Little Wolf, Forest Detective, page 1
COPYRIGHT
First published in Great Britain by Collins in 2000
First published in paperback by HarperCollins Children’s Books in 2001
This electronic edition published by HarperCollins Children’s Books in 2015
HarperCollins Children’s Books is a division of HarperCollinsPublishers Ltd
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Text copyright © Ian Whybrow 2000
Illustrations copyright © Tony Ross 2000
Ian Whybrow and Tony Ross assert the moral right to be identified as author and illustrator of the work.
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Source ISBN: 9780006754527
Ebook Edition © MAY 2015 ISBN: 9780008140113
Version: 2015-06-19
MAP
CONTENTS
Cover
Title Page
Copyright
Map
Little Wolf: Forest Detective
Other Books By Ian Whybrow
About the Author
About the Publisher
The Office with the big desk in
Dear Mum and Dad,
Please please please PLEEEZ don’t make me come home to Murkshire to live in the Lair with you and Smells. Whyo Y can’t I stay here in Frettnin Forest with Yeller, Stubbs and Normus? Because we like being detectives, it is good. Stubbs has made us posh badges with his clever beak like this saying YFDA (for Yelloweyes Forest Detective Agency, did you know that?).
Also on our door he has done a nice new sing sine notice saying:
We are good solvers but not Smells. His brane is 2 small plus he did not want to be in the YFDA. He got all feddup and lairsick remember? That is Y he came back to Murkshire to live in the Lair with you, then he could be your darling baby pet, yes? So not my fault.
Go on, make him stay there, we do not want him back, messing up our detective stuff. Like sitting on the fingerprint pad and doing bottomprints on my notebook. Also, he is selfish saying nobody else can be the handcuffer, only him.
Go on.
Yours hopingly,
Little Wolf
My room
Dear Mum and Dad,
You did not say much to my last letter, only hmmph and grrrr, and where is Uncle Bigbad’s ghost? Find him quick or else!!!
We have been looking and looking, only no luck yet. Still, I have done you nice pics of what’s in our detective kit so you will get more cheery. Yeller sent off for it to Wolf Weekly (cheap). It is like this:
DETECTIVE KIT
Magnifying glass
Pawprint set
Handcuffs
Detective Notebook with stickers like INTERVIEW NOTES and CLUE NOTES and EVIDENCE and THINKY OUT PAGE ect.
Sharp pencil with earclip
Torch to help yellow eyes see in the dark
Penknife for sharp work
By the way, you say what new cases have we got to solve, grrrr? Answer, allsorts but confidenshul, privat, can’t say anything hem hem.
Yours acely,
LB Wolf
Co-Cheef Detective, YFDA
Dear Mamong et parp-parp (french),
No we have not found Mister Twister yet. Yes, I do remember he has shamed the name of Wolf by being a kidnapper and ghostnapping Uncle Bigbad in his whisky bottle. But do not fret and frown, we will solve this case soonly, easy cheesy. (Probly.) But just now we are a bit busy doing Tips for Tecs to help us. Do you like them?
TIPS FOR FOREST TECS
practise magnifying, pawprinting, handcuffing, sharpening (pencils) and shortpaw writing
Use your brute instinct
Use your keen beastly senses, such as eyes, ears, nose, also having a good lick
Find clues
Write about them in your notebook quick but no smudjis
Have a good think
Do plans for fast getaways
Then you will be Mister ACE Forest Detective and case solver, arrroooo!
Good, eh?
Yours cheefly,
L Wolf (son)
Shadow of my best tree
Dear Mum and Dad,
You keep saying what is the point of being your son if I do not blab my secret cases to my mum and dad? Oh OK then, I will say about just 1, but keep it in the Lair. It is called The Case of the Ants’ Lost Football Boots. Now I will say about the solving part.
The captain of Ants United FC came under our office door wearing his captain’s strip with his number on (Number 9999999). He said antly, “Hello, somebody has pinched all my team’s football boots, can you detect who dunnit?” Normus said, “Yes and I will bash them up for you.” But me and Yeller and Stubbs said, “No need for bashing, Normus. Just adding up, plus using your keen beastly senses.”
So Normus said, “Right then, how many boots got pinched?” and the captain said, “All the lot.” That was a hard sum to add up, because of ants having to times by loads of feet. But Yeller got the answer, 6 x 11 = 66. Then Normus said to the ant, “Hoy, have you got any reserves?”
Good thing he said that because the answer was yes, 1. That made 72 boots pinched. And guess what? We solved who the stealer was! Arrroooo for the YFDA!
And now:
NEW MYSTERY CRIMES OF FRETTNIN FOREST
1) 13 pups, chicks, cubs, fledgies ect. have gone missing from Frettnin Forest in 2 days
2) Also much treasure keeps getting robbed
3) Reports coming in of strange spookly small things seen in the night
Good. Because that means loads more detecting for us. So watch out all you kidnappers and robberers and small spookles, because we have a detective kit and we can find out WHODUNNIT!
Yours trackingly,
L B Wolf
Co-Cheef Detective, YFDA
Under dinner table (for cosyness, hmmm)
Dear Mum and Dad,
About The Case of the Ants’ Lost Football Boots, I forgot to finish off, sorry. The solving part was, we got out our magnifying glasses and had a good look round the heap where the ants live, going stare stare.
Anycase, quite soonly, we found many a small track. We followed these, crawlingly, to a rotted log. And guess what we found hiding under the bark? A centipede wearing 72 football boots! Stubbs can speak Insect so he said, “Ark Squark Crark?” ect. meaning arkscuse me, small crook, are you warking for Mister Twister the Farks? Or are you warking alone as a stealer? Also have you seen the ghost of Bigbad Wolf in a whisky bottle by any small chance?
The centipede said (insect voice), “It is a fair cop, misters. But I have not seen a big bad ghost and no I do not work for Mister Twister. Also, I am not a crook really. I just wanted to do loud riverdancing and get faymuss. By the way I taste horrible, hint hint.”
Then he tried to do a fast getaway but no, he tripped over his laces and got captured har har. So well done us.
Yours Xplainingly
Littly
PS He Xcaped Soonly, boo Shame. Must get smaller handcuffs.
Up the troutpool, the chilly bit
Dear Mum and Dad,
We had a good wet hunt for Mister Twister and Uncle Bigbad’s ghost today, so I bet you are going pat pat well done our cub. Yeller’s Big Ideer was to swim down and look at Lake Lemming’s bottom. Because you never know, Mister Twister is crafty enuff to hide down there. We saw some nice bubbles, also Normus caught a nice fishy tea (yum yum tasty). But no crooks or ghosts in whisky bottles, boo shame.
The ants’ football team came over today saying we can be best friends and they will give us a kick-about any time. Good, eh? Also, today we got a hansum reward because we found a lost froghopper in the long grass and took him back to his mum. She was so happy, she gave us some cuckoo spit. So now we have got some nice froth to go on cups of hot choclit, yum yum tasty!
Yours yawnly,
Laaah Waaaah Zzzzzz
Dear Mum and Dad,
It is not my fault Smells is jealous of my adventures. He always gets jealous. So go on, make him stay with you, hmmm? stroke stroke. Also, you are not fair, saying grrrrr you bet we do not earn much money being detectives because we cannot find my own dead uncle even. True we are not rich yet, BUT (big but) what about all that gold I had in my safe till Smellybreff got some gunpowder and blew it to small smithers? That made my gold go scattering all over Frettnin Forest.
Never mind, guess what? Stubbs found 3 gold coins high up in some nests yesterday! Arrrooo! So well done our Flying Squad, good searching.
Now I will tell you a bit more about what wants solving.
KIDNAPS
The Case of the Small Missing Moose
The Case of the 3 Bunnies tha t Hopped it
The Case of the 4 Pinched Hedgepiglets
The Case of the Lost Lion Cub
The Case of the 4 Disappeared Ducklings, ect.
Also
ROBBINGS
The Case of the Jackdaw’s Jewels
The Case of the Weasel’s
Gold Watch
SPOOKLY HAUNTINGS
The Case of the Green Bubble that Floats in the Night-time
Oo-er! What is happening? Where have the small brute beasts all gone? Who pinched the jewels and the watch? What comes floating about in the night like a green bubble? Do not fear and fret, do not get wurrid, the YFDA will soon find out. Arrrroooo!
Yours yellow-eyedly,
Little
PS Mum always says yellow eyes are friends with the dark, yes? So look out clues, we are after you even with all the lights out.
Sulking corner
Dear Mum and Dad,
Thank you for your harsh letter saying we are not proper detectives but you know somebody who is.
You say this somebody is not called a detective, but a Private Investigator which is a lot more posh. And he told you magnifying glasses are rubbish. He has got all hi-tech tools for detecting and he is called Furlock Homes-Wolf. And he is faymuss because he solved The Hard Case of the Slippery Chicks.
Now I feel all jealous.
Yours unpraisedly,
L Wolf
My desk (tidy 1 with all sharp pencils pointing same way)
Dear Mum and Dad,
Very busy work today using brute instinct and beastly senses. Today I will copy out some pages from our notebooks so you can say, hmm, nice detecting you cubs.
YFDA INTERVIEW NOTES
(Privat keep out Smells or else)
Case 1
TIME
Early
DETECTIVE ON CASE
N Bear
TIME OF INTERVIEW
Just after sun jumped up.
WITNESS STATEMENT OF
Mrs Duck, Tidynest, The Reeds, Lake Lemming (up the deepend).
“I was bobbing up and down counting my babies like you do. I never seen feather nor beak of nobody, only that nice gingery man with a mask on his face and a sort of fur badge on his front. He was holding a bag of crumbs. Then I noticed all my fluffies was gorn. Gorn! Oh woe is me, ect.”
PLAN
Normus will go hunting, in Lake Lemming area, for gingery man with mask on (bit suspish) plus furry badge also 4 small ducks with fluff on.
Case 2
DETECTIVE ON CASE
Yeller Wolf
TIME OF INTERVIEW
Just after snacktime
WITNESS STATEMENT OF
Mr and Mrs Lion,
Anywhere we feel like, Parching Plain.
“A travelling knifegrrrinder with squinty eyes came pushing his grrrrinder over our hunting grrround. We noticed he was wearing a fur brrrrooch and he smelled minty. He said he had a special offer on claw sharrrrpening, so we thought why not? It was just after he went that we noticed our small cub was not asleep in his patch of long grrrrass. We rrreckon he was cubnapped.”
PLAN
Yeller to Parching Plain to track suspect pushing minty knifegrinder with fur brooch. Also looking for kidnapped cub called Pounce (left ear chewed).
Case 3
DETECTIVE ON CASE
S Crow
TIME OF INTERVIEW
Ark past 2
WITNESS STATEMENT OF
Mrs Hedgehog, Heapoleaves, Beech Grove, Frettnin Forest
“A gingery gypsy it was. Selling Clothes pegs with big spots. On her hanky. She had a spotty hanky, you understand, see? Her clothes pegs were not spotty, right? I noticed she smelled minty and she had a fur thingy pinned to her blouse. Is that a help?
Snuffle snuffle. Excuse me. I am upset. I am always telling my hogglets never to take slugs from a stranger! But it was just too tempting for my little cheeky chestnuts. Now they have been torn from me. You must find them for me Mister Defective. I will pay anything. Slugs snails worms, you name it.”
PLAN
Flying Squad (Stubbs) to do Air Search for suspect with special GO CROW! message on flying helmet.
Case 4
Co-Cheef Tec’s Case (v hard, needs xtra keen beastly powers by me, hem hem)
PLAN
To detect who robbed the jewels plus the gold watch off the jackdaw and the weasel. My keen beastly ears, eyes, nose ect. tell me that jackdaw and weasel are making up fibs, just so I will find rich things for them. They hope I will say “Da-daaah! Look at this shiny stuff I have found, are they yours by any chance, hem hem?” So then they can pretend, saying, “Oh, defny, lovely, yes those are my treasures.”
Yours R U kiddingly,
Your Little
Tracker
Dear Mum and Dad,
I know you like a good fib, so look at these woppers I wrote down in my notebook by shortpaw (quck wrtin):
Me (detectively): Tll me Mistr Jckdaw, whr did you hde yr jewels? Ws it in a gd hidy-hole?
Jackdaw (harshly): I tuckd ma sprkly jools nder a Imp of moss, see, and ma nest is way up top of a bell twer. So no way could any nrmal brute find it. It was a spook, I reckn.
Me (crafty): No nrmal brute, hem hem, I see. A spook, eh? Now let me ask Mr Weasel, dd you like yr gld wtch? Also, did you keep it in a daft place like on your frnt doorstp?
Weasel (front toothly): My gld watch was my best thing. It was worth a frtune. I kept it lockd in a chest hid at the btm of a deep dark tunl that I dug for it spesh. No brute knew where it was, only me. It must have been stln by a soopnachrel fors. By the way can you spell s-u-p-e-r-n-a-t-u-r-a-l f-o-r-c-e?
Me (correctingly): Oh, thanks. Now I cn spell it. But what Xactly is a supernatural force, hint hint?
Weasel: It is 1 of those nsty little green things that I saw come creepn into my bdrm in the drk on the bong of midnit. It was shockn. Would you like a description?
Me: Will I have to take it to the chemist?
Weasel: I said a DEscription not a PREscription.
Me: Thank you wunce morely. Description of “not normal brute”, “spook” and “nasty thing”.
Yours pulltheotheronely,
Little
My mat with all Supercub pics on
Dear Mum and Dad,
You say stop doing that silly short writing. Also you say my letter made you think of Uncle Bigbad and go all sad and snappish. But listen, why does that supernatural force remind you of Uncle? True, Uncle was a ghost and did glowing in the dark. But he was not 1 bit like the small ratty thing that the weasel saw floating by his nose in the night time. Uncle was a great big tall horrible ghost when he went haunting. He had a great big horrible furry face, plus big horrible red eyes, plus big horrible yellow teeth and all dribble dribbling down. Also his eyebrows met in the middle like Dad’s only more caterpillary.
I know Uncle Bigbad got stolen in his whisky bottle from my house, but serves him right. He should not have scoffed so many bakebeans then he would not have died of the jumping beanbangs in the first place. And why didn’t he stay in the nice grave I dug for him? He would have been safe there. He only moved into that bottle to show off, just because the label had ‘Powerful Spirit’ on it. Then he got corked up and spooknapped by Mister Twister the fox.
