2016 Honorable Mention: AN AWESOME ADVENTURE by Olivia Handzel

So there I was sitting in my room dreaming about writing a book. I grabbed my journal and my favorite blue and green mechanical pencil, and I started to write. All of a sudden a pirate appeared in my room. He had a big hat and a big belt. He had an eye patch, and he had big eyebrows and a funny voice. His name was Pop Belly.

Then my dog, Macy, came running into my room, wagging her tail and barking at the pirate. “It’s okay, Macy. This is a pirate and he is friendly,” I said.

The pirate was shaking and said, “What is this creature and what is it doing?”

“Pop Belly, that’s okay. It’s my pup, Macy. Watch some of the tricks she can do.”

Macy can stay when I tell her to. I turned to Macy, and held up a treat, and said, “Stay Macy.” Then I left my room and returned in a couple of seconds. Macy was still sitting and I gave her a treat. I said, “Good dog.”

The pirate said, “I can do better than that!”

All of a sudden a rainbow colored parrot came out of my doll house! Pop Belly said, “Come here, Finky.” Pop Belly told Finky in Spanish, “Go to Mexico and bring something back for us!”

So Finky went to Mexico and came back. In ten minutes he came out of my window, and he was holding two sombreros and said, “I have one for the creature and one for me.”

Then Pop Belly said, “We are off!”

“No, don’t leave!” I said.

“Oh? You want to come with me and Finky?”

“Yes, but can I take Macy?”

“Sure! Let’s go!” said Pop Belly. Pop Belly put some magic dust on Macy and me. Then we all went out the window and boarded the ship. It was so cool! There were big guns, three masts with sails, and a long plank. Finky flew all the way to the top to his favorite place, the crow’s nest. Then Finky said, “Can we go?”

Pop Belly said, “Where should we go?”
I said, “New York!”

“Okay, let’s go!” said Pop Belly.

Soon we were at the docks of New York. Then Pop Belly said, “We can only stay here one night, and two and a half days.”

“Okay,” I replied.

Pop Belly, Macy and I jumped off the boat, but Finky fell into the water. He was flapping his wings and calling for help. Macy picked him up and rescued him.

Pop Belly announced, “So, where do you want to go?”

“How about the TY and Beanie Boo Store in Manhattan? It’s in Five Below,” I said.

“Okay,” said Pop Belly. Soon we were inside the TY store. Then Pop Belly asked, “Do you want some TYs?”

“Oh, yes!” I said excitedly. “How many?”

Pop Belly said, “One big and five small!”

Thirty minutes later I had picked out one big and five small. Meanwhile Pop Belly and Finky were in the Lego Store, and they bought a pirate ship. Finky’s favorite toy was the Lego parrot! “So where do you want to go now?” asked Pop Belly.

“Let me check. Oh there’s a library next door!”

Soon they were at the library. “How many books can I borrow?” I asked.

Pop Belly said, “As many as you want.”

I said, “YES!!!”

“Okay, okay, okay. We will be in the easy pirate part of the library. Meet me in the main lobby in 30 minutes,” said Pop Belly.

“Okay,” I said. I was looking for the best book ever. I wandered around the library and was in the back of the library, when I found a prodigious book about Beanie Boos! The book was almost as big as the shelf it was on, and it was thicker than a dictionary. On the book spine it said, “The Complete Book of Beanie Boos.” With all of my strength I pulled it down onto the floor and opened it. I liked it so much that I asked the librarian if she could help me transport it to the easy pirate section of the library. The librarian found a large cart and we put the book on the cart. I took it to Pop Belly’s area. I told him that I wanted to check out this book, and he said, “Woe! Okay!” Pop Belly picked up his books and we went to the check out area.

When we arrived there, the librarian said, “You can’t check this book out! You can only buy it!”

Pop Belly said, “Oh dear! How much is it?”

The librarian looked at the price tag and said with shock, “Two dollars????”

“We’ll take it!” announced Pop Belly.

After leaving the library, I received a text from my Mom. It said, “Where are you? It’s time for you to come home for dinner!”

“Pop Belly, my Mom just sent me a text, saying it’s time to come home for dinner!”

Pop Belly said, “Oh! Okay!” For two minutes we stared at each other, and Pop Belly was speechless.

Finally, I said, “You’re going to take me home, right?”

Pop Belly said, “Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah. That’s what I was going to say1”

So Finky, Pop Belly, Macy, and I boarded the pirate ship again. Pop Belly said, “Good-bye, New York! We are headed to Michigan again!”

Then we were off and, before you knew it, we were back home. We dragged Macy, my Beanie Boos, and my book off the ship. Pop Belly said, “This is it!”

I asked, “Do you want to come back here every month? We could go one more adventures!”

Pop Belly said, “That sounds great! Good-bye!”

I gave Pop Belly and Finky a big hug and I watched as they flew away.

Then I went inside my house with Macy, my Beanie Boos, and my book. My Mom said, “Where have you been? We have been worried sick about you two.”

I answered, “Oh, nowhere!”

Mom asked, “Where did you get those Beanie Boos and the big book?”

“You won’t believe me!”

The End