Ramona's World (14 page)

Authors: Beverly Cleary

BOOK: Ramona's World

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“He meant a big box tied shut. A box with holes punched in it for the dog to breathe through.”

Henry was horrified to hear Ribsy growl. “Shut up,” he ordered.

Ribsy began to scratch his left ear with his left hind foot. The box began to tear. Ribsy jumped out of the box and off the bus and Henry jumped after him. The bus pulled away with a puff of exhaust.

“Now see what you've done! You've spoiled everything.” The dog hung his head and tucked his tail between his legs. “If I can't get you home, how can I keep you?”

Henry sat down on the curb to think. It was so late and the clouds were so dark that he didn't want to waste time looking for a big box. His mother was probably beginning to worry about him.

People were stopping on the corner to wait for the next bus. Among them Henry noticed an elderly lady carrying a large paper shopping bag full of apples. The shopping bag gave him an idea. Jumping up, he snapped his fingers at Ribs and ran back into the drugstore.

“You back again?” asked the toothpaste clerk. “What do you want this time? String and paper to wrap your dog in?”

“No, sir,” said Henry. “I want one of those big nickel shopping bags.” He laid his last nickel on the counter.

“Well, I'll be darned,” said the clerk, and handed the bag across the counter.

Henry opened the bag and set it up on the floor. He picked up Ribsy and shoved him hind feet first into the bag. Then he pushed his front feet in. A lot of Ribsy was left over.

The clerk was leaning over the counter watching. “I guess I'll have to have some string and paper, too,” Henry said, “if I can have some free.”

“Well! Now I've seen everything.” The clerk shook his head as he handed a piece of string and a big sheet of paper across the counter.

Ribsy whimpered, but he held still while Henry wrapped the paper loosely around his head and shoulders and tied it with the string. The dog made a lumpy package, but by taking one handle of the bag in each hand Henry was able to carry it to the bus stop. He didn't think the bus driver would notice him. It was getting dark and a crowd of people, most of them with packages, was waiting on the corner. A few spatters of rain hit the pavement.

This time Henry remembered his dime. Both hands were full, so he held the dime in his teeth and stood behind the woman with the bag of apples. Ribsy wiggled and whined, even though Henry tried to pet him through the paper. When the bus stopped, he climbed on behind the lady, quickly set the bag down, dropped his dime in the slot, picked up the bag, and squirmed through the crowd to a seat beside a fat man near the back of the bus.

“Whew!” Henry sighed with relief. The driver was the same one he had met on the first bus! But Ribs was on the bus at last. Now if he could only keep him quiet for fifteen minutes they would be home and Ribsy would be his for keeps.

The next time the bus stopped Henry saw Scooter McCarthy, a fifth grader at school, get on and make his way through the crowd to the back of the bus.

Just my luck, thought Henry. I'll bet he wants to know what's in my bag.

“Hi,” said Scooter.

“Hi,” said Henry.

“Whatcha got in that bag?” asked Scooter.

“None of your beeswax,” answered Henry.

Scooter looked at Henry. Henry looked at Scooter. Crackle, crackle, crackle went the bag. Henry tried to hold it more tightly between his knees.

“There's something alive in that bag!” Scooter said accusingly.

“Shut up, Scooter!” whispered Henry.

“Aw, shut up yourself!” said Scooter. “You've got something alive in that bag!”

By this time the passengers at the back of the bus were staring at Henry and his package. Crackle, crackle, crackle. Henry tried to pat Ribsy again through the paper. The bag crackled even louder. Then it began to wiggle.

“Come on, tell us what's in the bag,” coaxed the fat man.

“N-n-n-nothing,” stammered Henry. “Just something I found.”

“Maybe it's a rabbit,” suggested one passenger. “I think it's kicking.”

“No, it's too big for a rabbit,” said another.

“I'll bet it's a baby,” said Scooter. “I'll bet you kidnapped a baby!”

“I did not!”

Ribs began to whimper and then to howl. Crackle, crackle, crackle. Thump, thump, thump. Ribsy scratched his way out of the bag.

“Well, I'll be doggoned!” exclaimed the fat man and began to laugh. “I'll be doggoned!”

“It's just a skinny old dog,” said Scooter.

“He is not! He's a good dog.”

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

ALAN M
C
EWAN

BEVERLY CLEARY
is one of America's most beloved authors. As a child, she struggled with reading and writing. But by third grade, after spending much time in her public library in Portland, she found her skills had greatly improved. Before long, her school librarian was saying that she should write children's books when she grew up.

Instead she became a librarian. When a young boy asked her, “Where are the books about kids like us?” she remembered her teacher's encouragement and was inspired to write the books she'd longed to read but couldn't find when she was younger. She based her funny stories on her own neighborhood experiences and the sort of children she knew. And so, the Klickitat Street gang was born!

Mrs. Cleary's books have earned her many prestigious awards, including the American Library Association's Laura Ingalls Wilder Award, presented to her in recognition of her lasting contribution to children's literature.
RAMONA QUIMBY, AGE 8
and
RAMONA AND HER FATHER
have also been named Newbery Honor Books. Her characters, including Beezus and Ramona Quimby, Henry Huggins, and Ralph, the motorcycle-riding mouse, have delighted children for generations.

Get to know all the kids in Ramona's neighborhood in The World of Beverly Cleary at WWW.BEVERLYCLEARY.COM

Visit
www.AuthorTracker.com
for exclusive information on your favorite HarperCollins authors and artists.

BACK AD

OTHER BOOKS BY BEVERLY CLEARY

Enjoy all of BEVERLY CLEARY'S books

FEATURING

RAMONA QUIMBY:

Beezus and Ramona

Ramona the Pest

Ramona the Brave

Ramona and Her Father

Ramona and Her Mother

Ramona Quimby, Age 8

Ramona Forever

Ramona's World

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FEATURING

HENRY HUGGINS:

Henry Huggins

Henry and Beezus

Henry and Ribsy

Henry and the Paper Route

Henry and the Clubhouse

Ribsy

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FEATURING

RALPH MOUSE:

The Mouse and the Motorcycle

Runaway Ralph

Ralph S. Mouse

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MORE GREAT FICTION BY

BEVERLY CLEARY:

Ellen Tebbits

Otis Spofford

Fifteen

The Luckiest Girl

Jean and Johnny

Emily's Runaway

Imagination

Sister of the Bride

Mitch and Amy

Socks

Dear Mr. Henshaw

Muggie Maggie

Strider

Two Times the Fun

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AND DON'T MISS

BEVERLY CLEARY'S

AUTOBIOGRAPHIES:

A Girl from Yamhill

My Own Two Feet

CREDITS

Cover design and hand lettering by Cara E. Petrus

COPYRIGHT

R
AMONA'S WORLD
. Copyright Â© 1999 by Beverly Cleary. All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the nonexclusive, nontransferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, downloaded, decompiled, reverse-engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins e-books.

www.harpercollinschildrens.com

Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: 2012948581

ISBN 978-0-380-73272-2 (pbk.)

ISBN 978-0-688-16816-2 (hardcover)

EPub Edition February 2013 ISBN 9780061972379

Version 03012013