Story by Cynthia Rylant Pictures by Sucie Stevenson WINNERS OF THE THEODOR SEUSS GEISEL AWARDHenry and Mudge have had many adventures together and you can read them alll! Look for these great stories: Henry and Mudge Henry and Mudge in Puddle Trouble Henry and Mudge in the Green Time Henry and Mudge Under the Yellow Moon Henry and Mudge in the Sparkle Days Henry and Mudge and the Forever Sea Henry and Mudge Get the Cold Shivers Henry and Mudge and the Happy Cat Henry and Mudge and the Bedtime Thumps Henry and Mudge Take the Big Test Henry and Mudge and the Long Weekend Henry and Mudge and the Wild Wind Henry and Mudge and the Careful Cousin Henry and Mudge and the Best Day of All Henry and Mudge in the Family Trees Henry and Mudge and the Sneaky Crackers Henry and Mudge and the Starry Night Henry and Mudge and Annie's Good Move Henry and Mudge and the Snowman Plan Henry and Mudge and Annie's Perfect Pet Henry and Mudge and the Tall Tree House Henry and Mualge and Mrs, Hoppers House Henry and Mudge and the Wild Goose Chase Henry and Mudge and the Funny Lineh y Christina Henry and Mudge and a Very Me Henry and Mudge IN THE Sparkle Days The Fifth Book of Their Adventures Story by Cynthia Rylant Pictures by Sugie Stevenson Ready-to-Read Aladdin PaperbacksTo Casey and Jane Rehm—ck For Edwina—ss “THE HENRY AND MUDGE BOOKS Fst Aladin Paperbacks Econ, 1993 “Text copyright 1985 by Cyt Rylane istration copyige © 1988 by Suge Savenson Alon Papetncks ‘am ungein of Simon & Schuster Childrens Publishing Division 1230 Avenue ofthe Americas "New York, NY 10020 {All sights rssrvedinlalig the ight of reproduction in whee o in par in any for READY-TO.READ ica entered tradematk of Simon & Schastes Ine ‘Abe ae in Sinn & Schuster Books for Young Readers Bin. The text ofthis book ae sc in 18 pt. Goal ‘Thellstrations were render in penvandnkand wareteslor Printed and bound in the United State of Ameria 9 8 2T wm “The Lay of Congres has ataloped the hardcover edition allows Rylan, Com Hera Mov i he spr das: theft hook ofthe adventures story by (Cynthia Rylan pits by Suge Stevenson. The Henry and Made books"—Jacket Sy: lv Ue wines Henry a ls big dog, Mode, playin the aon, share aly Crema Eve dane, anal ger aro « ockling wer replace 11. Wintet—Fiti, 2. yp Fit 1 Stevenson, Sule MH Tile I Tide: Her anal Mae bots, PETRONDAN 1988 BY NO-20882 ISBN 0.689 8LOIS (he) €.650-41019.9 (phd DMOLAK Contents Sparkle Days Christmas Eve Dinner Firelight 5 23 41Sparkle Days It was winter. el gt Winter! =, Henry and his big dog Mudge loved winter, because Henry and his big dog Mudge loved snow. Waren dineThis winter they were still waiting for the first snow. Henry looked out his window every morning. “Not yet, Mudge,” he would say. Henry looked out his window every night. “Not yet, Mudge,” he would say again.He and Mudge put their noses against the window. They watched the snow sparkle. They were ready for a sparkle day. Then one morning = Henry looked out = his window im —_ and he shouted, “Snow, Mudge, snow!”10 When Henry got dressed to go outside, there wasn’t much of Henry to see. He wore snow boots, snow pants, a snow jacket, snow mittens, and a snow scarf. He also wore a snow mask that let only his eyes and mouth show.When Mudge saw Henry in his snow clothes, he barked and barked and barked at the strange creature. Then Henry took off his mask and showed Mudge his face. Mudge wagged his tail and followed Henry outside.want to run. Deny and Mudge » es oe oy . a So, they ran } | in circles | | around the yard. | | ; 14Henry lay down and made snow angels. Mudge lay down and messed them up. He used his nose to dig a little hole. Ah-choo! went Mudge. Snow always made him sneeze.So Henry threw a snowball at him. But Mudge just wagged his tail. “Aw, Mudge,” Henry said, giving him a hug. Henry built an icy hideout, and they were snow spies. There were many snow spies in the neighborhood.After four hours of playing, they went back inside. Henry’s hands were wet and his nose was drippy. Mudge’s paws were wet and his nose was drippy. Henry’s mother wiped Henry’s nose. Henry’s mother wiped Mudge’s nose. Then she put a blanket on the floor, and Henry and Mudge curled up on it and fell asleep. Oh, did they love sparkle days. 21Christmas Eve Dinner ¥ Every Christmas han Henry’s house sparkled. It sparkled silver. It sparkled gold. It had a Christmas tree that sparkled gatuillions of colors. SThe day before Christmas, Ss Henry’s mother liked Henry’s mother and father to bake the cookies. always cooked a lot. Henry helped her cut them They cooked all day, and the house smelled wonderful. and decorate them. She gave a lot of them away. 24 25Henry’s father liked to bake the turkey. He took a long time “dressing” it. Henry thought this was a very funny idea. He told Mudge, “Dad’s dressing the turkey.” Then he giggled and giggled. 27In the evening it was time for Christmas Eve dinner. This dinner was always fancy. They always ate in the dining room instead of the kitchen. And they liked to dress up. Even Henry. It was the only time he liked fancy things. 2930 Henry’s father put a bright red cloth on the table. He put shiny white dishes on top of the cloth. Henry’s mother brought out two green candlesticks. She put them in the center of the table.Meee Y Os oe ae -—=— _ oo fa g ( 3B Ze + o wv 3 us as 8 ses es 5 s= Ss ey. 3 oa & Feo Be ew 2Ee,5 SERRE caeeeteRz eH Sea & $667 toe e £8 8k 6 2 F285 > e oO EG GT FO Es 2Ege EB S08 €R EFHis mother lit the candles, and they began eating. But while they ate, they could hear Mudge crying. He hadn't been invited to the fancy Christmas Eve dinner“ because he was a dog. He had to stay in Henry’s room. Poor Mudge, thought Henry. Poor Mudge, thought Henry's parents. They all looked at each other. Then Henry’s father smiled. He got up to find an extra plate.Henry and his mother and his father filled the plate with food. Then Henry let Mudge out of his room. When Mudge came to the table, Henry's father put the plate of food on the floor.Tt was his first fancy dinner by candlelight. “Merry Christmas, Mudge!” said Henry. Henry’s mother held one of the candles beside the plate. Mudge looked at Henry Mudge wagged his tail and began eating and sneezed some as fast as he could. fancy turkey on him. It was his first fancy dinner And they laughed about that in the dining room. all night long.On winter nights Henry and Henry’s parents and Mudge loved to take walks. They loved to see the warm lights in the houseswe They loved to see the winter stars i = in the sky. tee | : They loved to see S35 iy the sparkle of the moon on.the.white yards. v4 Ps > aN Es “as fi ) 7 = Cees bp: a oS og € Re r - 3 é \ a” ? Ld iste “ZH ta CH 4 a= ¥ S af ce 8 They felt happy » A on these walks. a > oe Mudge never stopped wagging. vi One night they even saw a shooting star. “Make a wish,” said Henty’s mother. 43Henry’s father wished for peace on earth. Henry’s mother wished for her favorite basketball team to win. Henry wished for chocolate pudding every day for the rest of his life. They all wondered what Mudge wished for. “Probably for half ty, / wie of my chocolate pudding,” ye said Henry. < yh After their walk, they loved coming home to their fireplace. Henry’s father and mother sat on the couch, hugging. Henry and Mudge lay on the floor. 45On a winter night, Henry and Henry’s father and Henry’s mother and Henry’s big dog Mudge “I live in Oregon with my son, Nate, and our two dogs and one large ‘West Virginia, I was surrounded by hound dogs and barn cats. “When I grew up and found myself raising a boy and dogs, t. [have always loved pets. Raised in the country in Iwas inspired to write the Henry and Mudge stories. [know all about cold shivers, big tests, happy cats, and wild winds. And especially big drooly lovable dogs. —Cynthia RylantHenry and his 180-pound dog Mudge are best friends forever, And in this fifth book of their adventures, they share the joys of winter. Ready-to-Read books offer children a world ies at four different reading levels: + More-complex stories + Varied sentence structure ‘* Paragraphs and short chapters Visit Henry and Mudge at www.henryandmudge.com A Ready-to-Read Book/Classle Story iii ALADDIN PAPERIACKS. i]