A Town Called Nook

In the town of Nook, every house is a book. But when a boy who lives in a book of facts meets a girl from a book of fiction, can they ever be together? Find out in this literal, literary tale. Perfect for young readers of any genre.

If you're enjoying the podcast, please visit www.storiesbypeter.com where you'll find Peter's children's picture book, Lost Hallway: Where Do Lost Things Go and his latest children's chapter book Stitches in Time Travel. Both are available on Amazon. Stitches in Time Travel is also available as an audiobook or Amazon, Audible and iTunes.

Click here to purchase a copy of  Lost Hallway
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Transcript

Musings and Other Nonsense. Whimsical stories, poems and songs for children. Written and read by Peter G. Reynolds. That's me! This podcast would not be possible without your support. Please visit buymeacoffee.com/musings to donate or become a member.

This story is called A Town Called Nook

In the town, I call home
Every house is a book.
Some fiction, some fact. 
It's a place we call Nook.

Now you may think it strange 
That we all live in tomes,
But it's normal to us
—these books are our homes.

There are books on all subjects, 
from spaceships to bugs.
Including some books 
Full of kisses and hugs.

Yuck.

We live on a street, 
That’s called Bottom Shelf.
Our neighbour’s a book,
That helps you, help yourself.

Our home’s full of numbers.
For any occasion.
My toys are a fraction
And quadratic equation.

And though we had answers,
One question remained.
Why was I lonely?
Could that be explained?

I asked mother, who said,
You should study more.
I asked father, who said,
Leave home and explore.

His advice was quite simple,
This town’s full of wonders.
There’s much more to life
Then playing with numbers.

So I packed my bag
And walked into town.
Dad wore a big smile,
Mom wore a big frown.

It’s not safe! She shouted,
All that silly fiction.
If you read too much
You’ll get an addiction!

I passed many books
I had not seen before,
Middle-grade readers
And board books galore.

Hello! Called a woman.
Her voice filled with glee.
Why don’t you come in
And solve this mystery?

But I heeded mom’s warning,
As I explored Nook,
To avoid anything
Made-up in a book.

One house felt creepy.
Though I didn’t know why.
I heard a loud scream,
And quickly walked by.

One book was thick,
With scholarly prose.
The owner just scoffed 
And turned up his nose. 

I got lost for a while 
But that was just fine
Surrounded by textbooks
And even True Crime!

But something was missing
From all of this writing.
I needed a book
That was just more... exciting.

Then I met a girl,
Her eyes filled with tears.
She was older than I,  
But just by two years.

Her mother had told her,
Explore with conviction.
That there’s more to life
Then narrative fiction.
 
But where to begin?
Fiction’s all that she knew.
Other books were confusing.
What was she to do? 

So I held her hand,
And said, I’ll be your guide.
A memoir was near,
And we both went inside.

We saw books on physics,
And geography.
Sweet tasting cookbooks
And quaint history.

Then one day she asked,
If I’d like to share, 
She true love of fiction.
She’d help guide me there. 

My first thought was, no!
It filled me with fear.
My mom’s warning rang
Very loud in my ear. 

But when she was with me,
I did not feel tense.
So I out tried some fiction;
First Thrillers, then Suspense. 

Books big as mansions,
Or small as a hovel.
I loved all of them 
I thought them quite - novel.

The weeks went by,
Our friendship grew stronger.
And stories with kisses?
I didn’t mind any longer.

So then we decided
Together we’ll stay
But there was one thing
That stood in our way.

It was our parents. 
How might they react?
Her world was of fiction.
While mine was of fact.

But we had a solution,
That was great indeed.
We debated for hours,
And then they agreed!

So we built a house
With no literary restriction.
Two families joined,
In a home of Science Fiction.

I hope you enjoyed this episode. If you did, please check out my picture book, Lost Hallway: Where Do Lost Things Go, now available on Amazon. It's a magical tale of a young boy who discovers a world that contains all lost things. You can learn more at storiesbypeter.com 

See you next time