For millions of years, the Noan have been Earth’s best-kept secret—but now an accidental discovery has put them in peril.

​​​

JackieToo and the Planetary Peril is a fun, fast-paced eco-fantasy for middle grade readers. The completed, edited manuscript is approximately 38,000 words. ​​​​​​​

​

The following is an excerpt from Chapter 1:

 

On the first morning of spring in a den high in the mountains, JackieToo stretched and yawned. Morning? Already? she asked herself. Nope, she answered. It is way too early to wake up. Lots more time to sleep! She instinctively knew that the sun had yet to rise. Something had woken her up, but she didn’t want to know about it, so she settled back into the pitch-black comfort of her nest. She pulled her warm layer of moss over her shoulder, returned to nibbling on a twig growing from her scalp, and snuggled into her soft pillow of mushrooms. But then—her nose twitched. And twitched again. She sat upright, smashing her head on the ceiling of her nest. She massaged her noggin, a mop of black curls, vines, and baby plants, and sniffed, sniffed again, and then took one long big inhale. “Gross!” The stench of human was unmistakable. 

​

Rubbing her nose to rid herself of the stinky human smell, JackieToo snapped into action. Or tried to. She had grown taller during her long hibernation, and older—this spring she would be about twelve in Noan Time. Her knobby elbows, knees, wrists and heels scratched the earthen interior of her nest. But within moments, JackieToo was in a defensive crouch. She threw back her head, bared her teeth, and cried, “Dededededededededeee!”

Her warning cry reverberated out of her den and over the surrounding cliffs, mountains, hills, and valleys. Within the land lassoed by her cry were other Noan nests built of soil, fungi and plants. The conical nests ranged in size from teeny tiny to gigantic (depending on the size or design sense of the single occupant, or on the size of the clan). Sometimes, the nests were built in caves, but most were built in dens and burrows dug under roots of massive trees or into the soil of a hillside, inside rotting logs, or under fallen trees. 

​

Her cry travelled at Earth Speed along the deep layers of the forest floor and over the steep hills of the mountain range. It did not wake hibernating bears and marmots, but it alerted wolves and other wildlife. And it woke up every one of the Noan inside these nests. Most of them just rolled over and tried to keep sleeping: It would not be the first time that JackieToo had cried out for help, for absolutely no reason at all. But some, like WhalesEar—one of JackieToo’s closest friends—could not wait to get moving. 

​

WhalesEar was tall and as broad as a massive tree trunk, but his likeness to a whale had given him his name. His big, wide nostrils looked like a whale’s blowhole and his huge ears like its tail. He was lying wide awake when he heard his friend’s cry. He sprang up in bed but forced himself to stay in his nest. He had to wait. And he hated waiting. But JackieToo would soon relay details of her situation, which would be: 

​

This is Really Really Bad! 

OR

Sorry! Nothing to Worry About! Go Back to Sleep.

​

WhalesEar’s black hair—threaded with vines, leaves and fungi—had grown long during hibernation. He tucked it behind his huge ear, listening hard for any news from JackieToo and secretly wishing for the Really Really Bad update. Not because he wanted anything bad to happen to his friend. But because he had been awake for a long time, anxious to get up and do something. WhalesEar needed a mission. However, of all the Rules on Waking, this was the most important: 

​

Never ever leave your nest until sunrise on the first day of spring! 

​

For more  on the publication date or to inquire about reading a review copy, please use the form below.