Publisher Description

Avon the snail has never had an adventure. And adventure, he has heard, is the key to a happy life. So with his new friend Edward the ant, Avon sets out on a journey to find the excitement his life has been missing.
This modern fable is filled with funny--and profound--insights about the meaning of things . . . great and small.

Author Biography

Avi's many acclaimed books for young readers include the Newbery Medal-winning Crispin: The Cross of Lead and the Newbery Honor books Nothing But the Truth: A Documentary Novel and The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle as well as The Fighting Ground, Poppy, and The Secret School. He lives in Colorado.TRICIA TUSA has written and illustrated many wonderful picture books, including In a Blue Room by Jim Averbeck; Mrs. Spitzer's Garden by Edith Pattou; The Magic Hat by Mem Fox; The End of the Beginning by Avi; and her own Follow Me.

Review

"A charming tale."--Publishers Weekly
"A story that begs to be read aloud."--Booklist --

Review Quote

Newbery medalist Avi (Crispin) returns to animal fantasy with this gently humorous tale about two travelers in search of excitement, an earlier version of which appeared as a beginning reader (Snail Tale: The Adventures of a Rather Small Snail, 1972). Avon the snail wants adventures like the characters he reads about in books. He sets aside caution and heads out, immediately meeting Edward, a cocksure ant who has (mostly wrong) answers for all of Avon's worries. Avi's droll wit spices the rather quiet journey, as when Edward goes to formally greet his new friend: "When he realized Avon did not have hands, he shook one of his own. 'Pleased to meet you,' he said." Careful listeners will figure out the travelers' trip consists of the length of a long branch and will enjoy being in the know when Avon and Edward clearly aren't. What qualifies as excitement for this pair may not raise goose bumps on anybody else's skin-they mistake a mouse for a dragon ("good dragons disguise themselves as nice creatures, and bad dragons as nasty ones," Ant explains), and must "battle" an oncoming snail in order to pass one another on the narrow branch. But the bite-size chapters and the clever repartee make this a charming tale, and the occasional, slightly anthropomorphized pencil illustrations show Avon and Edward to be the friendliest of creatures. All ages.

Excerpt from Book

Chapter one In Which the Adventure Begins avon, a rather small snail, read a book every day. He loved to read because books told him all about the things that creatures did when they went on adventures. Now, Avon had noticed that when creatures finished their adventures, and when the stories ended, the creatures were always happy. Because Avon had never had an adventure of his own, the more he read, the sadder he became. It was absolutely necessary, he decided, to have adventures for himself. Only then would he be happy. He sighed. "No adventures will ever come my way." A newt who was passing by overheard Avon's words. "Nay, lad, don't say such things." "But don't you see," said Avon, close to tears, "the most important thing in the world is having adventures. Not only have I not had any, I don't think I ever will. And if I don't have adventures--like the ones I've read about in these books--I'm bound to be unhappy forever." "Then go out and seek some adventures," said the newt. "I don't know how," Avon said. "Remember, lad," said the newt, "if it's going to be tomorrow, it might as well be today. And if it is today, it could have been yesterday. If it was yesterday, then you're over and done with it, and can write your own book. Think about that." Avon thought about it for a long moment, and then he said right out loud, "Yes, I will do it. Yesterday for sure!" Text copyright

Description for Bookstore

Hardcover

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