Free Tugg and Teeny by Patrick Lewis, Christopher Denise

The Strange Stick
    â€œAre you ready for our walk?” asked Tugg.
    â€œWhere to, Tugg?” asked Teeny.
    â€œWherever our twinkle toes take us,” said Tugg, whistling away.

    â€œListen!” Teeny said.
    She heard the jungle birds sing and sighed, “I wish I could make beautiful music like that.”
    Teeny looked so sad that Tugg decided he would help his friend get her wish.

    In the clearing, Tugg saw BooBoo the baboon hitting a bamboo stick against a tree.
    The gorilla called, “What is that, BooBoo? A digging stick?”
    â€œNo,” said BooBoo, “not sharp enough.”
    â€œA drinking straw?”
    â€œIt has holes in it, Tugg. It is useless!” The baboon threw the stick away.

    Tugg picked up the stick and looked at it.
    He thought for a minute and then laid it on the jungle path where Teeny would be sure to find it.

    â€œHey, Tugg, what is this?” Teeny asked.
    â€œMaybe Violet will know,” said Tugg.
    â€œWarthogs are very smart.”

    â€œViolet,” said Tugg, “what is this piece of wood?”
    â€œA backscratcher for a lion,” said Violet.
    â€œLions just roll in the dirt when they want to scratch an itch,” Teeny said.

    Teeny pointed the stick to the sky and looked through it.
    â€œWhat could it be?” she wondered.
    â€œTry blowing on the end and see what happens,” said Tugg.
    Teeny blew. Squeak, squawk, screech.

    â€œI like it!” Teeny said. “Someday, Tuggboat, I will be like the birds and make beautiful music on this stick.”
    Tugg knew that Teeny was a monkey who thought she could do anything she set her mind to.
    â€œOf course you will, Monkeyface.”

    Back home, they took turns cleaning house and cooking meals.
    But in the evenings, Teeny went deep into the jungle to practice on her stick.
    At first she could only squeak. But as the weeks passed, her squeaks turned into peeps, and the peeps turned into tweets and toodles.

    Soon the jungle went to sleep each night to the soothing sounds from Teeny’s stick.

    One morning Teeny and Tugg were awakened by loud noises. They ran outside.
    â€œSurprise!” the whole neighborhood shouted. “We want to make beautiful music, too. Will you teach us?”
    After hearing Teeny practice on her stick each night, all the animals had decided to take music lessons. Even Tugg joined in.
    And that is how beautiful music came to the jungle.

What’s in a Picture?

    â€œLook!” said Tugg.
    â€œWhat is it?” asked Teeny.
    â€œPaintings,” said Tugg.
    â€œPainting is for the birds,” said Teeny.
    â€œYes, painting
is
for the birds. And for the reptiles, the big cats, the …”
    â€œI hope it is not boring,” Teeny grumbled.

    Teeny stopped at the first two pictures.
    Her mouth fell open.
    â€œThey are fabulous!” she said. “And look at this one, Tugg. Can you believe it?” Teeny shouted. “It is
us!
Violet painted us.”

    â€œThat was very nice of her,” said the gorilla.
    Teeny ran into the Jungle Visitors’ Shop and bought paint and art supplies.
    â€œWe must hurry home, Tuggboat,” said Teeny.

    Teeny set up her easel and started to work.

    She had been painting for a whole week when Chuckie Cheetah ran by.
    â€œWhat does this painting look like?” the monkey asked him.
    â€œA swamp,” said Chuckie.
    Teeny frowned.

    Zig and Zag, the wacky Zebra brothers, trotted over.
    â€œWhat am I painting?” Teeny asked them.
    â€œPurple weeds,” said Zig.
    â€œGrouchy Zig waking up,” said Zag.
    Teeny groaned.

    A month had gone by when Margie Barge waddled over.
    â€œSince you are an art expert, Margie,” said Teeny, “tell me what I am painting.”
    Margie Barge stared at the picture for a long time. “Ah yes,” she said. “Five divided by twelve.”
    Teeny was almost in tears.

    â€œWhat is wrong, Teeny?” Tugg