Jul 6, 2017
Welcome to Episode 29 of the April Eight Songs & Stories
Podcast. Today’s story is “Story 3 - Quinn Quillow and the Blue
Ribbon", a great story for your kids at bathtime, bedtime, car
time, and family time.
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Quinn Quillow is a storycatcher. On his way to the Town Beside the River with the Leaning Clock Tower, he caught this tale, and he is now sharing it with the townspeople young and old. Today's we here the last part of the story, "Quinn Quillow and the Blue Ribbon." It made me laugh when I wrote it, and I hope it makes you laugh too. It is up to Stella Squirrel and her buddy
It is up to Stella Squirrel and her buddy Brizbane, a tiny mouse with a lot of attitude, to see if they can get the lost ribbon from Mrs. Robin's nest. Here is an excerpt from today's story...
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Stella was pulled out of her chestnut stew reveries by the sound of a shrill small voice calling up to her, “Stella! Stella!”
And there on the ground, way, way, way below, almost just a tiny speck of trouble he was, a small mouse, the smallest mouse the Old Woman had ever seen, was calling up from the ground. He was waving his arms vigorously or she’d never even have seen him.“Stella! Are you up there? Come down and get me, will ya?”
“Brizbane!” Stella called and she gave a “Chickory!” of delight at the sight of her wee friend. And with a flick of her tail, Stella Squirrel skittered down the oak and then right back up again with the small mouse riding astride her like a horse and holding tightly to the fur of her neck to keep from falling to the ground.
“What are we doing? Why did you call me? Is there danger maybe” he said hopefully, “Because I love danger... ” Brizbane said jumping off of Stella’s back and bowing grandly to the Alice and the old woman.
The Old Woman chuckled and smiled at Brizbane. “Thank you for coming to my home. It is nice to meet you, wee mouse.”
“Who you callin’ a mouse? I am not a mouse. I am Brizbane, the Conquer.” said Brizbane, flexing his “muscles”.
“Oh, yes, of course. Nice to meet you Brizbane the Conquerer,” said the mourning dove. She seemed to be trying not to laugh….
Stella said to her friend, “Brizbane, thanks for coming. I am glad you are here because I need your help. Here is what’s going on.” and she explained the whole story to her jaunty friend.
Once he’d heard the details, Brizbane’s eyes sparkled with glee. “Yeah, that sounds nice and terrifyingly dangerous what with the mama robin and her sharp beak, protecting her babies! Good thing I brought my sword!” he said, pulling out a tiny twig strapped to his waist that none of them had even noticed.
“I’m in! Let’s go!” said Brizbane.
“I don’t believe you’ll be needing a sword.” said the old woman gently.
Brizbane sighed and put his sword away.
Then he swung back up on Stella’s back and off she flew as only a squirrel can do - sprinting across branches, scurrying up and down and around tree trunks, nimbly leaping from maple to elm, hackberry to birch. Brizbane was quite dizzy by the time they got to the foot of Mrs. Robin’s tree, and he slid off of Stella’s back to catch his breath.
“What’s the matter?” asked Stella in confused and concerned.
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Now this story references a few other stories, including the return of Brizbane the Conquerer from Episode 6, "Thom and the Goblins".
Listeners, do you remember what other story Brizbane showed up in when he wasn't with his best friend, Thom Gnome?
Thank you for listening to the April Eight Songs & Stories Podcast. If you’ve been enjoying these tales, please let me know. I’d love to hear from you – you can leave a comment below, on Facebook or send me an email. And come be my friend on instagram.com/aprileightsongsandstories where I have so much fun. Or, leave a review on your favorite podcast venue and let other parents know you the value these stories have brought to your family. Spreading the word is the nicest thing you could do for this podcast. xoxo!
As Quinn Quillow says at the end of the story, "A tale I’ve told, a tale I shared, a tale that had never been told. But if I can tell it, it must come from somewhere. But where? We may never know. And I’ll ask you, where did it go...?"
All songs, stories, and illustrations are copyrighted by me, ©April Eight 2017. It is my favorite thing to do!