Bats at the Beach

  Brian Lies

  * * *

  Bats at the Beach

  WRITTEN AND ILLUSTRATED BY BRIAN LIES

  HOUGHTON MIFFLIN COMPANY BOSTON 2006

  * * *

  Maddy, this one is all yours.

  Copyright © 2006 by Brian Lies

  All rights reserved. For information about permission to reproduce selections from this book, write to

  Permissions, Houghton Mifflin Company, 215 Park Avenue South, New York, New York 10003.

  www.houghtonmifflinbooks.com

  The text of this book is set in 18-point Legacy.

  The illustrations are acrylic paint on Strathmore paper.

  Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

  Lies, Brian.

  Bats at the beach / written and illustrated by Brian Lies.

  p. cm.

  Summary: On a night when the moon can grow no fatter, bats pack their moon-tan lotion and baskets

  of treats and fly off for some fun on the beach.

  ISBN 0-618-55744-X (hardcover)

  [1. Beaches—Fiction. 2. Bats—Fiction. 3. Picnicking—Fiction. 4. Stories in rhyme.] I. Title.

  PZ8.3.L597Bat 2006 [E]—dc22 2005010757

  ISBN-13: 978-0618-55744-8

  Manufactured in China

  SCP 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

  Sun slips down and all is still, and soon we can't tell sky from hill. Now from barn and cave and rafter, bats pour out with shrieks of laughter.

  The rising moon can grow no fatter as sky lights up with gleeful chatter: Quick, call out! Tell all you can reach— the moon is just perfect for bats at the beach!

  Soon we've got our buckets, trowels, banjoes, blankets, books, and towels, strapped on backs and under wings. —Have we forgotten anything?

  Launching out into the breeze, we sail above the darkened trees, flying fast, to wet our feet where land and foamy ocean meet.

  At last we hear the deep bass thump, as waves on seashore crash and bump. Now the shoreline spreads below; we pull wings in, and down we go.

  How delicious—oh, how sweet, To feel warm sand beneath our feet.

  Quick, set up—spread blankets on sand! We want to get going when fun is at hand.

  We hurry down to test the ocean.

  Don't forget the moon-tan lotion!

  What's the first thing we should do?

  So many games before night's through.

  Like playing with the stuff we find, which others must have left behind.

  Burying friends from chin to knee, we're scratchy where no sand should be.

  Making friends from other places with different foods and different faces

  Or sailing to terrific heights, taking turns at being kites.

  Little bats dig their sand caves deep, as old bats lie in the moon, asleep.

  There's really no more thrilling ride than surfing on a summer tide.

  Or sailing in the wing-boat races, with salty sea spray in our faces.

  Now it's munchtime; what's to eat? Baskets groan with yummy treats. Beetles, ants, and milkweed bugs, crickets, moths, and pickled slugs. Damselflies, or salted 'skeeters no room here for-picky eaters!

  Bug-mallows toast on slender sticks while cousins do their ocean tricks.

  And later on, though stomachs hurt, we'll try the snack bar for dessert.

  Music rolls on, but no more games. As embers pop within the flames, little ones climb onto leathery lap, determined to rest but not to nap.

  Then east sky purples—sun is coming! A last few notes of banjo-strumming bring our beach night to an end, so say farewell to newfound friends. Pack our things up, shake the sand out, give the noisy gulls a handout.

  Quick, let's go, let's fly away— we've got to be home before it's day!

  Flutter homeward, drained and weary. Small bats doze off, tired and teary.

  Day birds start to chirp and peep; now back to crack and crevice creep.

  We sigh and snuggle close together to dream about the moony weather.

  Shh—now sleep. The moon's out of reach. The night was just perfect for bats at the beach.

 

 

  Brian Lies, Bats at the Beach

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