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    Tales for Boys
    Tales for Boys
    Tales for Boys
    Ebook104 pages1 hour

    Tales for Boys

    By Ray Mathews

    ()

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    About this ebook

    Befriending a Dragon from another world...
    An Indian boy fights a wolf for the survival of his tribe...
    A cowboy and his friend, a magic lasso...
    A ROBOT who means business...
    The art of Skiggering...
    Turn the page and see...

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherRay Mathews
    Release dateMar 10, 2011
    ISBN9781458092809
    Tales for Boys
    Author

    Ray Mathews

    About the Author:Ray Mathews is a former IBM Senior Engineer and inventor whose curiosity led him to write mysteries, thrillers, westerns, children's books in prose and verse, non-fiction books on Bridge, Personal Finance, Painting, Model Railroading, and more.He and wife, Sally, have three children, two grandsons, and live in Raleigh, NC.Books by Ray Mathews include:The Golden CrowsA Fetus Is MissingBilly the Kid: The HoaxFinding BrucePreviously Dead8 Christmas StoriesThe Book of Rhyming StoriesBubble ShipNomadsTales for BoysGrowing Up and Other StoriesNON-FICTION BOOKSHow to Expand Your Painting WorldYour Nest Is Your Nest EggSelf-Publish Your Book for Under $100Suit Bidding with the Jacoby and Stayman ConventionsThe TilTable BookA Baker's Dozen True StoriesFly Paper for Kids

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      Book preview

      Tales for Boys - Ray Mathews

      Excerpt from My Dragon, Basil

      Robby, you stay in the house till this storm passes."

      Aw mom, I whined. Okay, I'll go out on the porch then.

      I slipped out the side door before she could respond, crossed the porch, and leaned over the rail, searching the area near the oak tree. The smoke had mostly dispersed, but I could see a round shape on the ground about five inches long pulsating with a red glow – probably an overheated rock. My curiosity was too great. With a glance back at the house, I ran down the steps and across the yard. The storm had lost its punch, and only a light rain still fell. I saw lightning flashes, but they had moved toward the north. I squatted next to the shape which looked like a smooth oblong stone. The ozone smell from the electrical discharge was powerful. The temperature of the object had dropped, since the pulsing red and gray color was now mostly gray.

      I picked up a nearby stick, cautiously poked at the rock, and, surprised at the ease with which it rolled, realized that it was probably not a rock, but hollow or extremely light - like an egg.

      Still using the stick, I rolled the football-shape across the lawn, cooling it in the standing water. Yes, it definitely looked like an egg. The color was a dull gray now, but steam still rose from the surface.

      I watched sparks pop off the skin of the globe along a jagged line, and I stepped back as a bright green light shined through a widening crack in the egg-thing. The sphere quivered and gradually cracked along its length, emitting sparks like a Fourth of July sparkler. The shell turned a pulsating green, and a viscous green slime oozed through the expanding crack."

      *******

      Tales for Boys

      by Ray Mathews

      Cover Art by Ray Mathews

      Published by Smashwords

      Copyright © 2009 by Ray Mathews

      Smashwords Edition, License Notes

      This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each person with whom you share it. If you are reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then you should return to Smashwords.com and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

      This book and others by Ray Mathews are available at online retailers.

      *******

      "Boys can be curious, and curiosity is what makes the world turn."Ray Mathews

      *******

      Tales for Boys

      Table of Contents

      My Dragon, Basil

      Outfoxing the Wolf

      Tom and His Magic Lasso

      Skigger Me Home

      Help Wanted

      Travel Card

      About the Author

      *******

      My Dragon, Basil

      Chapter 1

      I dodged around the corner of Coggins Street inches beyond the grasping fingers of Fat Schneider who, though he outweighed me by twenty-five pounds, wasn't fast for the same reason. This chase had become a daily ritual during the last week since I'd begun to best him in spelling and math, and today in English composition. I couldn't figure why. He was always the smartest boy in class - till lately.

      I heard his labored breathing and an oath as he ground to a halt and gave up the chase.

      I'll catch you one of these days, Robby Brown, and then you'll get it!

      I slowed my pace and glanced back. Schneider stood panting and red-faced, his brown hair plastered to his chubby cheeks and forehead, his fingers clenched into fists. He watched the distance between us lengthen.

      I stopped running and waved at him with a taunting smile, my hair bouncing across my face. He jumped up and down once, shook his fist, then turned and shuffled off for home.

      I swung my book bag like a pendulum in rhythm with my pace, and humming, ran my plastic ruler along Mrs. Weaver's picket fence, making a sharp, rackety clatter. She had the longest picket fence in Edgewater, Florida, and I had daily access to it. I bounced along, glad that I'd won one more competition from Fat Schneider. He was smart - intelligent, mom would say - but evidently I was smarter, since I'd beaten him at everything lately. I was kind of sorry in a way, since I liked Schneider. If only he wasn't so intent on being best at everything. What was he trying to prove, anyway?

      The school year was half over, it being almost the end of March. Looking around me I saw the bloom of the world before my eyes in the Dogwood blossoms, white and pink, and the red buds, and bright green of new leaf coming out on the trees. The world was so fresh I smelled Spring growing in front of me, felt the light spring breeze blowing on my cheek. Lucky for us we are deluged with color from January through June every year. I love it!

      I replaced the ruler in my bag, not admitting that I held it as a defensive weapon - in case Schneider got lucky and caught me.

      The hissing scream of Crackers, Mrs. Weaver's cat, made me jump toward the curb, almost dropping my book bag. He sat at the end of the fence and stared at me, his scraggly salt-and-pepper fur bristled, and his sharp teeth showed through the pulled-back lips. A bright green light seemed to emanate from the slits of his eyes.

      I darted forward and back at him, and Crackers retreated, escaped into the yard, and disappeared into Mrs. Weaver's overgrown garden, hissing a warning as he fled.

      I walked rapidly away from the fence and glanced back. The distant thunder I'd heard as I left the school bus, was now overhead. I could feel the freshening breeze on my face, and stagnant leaf piles skittered and danced about in little whirlwinds. I walked faster and broke into a jog, my book bag a leaden weight on my back.

      My house stood at the top of a small rise and sat like a sentinel over the surrounding neighborhood. Large drops of rain hit my head and face, and with a sigh of relief I neared home. Dashing along the sidewalk, the sight ahead stopped me. The Wronski's German Shepherd, Thor, was loose! He stood in the middle of the sidewalk, glared at me, his lips quivering in anticipation, and almost dared me to enter his turf.

      I slowed to a casual walk, and even though the rain had increased in intensity, crossed the street, and approached home as if I were walking on eggs.

      Good boy, Thor. Go home, boy, go home.

      Thor had never gone into the street before that I could remember, so a circular route was safer. Dad would have to be told about the

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