Innholdsfortegnelse for November/December 2023 i Cricket Magazine Fiction and Non-Fiction Stories for Children and Young Teens

IT ALL BEGAN when my younger brother, Chris, and I went over to Aunt Barbara and Uncle Howard’s for Thanksgiving. My aunt and uncle live on a farm at the opposite end of town, and Chris and I love going there. We live on a farm, too, and we had to do the morning chores before we left. When we finally got to my aunt and uncle’s, Chris and I went outside to see if Uncle Howard needed help with anything. He and Dad had decided to clean out the turkey coop before dinner. Since Chris was only nine, he got the easier job of scrubbing out the watering cans. I was twelve, old enough to help load the wheelbarrow. But we still found time to ask Uncle Howard a…

DID YOU KNOW that people once believed mistletoe had special powers? My friend Julie A. Winrich told me that they would hang a branch of this evergreen in their doorways to keep away evil and to give them more children and bigger crops. Mistletoe was also used to “cure” certain diseases, such as epilepsy, heart ailments, and even mental illness. We now know, however, that mistletoe berries are very poisonous and should never be eaten by humans! Mistletoe may not have special powers, but it is still a rather interesting plant—it actually lives high in tree branches! How does it get up there? Some birds like to eat mistletoe’s tasty white berries. They fly to other trees and drop the undigested seeds, which sprout and grow new plants. Mistletoe gets…

Hello, Cricket, Happy fiftieth anniversary! I love Cricket magazine. My favorite poem is “Fireworks!” by Diane ZuHone Shore (July/August 2023). I like how the stories are not too long, and this works for me. Have a nice vacation! Hannah Reff, age 11 New York Dear Cricket, I fondly remember, around six or seven years ago, paging through an old edition of Cricket— and loving it! Now, years later, I have been subscribed for two years. Thanks so much for this awesome mag and happy anniversary! Any other readers of Cricket mag, hearken! Let me know if you have read 100 Cupboards and/or the Ashtown Burials series by N. D. Wilson. For all of you Harry Potter and Keeper of the Lost Cities lovers out there, these series are for you!…

PRINCE GETHYN STARED at the curving, green-gray stone wall’s ornately carved door. He’d never felt so nervous. Pushing back his long fair hair, he reminded himself to stand tall. “Do you have everything?” asked Rose, the royal sorceress. “Yes,” said Gethyn, showing her a plain linen sack. The “everything” in it wasn’t much: a flask of water and a small oatcake, the only supplies allowed for this day’s historic quest. Gethyn turned his attention back to the wall. Adventure waited for him behind it, somewhere within the Ancient Oval, an isolated, magical spot. Rose watched over this mysterious place, going in and out often. Gethyn couldn’t recall ever seeing her without its door’s heavy key dangling from her waist-sash. This enchanted key, decorated with a gold-tailed crystal comet, set its…

WHAT STRANGE TWIST of fate brings Nasrudin, the accidental hero of our story, to the capital on this day of all days? Nasrudin is an ordinary-looking fellow, leading his donkey, looking this way and that at the shops and the buildings, now swept along in the crowd gathering around the palace. It seems everyone is trying to catch a glimpse of the shah. Poor Nasrudin! He wanted nothing more than to lead a calm and peaceful life and study the Koran. But just at that moment, through no fault of his own, he found himself standing at the other end of the shah’s finger. He had become, to his consternation, the shah’s newly appointed ambassador to a foreign land! No! How in the world could that be? It was the…

GOBBLE GOBBLE GOBBLE!…

AT THE BEGINNING of the twentieth century, countries in Europe competed to see which would be the most powerful. As their armies and navies grew, some countries feared attack and made alliances, promising to defend each other in the event of war. These alliances were tested in 1914 by the assassination of the heir to the Austro-Hungarian Empire. One nation after another declared war, and Europe was split in two: the Allied Powers—including Great Britain, France, and Russia—against the Central Powers—Germany, Austria-Hungary, Bulgaria, and the Ottoman Empire. It was called the Great War by Americans, and before it ended in 1918, countries all over the world were drawn into the battle. Technology had made it possible to fight war in new ways. Battles were carried out using airplanes, submarines, and…

Cricket League First prize 10 and under Ruth A. Fields, age 10Kirkland, WA Ode to Bugs Beautiful Butterfly,Twirling, whirling in the sky.Magnificent wings, up so high,Pretty little butterfly. Chirping, charming cricket,Hiding in a leafy thicket.Singing chipa-chipa-chipit,Happy, hopping cricket. Lovely little ladybug,Pretty spots, like a polka-dot rug.I just want to give you a hug,Adorable spotted ladybug. Scary, stalking spider,Hanging from your web, you’re quite the glider.And down a waterspout, you’re a slider,Creepy, jet-black spider. Bounding, bouncing bugs,From butterflies to ugly slugs,Sneaking into my house and chewing up rugs,Cheerful little bugs. First prize 11 and up Avi Brandt, age 13Friday Harbor, WA The Spider Hides, the Spider Waits The spider hidesThe spider waitsBehind her sticky silken gates The spider creepsWith silent zealToward unsuspecting insect meal The spider leapsWith toxic biteThe insect has…