CHILDREN’S BOOK & TOY BANK

Katy and Daniel are on holiday on an island. There are a few grassy hills and a few houses on the island. There are a lot of sheep and a lot of sea birds. The cottage where they are staying is next to a small beach with white sand and clear seawater.

Katy and Daniel like to paddle in the clear seawater and to look at their feet walking on the white sand under the water. They can see seashells and seaweed under the clear seawater. They think this is the best place in the world for a holiday.

There is a small shop on the other side of the island. One day Mummy says that they need some milk. Daddy says that they will take the rowing boat and row round the island instead of walking. They all think this will be fun.

Daddy is rowing as they set off, on a calm sea and in bright sunshine.

When they get to the end of the island things start to go wrong. There is a strong wind and the sea has rather big waves. Then Daddy loses an oar over the side of the boat, and they see it drifting away. Now he cannot row and the sea is pulling them away from the island. Katy is frightened, and even Mummy and Daddy are a bit worried.

Luckily the strong current carries them to a small island where they manage to scramble ashore, and they pull the boat up the beach. Poor Katy is crying because she is so frightened. Mummy puts her arm round her and gives her a hug. Soon Katy knows she is safe and stops crying.

“What do we do now?” she asks.

“We keep a lookout for a boat that can rescue us,” says Daddy, “and we explore the island. No-one lives here so we can be explorers.”

“I am hungry,” says Daniel. “Let’s see what food we have between us,” says Mummy.

They all look in their pockets and bags. Altogether they have 4 sweets, a small bar of chocolate and one raw potato.

“Why do you carry a potato in your pocket, Daniel?” asks Katy.

“I don’t know,” says Daniel. “I just do!”

“Let’s try to cook is,” says Daddy.

He takes out of his pocket a magnifying glass. Then he finds some very dry bracken. With the magnifying-glass he focuses the sunshine onto the dry bracken. After a while the bracken begins to smoke. Very gently Daddy blows on the smoke, and, as if by magic, the smoke bursts into flame. They all gather drift wood from the beach to make a fire. Then they cook the potato in the fire. The outside is black, but the inside is cooked beautifully. They think this is the best potato they have ever tasted. Unfortunately, there is only enough for one mouthful each. Secretly, Daniel thinks it tastes so good because it has been in his pocket for two weeks!

“Now for pudding,” says Mummy. She breaks the bar of chocolate into four. Their pudding is one piece of chocolate and one sweet each.

“That was fun,” says Daniel, “but now we have eaten all our food we will be very hungry. What will we do?”

Just then the sharp eyes of Katy spot a boat. They all jump up and down and wave to attract the attention of the boat. It does not seem to have seen them. Yes, it has. The boat changes course and comes to the island. It is the lobster fishermen, Archie and Angus.

“We found your oar and thought something terrible had happened to you,” they said.

They all tell Archie and Angus their story.

“Ah!” said Archie, “You tried to go the wrong way around the island at the wrong time.”

Archie tells them that they should always go the other way around the island because it is much more sheltered, and so the sea is not so rough. He also tells them that, where they lost their oar, when the tide is going out or coming in, it rushed between two islands, and there is a very strong current. It was this current that took them onto the small island. They were very lucky the island was in the way because they could have gone very far out to sea.

Daddy said, “Well! You are never too old to learn a lesson, and I have certainly learnt mine today.”

Archie and Angus take them all back to their safe little beach, with their rowing boat being towed behind.

They all thank Archie and Angus for their rescue and invite them in for tea. Archie and Angus say they must get off to their lobster pots.

When they have gone Mummy says, “It is a good job they did not come in for tea, because we still have no milk!”

Daddy says “Let’s take the rowing boat the other….”

“NO!!” says Mummy. “We have had enough rowing for one day. We will walk across the island.”

And that is what they did.