Diagnostic Reading4357-501Reader's Theater

The Book that Eats People

By John PerryIllustrated by Mark Fearing

Retold by Valeria Troche

Characters:

Narrator 1 Sammy Ruskin Mr. Glassford Isabel Operator

Narrator 2 Mr. Singh Librarian 1 Caller Judge Cox

Narrator 3 Mrs. Glassford Librarian 2 Policeman 1 Zookeeper 1

Narrator 4 Victoria Glassford Joey Policeman 2 Zookeeper 2

Mrs. Ruskin Sound effects Juan Chuck Anderson Kid

Narrator 1: Caution! This is a book that eats people.

Narrator 2: If you hear growling while you're reading it, stop reading, close the cover, and put something heavy on top of it.

Narrator 3: DO NOT let your little brother or sister read this book—especially when it's hungry.

Narrator 1: You should always assume this book is hungry.

Narrator 2: Remember. This is NOT a story book. It is NOT a book of rhymes.

Narrator 3: It isn't a how-to book or a dictionary. IT'S A BOOK THAT EATS PEOPLE!

Narrator 4: The first person it ate was Sammy Ruskin of Little Rock, Arkansas.

Mrs. Ruskin: Pick out a book Sammy. You've cleaned your room everyday for a month and earned a reward.

Sammy: Thanks mom! Hmmm... “The Book that Eats People?” that sounds cool.

Narrator 1: Now Sammy believed he was picking up a normal book but boy was he wrong.

Narrator 2: If he had known that the book he picked up was dangerously hungry he would have surely changed his mind, but it was too late—he was already home.

Mrs. Ruskin: Here's your peanut butter sandwich Sammy.

Sammy: Yum! Can I eat it in my room?

Mrs. Ruskin: Okay, but remember to wash your hands if you plan on reading your new book.

Sammy: Yeah, yeah...

Narrator 3: Like any other little boy Sammy “forgot” to wash his hands so his hands smelled of peanut butter as he opened the book.

Sound effects:[sniffing and lip smacking]

Sammy: What's that noise? Is that...the book?

Narrator 3: Sammy leaned his ear towards the book.

Narrator 4: And then the book—this book—went SNAP! And took a bite! And then another, and another.

Narrator 1: Sammy squirmed and wriggled, but the book ate him.

Narrator 2: It coughed up Sammy's bones and they clattered across the floor. This was the first person the book ate.

Narrator 3: After this book ate Sammy Ruskin, his parents gave it to a library, where it sat trapped between The Complete Guide to the Saints and Sandwiches Through the Ages.

Narrator 4: The book's stomach growled for weeks until late one evening, the guide to the saints was left on a table in the reference section. Only Mr. Singh the security guard was left to notice.

Mr. Singh: [whistling] Now what's this book doing out of place? I'll do the librarians a favor and shelve it.

Sound effects:[growling and lip smacking]

Mr. Singh: What that noise! Aahhhhhhhh!

Narrator 1: That night the book devoured Famous Americans, Who's Who in Business, and Mr. Singh.

Narrator 2: Because titles like What happened to Mr. Singh keep some library books shelved forever the librarians wept as they traded covers with All About Dolphins.

Librarian 1: Isn't this wrong?

Librarian 2: We have to do this, one of us could be next. We can't have a killer book in our library, we just can't!

Librarian 1: [gasp] Someone's picking it up!

Librarian 2: Shhhh. (whisper) Don't say anything.

Narrator 3: That same day Victoria Glassford checked it out.

Mrs. Glassford: Victoria, make sure you brush your teeth front AND back before going to sleep.

Victoria: I'm gonna brush them mommy, then you and daddy can tuck me in and read me a story.

Mr. Glassford: Okay pumpkin, but not another Pretty Pink Pony Parades in the Polished Pearl Corral. I don't think I can survive reading that junk again.

Narrator 4: Victoria put the book on her nightstand, but before she could brush her teeth, it jumped up, thumped her on the head...

Sound effects: [make thumping noise]

Narrator 4: ...and gobbled her down, beginning with her polished pink toenails.

Narrator 1: This is a bad book. A book with teeth and claws. It's a monster that eats people. You should throw it out in the nearest dumpster and never look back, that's exactly what Victoria's parents did.

Narrator 2: This book has eaten Sammy, Victoria, and Mr. Singh, and then it ate Joey, Juan, and Isabel when they found it in a heap of trash on a street in Philadelphia.

Joey: Hey guys, I think there's a book in the thrash. It looks brand new! I'm taking it.

Juan: Gah! Rex is going crazy, Joey. I think there's a cat inside that trashpile.

Isabel: No look. Rex is barking at the book. Something must be wrong with it. I've never seen him so crazy.

Joey: How can something be wrong with it? It's a book. It's harmless.

Juan: We should go. I don't think I can hold Rex much longer. Take the book Joey, we need to get away from here.

Isabel: No Joey! Don't pick it up!

Joey: Too late.

Joey, Juan, and Isabel: Aahhhhh!

Sound effects:[barking]

Operator: 911, what's your emergency?

Caller: I just saw three kids get eaten by a book!

Operator: Can you repeat that ma'am?

Caller: A killer book is on the rampage!

Operator: Calm down ma'am, the police are on their way.

Sound effects:[police siren]

Policeman 1: Freeze! You're under arrest.!

Policeman 2: Keep your covers closed and lay yourself flat on the sidewalk!

Policeman 1: Cuff him, Larry. We're taking him downtown.

Policeman 2: We know you're hungry, but you've just eaten your last human. You're gonna be doing hard time for the rest of your life, bub.

Narrator 3: They took it. They locked the book away in a jail cell , where it ate Chuck Anderson, who deserved it.

Narrator 4: Some people think it's cruel to chain a book. The guards did it anyway, they didn't want to end up like Chuck. Chewed up, eaten, and spit back out.

Narrator 1: Soon the day of it's trial arrived. Judge Cox, who loved all books felt pity on it.

Judge Cox: I find it guilty of all accounts. It will serve a life sentence at the City Zoo where it will be reformed, and kill no more.

Narrator 2: The zookeepers tried to change it. They fed it fried chicken, pickles, hot dogs, ice cream, noodles, and toast, but nothing worked. This book craves people.

Zookeeper 1: Get the burger closer, it can't reach it from there!

Zookeeper 2: You do it. Feeding this book gives me the willies! I can barely walk by it's cage after it chewed through my shoe.

Zookeeper 1: I don't know why so many people want to come look at it. It's a killer, plain and simple.

Zookeeper 2: Hey kid! Don't get to close. No! Don't feed it!

Kid: What? Why? It's only a book. Ack!

Narrator 3: So now everyone knows what kind of book this is. Who knows where you found it. But be careful.

Narrator 4: Never read this book with syrupy fingers. Never read it with cookies in your pocket. Never turn your back on it.

Narrator 1: Never NEVER EVER read this book alone. Because this book is ALWAYS hungry...and it eats people.