The Boy Who Lied and the Magic Tennis Raquet
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Alex Cummingham was a good boy. He usually obeyed his parents and teachers. He was just a curious ten year old who loved running errands for his mother, sports, climbing trees and small animals like snakes, squirrels and rabbits. Alex already had a pet lizard and a hamster in cages in his room. One sunny afternoon, Alex’s mother sent him to the store to get her some milk and a loaf of bread. She reminded him, as always, not to talk to strangers, not to go in the woods and to come straight home. Alex has always gone to the store for his mother for as long as he could remember. She always let him keep the change so he could buy a candy bar or chewing gum. He usually rode his bike, but today he decided to walk. The weather was beautiful and he was in no hurry. There was a wooded area between his house and the store. Alex was never allowed to go into the woods, but he thought maybe he would see a squirrel along the way. He may even run into one of his friends who lived on the other side of the street and they could walk with him to the store and share his candy. Alex got to the store without seeing a single friend. "Perhaps I’ll run into them on my way back," he thought.
Way in the back of Mrs. Helen Jones’ attic lived a lonely tennis racquet. It had belonged to Mrs. Jones youngest son Jeffery, but Jeffery was in his last year of college and hadn’t played tennis in years. The racquet missed those years he and Jeffery would play tennis all day during the hot summer months and traveled to tennis tournaments across the country. It was a happy time, full of excitement and competition. The racquet wanted to get back in the swing of things. He dreamed of belonging to some little boy or girl. He had been in this hot dusty attic for too many years. All because Jeffery got so angry after losing a match and swore he would never play tennis again. The racquet sadly remembered being slammed to the ground so hard his frame almost cracked. To top it all off, he blamed the racquet for losing the match. He had some nerve, there was only so much a racquet could do. Well, that was a long time ago. Now he must concentrate on getting back into action. On a tennis court was where he belonged.
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About the Book
The Boy Who Lied
It is a tale about Alex Cummingham, a little boy who lived in a small town where nothing ever happen. One day, on his way back from running an errand for his mother, he is distracted by a baby rabbit along the side of the road. He chased the baby rabbit deep into the woods and lost his way. Hours later when he was found, instead of telling the truth, he lied for fear of being punished by his parents or looking stupid to his friends. He created an amazing lie about being kidnapped by a total stranger and dragged into the woods.
This is the biggest news to hit this small town in years. It set off a change of reactions from everyone in town, from everyday citizens, to the police, to the mayor. One lie lead to another until Alex was caught up in a web of lies with no way out. Only a wise man could find a solution.
The Magic Tennis Raquet is a book for young readers ages 9 and under.
It is about an old tennis racquet that has been discarded for years in an attic, but plotted his return to the tennis scene through a garage sale. He got more than he bargained for when he found himself in the hands of a very talented, poor Black girl. They worked together, over coming many obstacles, to win the biggest championship in tennis.
About the Author
RUBY J. JACKSON is a flight attendant turn author is living her American dream. This is her first children book and is currently working on her second. A Tennessee native and a graduate of Tennessee State University, she now lives in Bradenton, FL with her husband and two children.