The Mouse Who Reads (V/V syllable division)
Adapted from "A Nice Place to Read" by Lyly Young. Licensed under CC BY 4.0.
Ting is not like most other mice. Instead of creeping into human houses to eat their food, he does something else. He sneaks in and reads all their books! Today, his mother told him to bring his naive brother Tang along.
Tang, unlike his brother, is like most mice. He cares a lot about his diet, which tends to be most things he can get his paws on. 'Munch, munch. This book doesn't taste very good, brother.' says Tang. Tang is not reading the books, he is eating them!
'Tang, you're not meant to eat books!' Ting shouts. 'But what am I supposed to do with them?' Tang asks. 'You are supposed to read them,' Ting replies. 'But I don't know how to read,' says Tang sadly.
'It will be a trial, but I will teach you how to read, brother,' Ting says. Ting and Tang find a quiet spot in the living room. 'There's a cat in here, and if we are too loud, it might hear us,' says Ting. 'Oh, I'll be very quiet,' says Tang.
'These letters create sounds in my head,' says Tang. 'Yes, that's a good way of looking at it,' says Ting. All of a sudden, Tang feels an itch on the top of his nose that won't stop. 'Uh oh, brother, I'm going to... ACHOO!'
The sneeze is so loud that dust falls from the bookshelves in the next room. 'Oh no, the cat!' Ting cries. The cat is now awake, and not very happy. It lets out an angry meow and tries to find the source of the noise.
The cat sees the two mice and meows even louder. With a big yowl, it leaps towards them! Just in time, Ting holds up the book like a shield. 'Run, Tang, go for the high cupboards!' he shouts.
Tang and Ting start to climb the cupboards. But in the chaos, Tang slips on a bit of wood and nearly falls off! With all his strength, Ting pulls Tang up to the ledge! 'Reading big books have given you muscles, brother!' Tang says.
The cat stares up at them and gives a sad meow. 'Better luck next time, furball,' says Tang. 'Now, we can get back to reading!' says Ting. Ting opens the book and starts to teach.
The more Tang reads, the better he gets. Soon, he can read the kinds of stories his brother can! 'I'm so glad you stopped me eating this book,' says Tang. 'It's so much better now I can read it!'