The Adventures of Stumpy and Longtail

About the Book

“All of them are fun, and they are all for us”, says Stumpy to Longtail, commenting on whatever Mr. Friendly was working on at the time. The Adventures of Stumpy and Longtail follow the antics of two squirrels that have become best friends in the Garden that belongs to Mr. and Mrs. Friendly. The Friendlys have been putting out corn, seeds, and peanuts for the little wild creatures that live in the area known as the Acreage, in West Palm Beach Florida for as long as they have lived there. Stumpy has lived in the garden since the Friendlys moved in and Longtail was born nearby about two years ago. Longtail moved into the little ‘Swiss Chalet’ styled house that the Friendlys built, while Stumpy continues to keep his nest in the Bamboo trees. They have many friends that come and go, many of whom just visit for a particular season. Their friend Bunny also lives in the garden with a burrow under the shed in the back, and other hiding places around the garden. Mr. Friendly likes to build different things for the squirrels to play on or with. They have bridges between the trees to run across, some made of planks, others just made of rope. They have a few different lodges that have been provided in different areas of the garden, like the little house that Longtail lives in. He has built different places for them to find the food that they put out. Then there is the big swing that he hung in the bamboo trees, and the string game that he invented for them to play with. Mrs. Friendly likes to invite the animals up close to her, and she entices them with special secret piles of their favorite food, and has made up a calming friendly noise to call them when she puts the food out. She likes to sit outside and watch what they do because they make her laugh. She is always giving names to the new ones that come to visit the garden. Mrs. Friendly will watch the animals for a while and then create a name that matches their personality or their look. Sometimes she just names them for the types of animal they are if there is only one of them, like Bunny. When there were more rabbits visiting the garden she had other names for them, but it seams like Bunny is the only one left visiting the garden for now. As for the birds, since she can’t tell them apart very easily, they end up getting called the same thing like Screech, the blue jay and Red the woodpecker, because there must be a flock of 20 or so blue jays and many woodpeckers. She didn’t even attempt to name the cardinals! Stumpy and Longtail like to chase each other around in the garden and watch what is going on in the neighborhood, sometimes danger comes into the garden in the form of a dog or the Hawk. Longtail is very inquisitive and playful, since he is so young, and has to be taught by Stumpy some of the facts of life in the garden. Stumpy likes to help Bunny as well, she is so meek that some of the other visitors to the garden don’t treat her very nicely and Stumpy helps her stand up to them. When a new pair of Ducks, Woody and Peeps, move into the garden and take over Longtail’s house, Stumpy has to comfort Longtail after they fail in their attempt to scare them away. Stumpy and Longtail spend most of their time playing with the swing that Mr. Friendly hung for them and watching to see what he will do next. They have come to enjoy Mrs. Friendly’s company and especially the extra peanuts that she puts out just for them to eat on the patio. So come and enjoy what Stumpy likes to say, “All of it is fun, and it’s all for us!”

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