Speaker 1: That morning, The sky was a soft gray, like a
wool blanket fresh from the wash. It wasn't raining, but
the air smelled of rain on its way. Ziggy and
his friends sat under the porch, safe and dry, playing
Guess the sound. Now it's my turn, said Ziggy, who
was four years old, Skinny, lively, and always ready to jump.
He closed his eyes and clapped his hands in a
funny way. Tap tap, tap tap, Those are drops falling,
guessed Lily, sure of herself as always. No, it's a
galloping horse, laughed Dash Quick, with words too. Sky Calm
listened with a little smile. I think it's a heart
beating fast because it's excited, she whispered. Ziggy's eyes went wide.
Exactly right, that's just it. Beside them, Ziggy's four cats
were purring. Sophia black and Loving rubbed against the boy's legs. Dora,
striped and Brave, kept an eye on the garden. Poldo
Fat and Chunky slept like a pillow, while Milo Quick
and Bouncy chased a leaf. That's when they heard it
for real, a true sound coming from far away. Chew cheo.
The children jumped to their feet from behind the hedge
popped a little train, all covered in colors, with shiny
wheels and smoke that smelled of sugar. It was Toby,
the magic Train. Toby whistled happily and said, hello, little friends,
so merry and dear. A magical place is waiting right here.
Touch all the books on the shelves so tall, and
they will whisper. One and all the children looked at
each other, curious books that talk. All four of them
climbed into the little car, and the cats jumped on.
At the last moment, One after another, the train raced
through the low clouds, then floated down slowly in front
of a very tall building. Above the door it said,
library of whispering books. When they went inside, their mouths
fell open. The shelves were as tall as trees, and
to climb them there were spiral staircases that curled around
like snails. At the top, a big glass dome showed
the gray sky, and most magical of all, When Ziggy
brushed the spine of a book with one finger, it
whispered softly. Once upon a time there was a wail
who was afraid of water. It talked, cried lily, dash
touched another book, which whispered, Once upon a time there
was a mischievous cloud. Sky brushed a red one, and
it said softly, Once upon a time there was a
firefly who had lost her light. The children went from
shelf to shelf, brushing the books with their finger tips,
and each time a little voice told the beginning of
a different story. It was like walking inside a chattering forest.
They whisper a little piece of their story. When you
touch them, a little voice explained. From behind a table
popped a small, funny little dog with long ears and
a nose always twitching. He smelled of freshly baked cookies.
I'm Breciola, he said. I have a magic nose. I
can find anything that's lost. But there's a problem, a mess,
A real topsy turvy. Muddle topsy turvy, asked Dash, scratching
his head. What does that mean. It means everything upside down,
all turned around, answered Brishila, like when you open a
drawer and everything is mixed up. The children nodded, happy
to have learned a new word. Brishila led them to
a window and pointed down to the foot of the library.
There was the Market of Wonders, with stalls of balloons, sweets,
little bells, and a thousand colorful things. But it really
was topsy turvy. Balloons among the cheeses, little bells, among
the hats, sweets mixed up with socks. It was me,
admitted Brishela, turning his head in shame. You see, I
find everyone's lost things, but I'm so forgetful that I
always forget where I put them back. I found a
thousand things and set them down here and there, and
now nobody can find anything. Ziggy looked carefully at the market.
We can help you tidy it up, he said, But
why are you so sad? Brishela lowered his ears, because
in all the mess, something bad happened. The market carousel,
the one that makes all the children laugh up, has stopped.
It's missing its most important piece, the brass star that
sits on top and makes it turn. It fell off,
and I don't know where it went. Sky gently stroked
his head. It's not your fault that you forget. Now
we'll help you. At those words, Briscila lifted his ears,
and all happy spun around three times before sitting down.
Is that what you do when you're happy? Giggled Dash.
They all went down to the market. Brishila sniffed the air,
his nose trembling like a little leaf. I smell it.
The star is over there. He ran between the stalls, stopped,
lifted his snout up high, and barked. The children looked
up at the top of the tallest lamp post in
the market. Stuck between the iron arms, a little brass
star was shining. It's up there, shouted Lily. But it's
so high. Brishela tried to jump, but he only reached
about the height of one step. My nose finds things,
he said, sadly, but it can't grab them when they're
so high up. We need something else. There was a
moment of silence. The sky was growing darker. Ziggy studied
the lamp post, his eyes darting from one thing to
another around the market, and all at once, Aha, what what?
They all asked together. I have an idea, Ziggy was
hopping with excitement. Look. Here are the balloon hoops, round
and strong, and there are the wooden boards from the stalls.
If we tie a board between two hoops and then
another on top, we can build a ladder that swings
a swing ladder. I'll climb up and reach the star,
Lily frowned. But if it swings, you'll fall, not if
you hold it still, said Ziggy on my own. I
can't do it, but all together we can. They got
to work. Dash carried the boards running back and forth.
Lily knotted the ropes with her strong hands. Sky held
the hoops nice and straight. Brishila sniffed out the right pieces,
and this time he handed them right away to whoever
needed them. The cats helped too, Milo jumped up high
to pass the little ropes. Dora kept watch, Poldo sat
as a weight on the bottom so the base wouldn't slip,
and Sophia meowed encouragement. As they worked, the market slowly
changed its face. Everything Bricciola sniffed out and found went
back to its right place. The apples in the apple basket,
the scarves beside the scarves, the rattles with the rattles.
So that's where my hat went, laughed the balloon lady.
And this little bell was ringing under a basket of pears,
cried the sweet cellar. The more they tidied up, the
easier everything was to find. In no time, the swing
ladder was ready leaning against the lamp post. It swayed
a little, just as Ziggy had said. Now hold it tight,
said the boy, and he started to climb. One step, two,
The latter swayed. Every one's heart was beating like when
it's excited, just as Sky had guessed that morning. Lily
gritted her teeth and held on. Dash dug in his feet.
Sky hugged the pole with all her might. Poldo sat
on the base, heavy as a sack of potatoes. Hold on,
shouted Ziggy. He climbed higher. Now he was up high,
the wind ruffling his hair. The brass star was right there,
one step away. He stretched out his arm, but he
couldn't reach it. I can't reach, he said, and for
a moment he was scared. Swing, shouted Lily from below.
Use the swinging. When the ladder goes forward, reach out,
Ziggy understood. Instead of fighting the swing, he let it sway.
He bent his legs, gave himself a push, and at
just the right moment, when the latter slid forward, he
stretched his arm as far as he could, his fingers
closed around the star. Got it. Every one burnt burst
into a shout of joy. Ziggy climbed down, step by
step and When he touched the ground, his friends hugged him.
We did it, he said, out of breath, but not
me us. They ran to the carousel. Ziggy climbed onto
the round roof and slid the brass star into its
place right on top. There was a click, then a tinkle,
and the carousel began to turn slowly with a sweet
music of little bells. By now they had tidied up
the market too, the balloons with the balloons, the sweets
with the sweets, the little bells with the little bells.
Bricciola was so happy that he spun around not three
but six times, and tumbled over with his legs in
the air, making every one laugh. The sky now dark,
filled with little dots that raced along, leaving golden trails
falling stars. Look, whispered sky, the sky is riding the
carousel with us. They all climbed onto the colorful little horses,
the four children, Bricciola, and the four cats. The carousel turned,
the stars fell, and they laughed so loud that the
sound reached all the way up to the glass dome
of the library. As he spun, Ziggi thought a simple
thought on his own. He never would have climbed up there,
and on his own that carousel would have had nothing
to laugh about. Beautiful things become even more beautiful when
you share them together. When it was time to go back,
Toby the Magic train was waiting for them with his
sweet smoke. He whistled softly and said, that star up
so high can't be reached on your own, but all
friends together are never alone. To spin by yourself is
a lonelier way, but joy that is shared makes a
brighter day. The children waved goodbye to Britchela, climbed onto
the train, and snuggled close together, headed home while the
last falling stars drew across the sky, and that night,
before falling asleep, each of them smiled thinking of the
carousel spinning full of friends under the stars,