Billy and Jake, those mischievous pups, are at it again-and this time, poor Puff, the barn cat, is caught right in the middle of it all. Puff might have thought twice about trying to sneak a taste of some of the fresh milk in Mr. Kokomo's bucket if she'd seen Jake sunning himself in the doorway of the barn. As Jake catches sight of Puff sneaking up to her treat his jealousy overtakes him and a whirlwind chase around the barn and beyond ensues. This adventure is likely to land both Puff and Jake in big trouble-especially when Tippy, Jake's mother, finds out what he's been up to. Billy and Jake don't look for trouble, but trouble sure seems to look for them. And on the Kokomos' farm there's no shortage of adventure to be had or trouble to be gotten into. Written with children of all ages in mind, this storybook has easy-to-read sections for beginning readers and more detailed sections for advanced readers. Has Anyone Seen Puff will support your child's reading skills at any level, teaching morals and providing fun.

Has Anyone Seen Puff?

A Billy and Jake AdventureBy Sheri Wolfinger

Trafford Publishing

Copyright © 2012 Sheri Wolfinger
All right reserved.
ISBN: 978-1-4669-1377-6

Chapter One

Every day was an adventure on the Kokomo's farm. They had lots of animals, and two very adventurous pups. Their names were Billy and Jake.

Everyone that knew the Kokomo's heard of Billy and Jake, and their mischief. They didn't look for trouble. It just seemed to find them. Billy was okay on his own, but Jake was too curious for his own good. When they teamed up, watch out!

People said that the Kokomo's kept the puppies because of their mother. She had been part of the Kokomo family since she had been a pup. Five years earlier, she showed up on their porch, half-starved to death, with the tip of her tail missing. She was called Tippy since that day. No one was sure if it had been snipped off or bitten. It was just gone. No one knew where she came from, but she earned her keep as a great watchdog. Many times, Tippy chased wild animals from the farm and foxes from the hen house. Mr. Kokomo would always say, "Yep, she's a keeper alright." The only thing that Tippy had in mind was to protect the family that she loved so much.

Tippy scolded Billy and Jake time and time again. She tried to convince her pups how lucky they were. She would say, "You should be thankful for a place to sleep, food to eat and people to care for you." Tippy remembered hard times when she did not have such a good life. She told her pups that someday the Kokomo's would get tired of their shenanigans, and give them to the first passerby.

She didn't truly believe what she said. She was just trying to keep her young pups out of trouble. Of course she wasn't talking like you or I. It sounded more like, "Ruff, ruff, arf, woof, woof, arf, ruff, bark!" She spoke in animal language so only the animals could understand. No person knew the pups were being scolded by their mother. It just sounded like Tippy was making a lot of noise.

Let me tell you of one of the not-so-unusual days on the farm.

It was a beautiful warm day; Mr. Kokomo had just finished milking old Betsy, the cow. He set the pail of milk on the ground for only a minute. One minute was long enough. Then it happened. Puff, the barn cat, poked her head around the corner. She did not see Jake sunning himself in the doorway of the barn. Puff sneaked over to the pail of milk very, very, very slowly. She just about had her little tongue in the milk when Jake opened his eyes. He spotted Puff. Then everything happened very fast!

Jake wasn't too concerned about protecting the milk. He was more worried about the fact that Puff was getting something that he was not getting. Oh my, jealousy can cause all sorts of problems. He took off after Puff like a cat after a mouse. Puff ran around the pail with Jake close behind her. The pail got knocked and splashed a little bit. Everything may have turned out okay except Mr. Kokomo tried to chase them from the barn. They were upsetting the other animals. Well I guess that you could say that Mr. Kokomo kicked the bucket. Almost an entire pail of milk splashed up and all over him. He was very upset. He did succeed in getting the fight out of the barn. Puff ran for the protection of Mrs. Kokomo.

Puff was running from Jake and the shouting Mr. Kokomo. Puff was going so fast, and was so scared, that she missed Mrs. Kokomo coming around the corner of the henhouse with a full basket of eggs. It was not full for long. She tripped over Puff and lost her balance. She fell into the only mud puddle between the henhouse and the porch. There sat Mrs. Kokomo, covered in mud and broken eggs, with Mr. Kokomo running to her in milk soaked pants. What a site! That did not stop Jake. If it didn't stop Jake, it didn't stop Puff. The race continued.

Puff knew that she couldn't stop and Jake knew that he wouldn't stop. Jake was thinking that he would keep going until he caught that furry, little, milk stealing cat! They went tearing around the corner of the house. Puff spotted an opened window and jumped for it. It was a wonderful jump! It was a jump to be proud of except...... the jump landed her with her paws in a fresh blueberry pie that had been sitting by the window to cool. She knew she was in BIG trouble! There would be no acting innocent either with little blue-violet paw prints which trailed across the kitchen floor. The second that the muddy Mrs. Kokomo opened the door Puff ran outside. She never paused until she was safely hidden inside the barn.

(Continues...)

Excerpted from Has Anyone Seen Puff?by Sheri Wolfinger Copyright © 2012 by Sheri Wolfinger. Excerpted by permission of Trafford Publishing. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
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