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Welcome back to Satisfaction for Insatiable Readers.
Today, we're joining Rachel's Random Resources as we shine a spotlight on a Middle Grade Fiction title that just celebrated its book birthday last month via Kooky Cat Books! It stars an adventurous girl with a peculiar name that seems to be getting into various amounts of trouble despite her motives being completely contrary to that result. Sounds good? Well then, let's get on with this show because after the introductions, there's a fabulous excerpt waiting just for you! Ready, set, today's spotlight shines on...
The Adventures of Isabelle Necessary
by
Martii Maclean
9780994540867
Kooky Cat Books
About the book...
One gutsy eleven-year-old, a cool beach town, a hilarious crew of friends and oodles of adventures.
Once upon a beach, there was a girl called Isabelle Necessary. A girl with an unusual name and a rather extraordinary life. She roams around a sleepy beach town with her loyal team of friends. Follow Isabelle, Tammy, David, Nin, Draino the cat and Champ the wonder dog as they navigate one sticky situation after another and figure out how to turn a frog into a movie star, deal with a never-ending milkshake and escape being trapped in a lighthouse.
The type of book that brings back childhood memories and captures the essence of being a free-spirited kid.
Perfect for teachers and educators as the book comes with a teacher’s resource guide and student maker kit by Isabelle Necessary herself. Middle-grade reading level.
Once upon a beach, there was a girl called Isabelle Necessary. A girl with an unusual name and a rather extraordinary life. She roams around a sleepy beach town with her loyal team of friends. Follow Isabelle, Tammy, David, Nin, Draino the cat and Champ the wonder dog as they navigate one sticky situation after another and figure out how to turn a frog into a movie star, deal with a never-ending milkshake and escape being trapped in a lighthouse.
The type of book that brings back childhood memories and captures the essence of being a free-spirited kid.
Perfect for teachers and educators as the book comes with a teacher’s resource guide and student maker kit by Isabelle Necessary herself. Middle-grade reading level.
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Here is an excerpt from chapter ten, “Isabelle and the Great Lighthouse Mishap.”
Even though Saggy Bill was the oldest person in town, he was given the job of lighthouse keeper. He checked the lighthouse once a week, mostly to collect the donations from the visitor’s box, and once a month he cleaned the glass on the light and checked to see if anything needed fixing.
The lighthouse mishap occurred one glass- cleaning day in the summer holidays. Saggy Bill had gone to the lighthouse especially to clean the light. It took a long time to climb the seventy-five stairs to the very top of the lighthouse when you were one hundred and one and a half years old, but Saggy Bill was proud to have never missed a month.
On this particular cleaning day, Isabelle was at the beach and noticed a terrible fuss coming from the direction of the lighthouse, so she rode over to investigate. She saw two strong surfers in their wetsuits help a limping Saggy Bill into their van. She rushed over to find out what had happened.
‘I slipped,’ said Saggy Bill. ‘These kind young men are taking me to the doctor’s.’ He waved as the van pulled away.
Isabelle headed back to the retirement village to tell Aunt Emma the news. Along the way, people kept stopping her to ask what had happened, so by the time she got back to the village the surfers were just dropping Saggy Bill home after seeing the doctor. He was struggling up the steps on a pair of shiny silver crutches, with Uncle Knock- knock helping him. Saggy Bill sat down on his veranda, and Uncle Knock-knock leaned the crutches against the front door and said goodbye.
Isabelle sat down next to Saggy Bill. ‘Saggy Bill, are you all right?’ she asked.
‘Seventy-four and a half,’ answered Saggy Bill. ‘I got all the way up the whole seventy-five stairs. I shined the glass and the windows real nice and came all the way back down again, but on the seventy-forth and a half step going down I slipped and twisted my ankle, so here I am.’
‘Poor Saggy Bill, can I do anything to help you?’ Isabelle asked.
‘How about opening my front door for me?’ Saggy Bill dug his hands into one deep pocket and then tried the other pocket. ‘Keys,’ he said, shaking his head. ‘They’re still up the top.’ He pointed across to the lighthouse. ‘Oh, barnacles, I put them down when I picked up the bucket. Be a treasure, Isabelle, and nip up and get them for me, dear. Can’t have the lighthouse unlocked, can we? The seagulls might decide to move in.’
‘Wow, all the way to the top, sure thing.’ Isabelle was thrilled. She was on her bike quicker than a cat on a cake, and she set off at top speed along the esplanade.
‘All the way to the top,’ she repeated as she pedalled, watching the lighthouse growing taller and taller as she got closer.
She turned into Lighthouse Road and pedalled up to the carpark. She kicked down the stand on her bike and put her helmet in the basket, and then walked towards the lighthouse door, hoping no one else had already found the keys and locked it. Her hands felt sweaty as she grabbed the handle. It turned. Yes!
She glanced at the sky. It was late afternoon, and the sun was slipping below the hills in the west. The blue sky was splashed with pink and orange light.
Isabelle thought about Aunt Emma’s rule that she had to be home when the streetlights came on. Tammy always said that Isabelle was lucky that she didn’t have many rules when she lived with Aunt Emma. Isabelle liked it, too. She didn’t want to worry her great-aunt, but she knew the streetlights wouldn’t be on for a while yet.
‘This won’t take long,’ she said to herself as she started climbing up the steps and counting.
‘1, 2, 3, 4 ...’
‘... 22, 23, 24, 25 ...’
‘... 46, 47, 48, 49 ...’
‘... 62 puff, 63 puff, 64 ... nearly there.’
‘... 73 ... nearly ... 74 ... there ... 75!’
Isabelle pushed up on the heavy metal hatch door at the top of the steps and stepped onto the circular platform that ran around the outside of the lighthouse. The evening breeze was much gustier at the top of the lighthouse tower than down at the bottom.
‘What a view!’ she whispered.
She walked slowly around the dimpled metal platform. She looked out at Mermaid Rock and the cove, then gazed out to the gloomy evening sea and the new, flashing beacon lights. Red. Green. Red. Green.
She looked again at the sun, which was dipping lower behind the darkening hills. Finally, she looked across the beach towards the Aunt Emma’s bungalow, where she could see a little square of light shining from the kitchen window.
Isabelle walked around the platform one more time. This time, she spotted Saggy Bill’s jam-packed key ring laying on the metal platform. He had lots of keys because he did lots of jobs around Saggy Beach, even if he was one hundred and one and a half years old. She knew he liked to keep busy.
Isabelle picked up the keys and as she did so, two things happened—the lighthouse light switched itself on, and there was a loud rattling clang. She jumped and her heart skipped a beat. The hatch had blown shut.
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About the author...
Martii Maclean lives in a tin shack by the sea, catching sea-gulls which she uses to make delicious pies, and writing weird stories. She likes going for long bicycle rides with her cat, who always wears aviator goggles to stop her whiskers blowing up into her eyes as they speed down to the beach to search for mermaid eggs. Or how about this…
Martii Maclean writes fantastical, adventurous tales for children and teens and sometimes adults. She was born in Sydney, Australia and now lives in Brisbane with her husband Trevor and her cat Minerva. Her work as an educator and librarian, allows her to share her love of stories and of story-telling with many young people. This inspires Martii to create thought-filled stories that explore the wonderful world of ‘what if’. Find out more about Martii and her stories at www.martiimaclean.com
Martii Maclean writes fantastical, adventurous tales for children and teens and sometimes adults. She was born in Sydney, Australia and now lives in Brisbane with her husband Trevor and her cat Minerva. Her work as an educator and librarian, allows her to share her love of stories and of story-telling with many young people. This inspires Martii to create thought-filled stories that explore the wonderful world of ‘what if’. Find out more about Martii and her stories at www.martiimaclean.com
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Special thanks to Rachel at Rachel's Random Resources for the chance to bring this tour to you. (THANKS!) For more information on this title, the author, this promotion, or those on the horizon, feel free to click through the links provided above. Be sure to check out the rest of the sites participating for more bookish fun!
Until next time, remember...if it looks good, READ IT!
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