Download - The Great Pencil Escape
Text © 2008 Lola Skipper
Illustration © 2008 The PARAGRAPH Project
© 2008 All rights reserved.
Printed in the United States of America
Published by The Brier Creek Publishing Hangar
Editorial Director: Valerie Hemmerly
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
First published in 2008.
No part of this publication may be used or reproduced, stored
in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means,
electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise,
without prior permission from the publisher.
FIRST EDITION
This book began in the mind of a third grader and was brought to life with the
help of her teacher and The PARAGRAPH Project. As a company that rejects the
notion that only specialized degrees and years of industry experience lead to
brilliant ideas, The PARAGRAPH Project was honored to help turn a little girl’s
imagination into a fun storybook that can be shared with people throughout the
world. This book is a testament to the creative spirit that lives within all of us.
We hope you enjoy it.
My name is Lola and
I’m in the third grade.
I want to tell you a story
about my favorite pencil,
Wilson. Of course, I didn’t
always know his name
was Wilson. In fact, I didn’t
even know he could talk.
5
It all started one day last
fall when I came home
from my aunt’s house and
sat at my desk to do some
homework. It was just
like any other normal day.
But this day I realized my
favorite pencil was gone!
I wondered aloud, “Where
has that pencil gone? Has
it grown arms and legs and
run away?”
6
It was my favorite
pencil because it looked
different from any other
pencil in my pencil cup.
It had bright, swirly colors
all over it. All the other
pencils looked plain and
boring but this one looked
fun and free-spirited.
9
Suddenly, I looked out
my window and caught a
faint glimpse of my pencil
dancing in the sunlight.
He yelled, “Ha, ha! You’ll
never catch me!”
I was shocked! Not only
could my pencil run but
he could talk! Quietly I
raced down the stairs,
my heart pounding, flung
open the door calling to
mom saying that I was
going out to play. To the
pencil I shouted, “I’ll
catch you!”
11
I chased him all over
town and into a bakery.
I asked the chef behind
the counter if she had seen
a pencil running around.
She looked at me as if I
was crazy, shrugged her
shoulders and said, “no.”
Then, out of the corner of
my eye I saw him standing
on top of a birthday cake
pretending to be one of
the candles. Once he saw
me look at him, he jumped
off and ran out the door.
13
I followed him into
a doctor’s office across
the street. He ran past
the woman at the counter
looking for a place to hide.
I lost sight of him for a
brief second. I went down
the hall and peered into
one of the rooms and
saw him. My favorite
pencil was sitting in
a glass jar with all the
tongue depressors.
He was way too colorful
to hide in there.
14
So he climbed out and ran
as fast as he could down
the street to the Chinese
restaurant. There were
lots of people eating
dinner and with all the
commotion I was afraid
I wouldn’t be able to
find him. I thought I had
lost him for good. All of
a sudden, I heard a loud
scream. A man just realized
that one of his chopsticks
was actually a pencil… my
pencil! He dropped the
pencil on the floor and it
rushed out the door.
16
I screamed one more time,
“Come back, come back!”
It was too late. My pencil
had hopped onto the bus
and it sped off into the
distance.
19
A few weeks later, I got
a letter in the mail. It was
from my pencil. He told
me he was sorry he ran
away. Wilson was tired of
being stuffed into a pencil
cup all day and wanted to
find a place where pencils
could run around and be
free. I don’t know the name
of that place, but it sounds
like fun. He gets to play
with other pencils all day
long. His favorite game
is hide-and-seek. But he’s
still not very good at it.
21
I’m sad Wilson left but
I’m happy he is having
fun. I also realized that
I shouldn’t have chased
after him. I have lots of
nice pencils at home.
I should enjoy all of
them. Spending so
much time chasing
one pencil was foolish.
22
This book was produced in partnership with The Brier Creek Publishing Hangar
and Lulu.com. The Brier Creek Publishing Hangar is a pilot program at Brier Creek
Elementary that affords its students the opportunity to publish professional
quality books. For more information on how to set up a similar program
in your child's school, please visit www.lulu.com/aspiringauthors.
THE GREAT PENCIL ESCAPEStory by Lola Skipper | Brought to life by The PARAGRAPH Project