The Wishing World
Author: Todd Fahnestock
Book Description:
"Whimsical and imaginative, with just the right mix of humor, heart, and adventure. The Wishing World is everything you could wish for in a story--and so much more!"--Shannon Messenger, author of Keeper of the Lost Cities
In the Wishing World, dreams are real. You can transform into your own hero, find wild and whimsical friends, and wield power as great as your imagination. But Lorelei doesn't know about any of that. All she knows is that a monster took her family.
It happened during a camping trip one year ago. Hiding inside the tent, she saw shadows, tentacles and a strange creature. By the time she got up the courage to crawl outside, the monster--and Lorelei's mom, dad, and brother--were gone.
Lorelei is determined to find her family. When she accidentally breaks into the Wishing World, she discovers a way. It's a land more wonderful than she could have imagined, a land of talking griffons, water princesses, and cities made of sand, where Lorelei is a Doolivanti--a wish-maker--who can write her dreams into existence.
There's only one problem: the monster is a Doolivanti, too. What he wishes also comes true, and he's determined to shove Lorelei out, keep her family, and make the whole Wishing World his. To save them, Lorelei must find the courage to face him, or her next wish may be her last.
In the Wishing World, dreams are real. You can transform into your own hero, find wild and whimsical friends, and wield power as great as your imagination. But Lorelei doesn't know about any of that. All she knows is that a monster took her family.
It happened during a camping trip one year ago. Hiding inside the tent, she saw shadows, tentacles and a strange creature. By the time she got up the courage to crawl outside, the monster--and Lorelei's mom, dad, and brother--were gone.
Lorelei is determined to find her family. When she accidentally breaks into the Wishing World, she discovers a way. It's a land more wonderful than she could have imagined, a land of talking griffons, water princesses, and cities made of sand, where Lorelei is a Doolivanti--a wish-maker--who can write her dreams into existence.
There's only one problem: the monster is a Doolivanti, too. What he wishes also comes true, and he's determined to shove Lorelei out, keep her family, and make the whole Wishing World his. To save them, Lorelei must find the courage to face him, or her next wish may be her last.
Buy Links:
EXCERPT
I turned back to the forest and the giant white flowers. They were shaped like tulips. Their trunks were smooth and green and went straight up, separating into two other trunks, each bearing a giant white flower cup taller than I was. In between were shorter “trees”. They looked like rumpled orange sweaters on green coils. I stepped closer, marveling, and I heard a chorus of tiny giggles. I stepped back, and they stopped.
I turned to Ripple. “Did you hear that?”
“Verily.”
“Um, what?”
“I did.”
“That’s what ‘verily’ means?”
“Indeed, Lady Lorelei.”
“So you were agreeing.”
“Verily.”
We both paused, then laughed.
“Apologies, my lady,” Ripple said. “For thee, perchance I might say ‘yes’?”
“No. I’ll get it. My Dad always said learning is a gift. Don’t change the way you speak for me.”
“Ah, a man of great wisdom, thy father?”
“Actually, he’s a bit of a goof.”
Ripple smiled gently.
I felt that dropping sensation in my stomach. Talking about Dad made me remember how much I missed him. I cleared my throat. “Anyway, you heard the giggles?” I asked instead.
“Verily.” Ripple nodded and winked.
“Then verily where did they come from?” I said.
“I thought thou didst make them.”
I stepped forward, and the giggles came again. Thin blades of grass curled gently around my purple shoes.
“Tis the grass,” Ripple said.
I jumped back. “Did I hurt it?” I knelt down and ran my fingers over the short green blades. They wriggled, tickled my hand, and giggled again. I felt warm tingles from my fingers all the way to my heart.
“They’re wonderful,” I said. “It’s like-”
A figure moved just beyond the giant white tulips, shaded by the thick trees, and I jumped to my feet. Sun flashed off something shiny, then the figure pulled back into the darkness.
“Did you see that?” I said, my heart thumping.
“Nay.” Ripple followed my gaze. “Twas a beast?”
“Something big. It might have had a sword or something metal.”
“Prithee, keep thy distance.”
I stepped forward, and the grasses giggled again. “Come out!” I said, but nothing moved. I went closer, nearing the first of the puffy orange sweater plants. I peered between the trunks, trying to spot the figure, but it was dark inside. Only a few paces into the forest, it was like the sun had gone out.
“Lady Lorelei...”
“I’m just going to-”
The orange sweater plant launched like a striking rattlesnake, wrapping around me. It was so fast I barely had time to turn. The orange “sleeves” were cool and soft, but strong. They yanked me deeper into the forest.
“Lady Lorelei!” Ripple started forward.
“No! Stay ba-”
The cup of a white tulip, towering over the patch of orange sweater plants, bent down and clapped its cup right on top of me. The sweater let go and the flower scooped me up. I sloshed around in thick water filled with things like coconuts. Above, the petals closed together almost completely, leaving an opening about the size of my head.
I clambered upright and jumped for it, grabbing the edges of the petals. They were firm, so I pulled up on them and poked my head out.
“Lady Lorelei! I am coming!” Ripple shouted, striding forward.
“No! Stay back. Don’t let them get you, too.”
“But thou art-”
“Just wait! There’s no point in both of us getting swallowed.”
“Thourt not hurt?”
“I’m okay. I mean, so far. There’s some kind of water in here.”
“Lady Lorelei, thourt the most intrepid maiden I’ve ever met.”
I couldn’t remember what intrepid meant. Dad had used it once. “I’m what? What am I?”
“Brave, my lady.”
“Oh, good. Well, thanks.” I looked around to find something that might-
Below, at the edge of the forest, a knight watched me. He wore armor so shiny, it looked like it was made out of mirrors. He was tall, his shoulders and arms exaggerated like a super-hero. Great spikes of mirrored metal poked up from his shoulder plates and out of his gauntlets. His face was only two mirrors angled to a point where his nose would have been. He sat upon a giant pug dog with reins in its stumpy mouth. The pug’s eyes were also mirrors, glinting in the bright light, and it seemed to be looking at nothing.
“Ripple! Watch out!” I shouted.
The knight stayed a moment longer, then wheeled the pug around and dove back into the dark forest.
“Ripple, did you-”
“Verily! A man of mirrors!”
“A knight!”
“A what?” Ripple asked.
I craned my chin over the lip of the flower petal. “Ripple, you speak like Shakespeare-in-the-Park, but you don’t know what a knight is?”
“Do they swim?”
I laughed. After a moment, I let out a breath and dropped back down into the bowl created by the flower petals. My arms were starting to hurt. “I need to get out of here,” I shouted out to Ripple.
“Art thou in distress?”
“Um, no.” The coconut things knocked against my shoes and stuck. “Not yet.” I shook one off, and it splashed into the ankle-deep water, which was thicker now. I picked one up. It was brown and oval and looked like a seed. And it was sticky. I had to shake it to get it off my hand.
“There are seeds in here!”
The flower suddenly moved, and I fell against the side of the bowl.
“Lady Lorelei!” Ripple cried.
The water sloshed over me, and the seeds stuck to my arms and legs and chest and back. The petals undulated from the bottom of the bowl, squeezing upward. The flower tipped and spat me out.
I spun across the grass in an eddy of sludgy goop, and the grass giggled. A few seeds twisted off as I tumbled, but most of them stuck.
Ripple hurried to my side. “Art thou injured?”
I stood up, covered in seeds and goop. “Ripple, is this flower spit all over me? Did I just get barfed up by a flower?”
Ripple giggled, putting a delicate blue hand over her mouth. The grass giggled with her.
I stood up, knocking off the sticky seeds. They were very reluctant to let go.
“Ho, Doolivanti!”
Gruffy and Pip flapped down from the sky. Squeak was riding atop Gruffy’s head, as usual.
“Squeak!”
“I guess she did. I guess she did,” Pip squawked.
I shook out my hands, flicking tulip snot on the ground. Pip flapped backward out of the spray. Gruffy landed next to me, seeming not to notice the flecks that landed on him.
“Ew,” I said. “Just ew.”
“I should have warned you,” Gruffy said. “Everyone knows about the tasting tulips. But neither of you are from here.”
“Do they ever swallow people? I mean, like, digest them?” I asked.
Gruff clicked his beak. “No, Doolivanti. This is how they spread their seeds. They pick up a passing creature, cover it in seeds, and let the creature run away with the seeds attached to them. The creature will eventually clean them off somewhere, and more tasting tulips can grow. But the tulips are harmless.”
“I was just used as a human bee?” Mom called me “Lori-bee”. Sometimes just “My little bee”. Now I really was!
Gruffy cocked his head. “What is a bee?”
“You don’t have bees?”
“Perhaps in other places on Veloran. What is it?”
“A bug that flies. It has black and yellow stripes, and it carries pollen between flowers so that they can grow more flowers.”
Gruffy’s feather brow furrowed. “Truly? How could a bug carry seeds of this size?”
“They don’t... It’s not...” I shook my head. “Nevermind.”
“Well, if you are ready, we now have food. Shall we go?”
“Please.”
I took off my jean jacket and wrung it out.
“I don’t suppose you brought a towel?” I asked.
“What’s a towel? What’s a towel?” Pip squawked.
“Nevermind.”
I turned back to the forest and the giant white flowers. They were shaped like tulips. Their trunks were smooth and green and went straight up, separating into two other trunks, each bearing a giant white flower cup taller than I was. In between were shorter “trees”. They looked like rumpled orange sweaters on green coils. I stepped closer, marveling, and I heard a chorus of tiny giggles. I stepped back, and they stopped.
I turned to Ripple. “Did you hear that?”
“Verily.”
“Um, what?”
“I did.”
“That’s what ‘verily’ means?”
“Indeed, Lady Lorelei.”
“So you were agreeing.”
“Verily.”
We both paused, then laughed.
“Apologies, my lady,” Ripple said. “For thee, perchance I might say ‘yes’?”
“No. I’ll get it. My Dad always said learning is a gift. Don’t change the way you speak for me.”
“Ah, a man of great wisdom, thy father?”
“Actually, he’s a bit of a goof.”
Ripple smiled gently.
I felt that dropping sensation in my stomach. Talking about Dad made me remember how much I missed him. I cleared my throat. “Anyway, you heard the giggles?” I asked instead.
“Verily.” Ripple nodded and winked.
“Then verily where did they come from?” I said.
“I thought thou didst make them.”
I stepped forward, and the giggles came again. Thin blades of grass curled gently around my purple shoes.
“Tis the grass,” Ripple said.
I jumped back. “Did I hurt it?” I knelt down and ran my fingers over the short green blades. They wriggled, tickled my hand, and giggled again. I felt warm tingles from my fingers all the way to my heart.
“They’re wonderful,” I said. “It’s like-”
A figure moved just beyond the giant white tulips, shaded by the thick trees, and I jumped to my feet. Sun flashed off something shiny, then the figure pulled back into the darkness.
“Did you see that?” I said, my heart thumping.
“Nay.” Ripple followed my gaze. “Twas a beast?”
“Something big. It might have had a sword or something metal.”
“Prithee, keep thy distance.”
I stepped forward, and the grasses giggled again. “Come out!” I said, but nothing moved. I went closer, nearing the first of the puffy orange sweater plants. I peered between the trunks, trying to spot the figure, but it was dark inside. Only a few paces into the forest, it was like the sun had gone out.
“Lady Lorelei...”
“I’m just going to-”
The orange sweater plant launched like a striking rattlesnake, wrapping around me. It was so fast I barely had time to turn. The orange “sleeves” were cool and soft, but strong. They yanked me deeper into the forest.
“Lady Lorelei!” Ripple started forward.
“No! Stay ba-”
The cup of a white tulip, towering over the patch of orange sweater plants, bent down and clapped its cup right on top of me. The sweater let go and the flower scooped me up. I sloshed around in thick water filled with things like coconuts. Above, the petals closed together almost completely, leaving an opening about the size of my head.
I clambered upright and jumped for it, grabbing the edges of the petals. They were firm, so I pulled up on them and poked my head out.
“Lady Lorelei! I am coming!” Ripple shouted, striding forward.
“No! Stay back. Don’t let them get you, too.”
“But thou art-”
“Just wait! There’s no point in both of us getting swallowed.”
“Thourt not hurt?”
“I’m okay. I mean, so far. There’s some kind of water in here.”
“Lady Lorelei, thourt the most intrepid maiden I’ve ever met.”
I couldn’t remember what intrepid meant. Dad had used it once. “I’m what? What am I?”
“Brave, my lady.”
“Oh, good. Well, thanks.” I looked around to find something that might-
Below, at the edge of the forest, a knight watched me. He wore armor so shiny, it looked like it was made out of mirrors. He was tall, his shoulders and arms exaggerated like a super-hero. Great spikes of mirrored metal poked up from his shoulder plates and out of his gauntlets. His face was only two mirrors angled to a point where his nose would have been. He sat upon a giant pug dog with reins in its stumpy mouth. The pug’s eyes were also mirrors, glinting in the bright light, and it seemed to be looking at nothing.
“Ripple! Watch out!” I shouted.
The knight stayed a moment longer, then wheeled the pug around and dove back into the dark forest.
“Ripple, did you-”
“Verily! A man of mirrors!”
“A knight!”
“A what?” Ripple asked.
I craned my chin over the lip of the flower petal. “Ripple, you speak like Shakespeare-in-the-Park, but you don’t know what a knight is?”
“Do they swim?”
I laughed. After a moment, I let out a breath and dropped back down into the bowl created by the flower petals. My arms were starting to hurt. “I need to get out of here,” I shouted out to Ripple.
“Art thou in distress?”
“Um, no.” The coconut things knocked against my shoes and stuck. “Not yet.” I shook one off, and it splashed into the ankle-deep water, which was thicker now. I picked one up. It was brown and oval and looked like a seed. And it was sticky. I had to shake it to get it off my hand.
“There are seeds in here!”
The flower suddenly moved, and I fell against the side of the bowl.
“Lady Lorelei!” Ripple cried.
The water sloshed over me, and the seeds stuck to my arms and legs and chest and back. The petals undulated from the bottom of the bowl, squeezing upward. The flower tipped and spat me out.
I spun across the grass in an eddy of sludgy goop, and the grass giggled. A few seeds twisted off as I tumbled, but most of them stuck.
Ripple hurried to my side. “Art thou injured?”
I stood up, covered in seeds and goop. “Ripple, is this flower spit all over me? Did I just get barfed up by a flower?”
Ripple giggled, putting a delicate blue hand over her mouth. The grass giggled with her.
I stood up, knocking off the sticky seeds. They were very reluctant to let go.
“Ho, Doolivanti!”
Gruffy and Pip flapped down from the sky. Squeak was riding atop Gruffy’s head, as usual.
“Squeak!”
“I guess she did. I guess she did,” Pip squawked.
I shook out my hands, flicking tulip snot on the ground. Pip flapped backward out of the spray. Gruffy landed next to me, seeming not to notice the flecks that landed on him.
“Ew,” I said. “Just ew.”
“I should have warned you,” Gruffy said. “Everyone knows about the tasting tulips. But neither of you are from here.”
“Do they ever swallow people? I mean, like, digest them?” I asked.
Gruff clicked his beak. “No, Doolivanti. This is how they spread their seeds. They pick up a passing creature, cover it in seeds, and let the creature run away with the seeds attached to them. The creature will eventually clean them off somewhere, and more tasting tulips can grow. But the tulips are harmless.”
“I was just used as a human bee?” Mom called me “Lori-bee”. Sometimes just “My little bee”. Now I really was!
Gruffy cocked his head. “What is a bee?”
“You don’t have bees?”
“Perhaps in other places on Veloran. What is it?”
“A bug that flies. It has black and yellow stripes, and it carries pollen between flowers so that they can grow more flowers.”
Gruffy’s feather brow furrowed. “Truly? How could a bug carry seeds of this size?”
“They don’t... It’s not...” I shook my head. “Nevermind.”
“Well, if you are ready, we now have food. Shall we go?”
“Please.”
I took off my jean jacket and wrung it out.
“I don’t suppose you brought a towel?” I asked.
“What’s a towel? What’s a towel?” Pip squawked.
“Nevermind.”
About the Author
TODD FAHNESTOCK won the New York Public Library's Books for the
Teen Age Award for one of his short stories, and is the author of the YA
bestseller Fairmist as well as The Wishing World. Stories
are his passion, but Todd's greatest accomplishment is his quirky,
fun-loving family. The Wishing World began as a series of bedtime
stories for his children.
Author Links:
***GIVEAWAY***
- Skype or phone session (personal or school class).
- A bundle of Starscap Books.
- Two Signed Copies of The Wishing World by Todd Fahnestock.
Giveaway is open to International. Must be 13+ to Enter.
- A bundle of Starscap Books.
- Two Signed Copies of The Wishing World by Todd Fahnestock.
Giveaway is open to International. Must be 13+ to Enter.
Blog Tour Organised by:
No comments:
Post a Comment