death,” said Tate. “Maybe we should take the road, Abner. When we see a car coming, we can duck into a ditch.”

“Okay,” said Abner. “Watch for dust in the air. On these gravel roads, you can see a car coming a long way off.”

“You can taste a car a long time after it passes, too,” said Tate, coughing. “Derek and Celia, keep your eyes and mouths closed while we’re moving.”

“We already are,” said Celia, who had buried her face in Tate’s shirt.

“Okay, everybody ready?” Abner looked around. “Let’s go, troops.”

The ditches were damp and weedy, and Abner and Tate had to drop to their knees in one whenever a car passed. By the time they got to the edge of town, their knees were grass-stained and muddy and their tennis shoes were sopping wet. But they were getting better at landing.

Derek shifted his weight on Abner’s back. “That last car—I think somebody saw us. A little girl in the backseat waved.”

“A little kid is okay.” Abner brushed off his knees. “Everybody will just tell her she has a good imagination.”

“Yes,” said Tate, “but we have to be more careful now.”

Abner looked past a tall grove of trees. He saw a line of scrubby bushes, a vacant lot, and what looked like a gravel pit. Beyond that was the first building in town. It was very tall, with an odd shape like houses stacked up. A sign said it was the feed mill.

Abner glanced around. No one was watching. “Tate,” he whispered, “let’s jump up where we can see. Derek and Celia, hang on tight.”

With a tremendous grasshopper bound, Abner leaped onto the middle roof of the feed mill. A second leap took him to the top. Tate thumped right behind him.

“I feel sick,” said Derek, who had made the mistake of opening his eyes.

“Don’t look down,” Tate advised.

“I’m not going to,” said Celia in a muffled voice. Her face was still pressed into Tate’s back.

Abner didn’t feel sick at all. He loved to climb trees, and he liked being up high, where he could see everything. But he was not up here just for fun. He had to figure out where Mrs. Delgado’s house was.

The town spread out below him like a toy village. He could see the rectangles of streets and the square rooftops of houses. He could see the taller buildings in the center of town, all lined up on Main Street.

And right next to a central square, he could see a big building with a playground. That must be the school. He pointed it out to Tate.

She nodded. “Mrs.

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