Plus get our latest book recommendations, author news, and competitions right to your inbox.
Table of Contents
About The Book
The Junior Monster Scouts face off against a tricky sphinx in the hilarious sixth chapter book of the Junior Monster Scouts series!
The Junior Monster Scouts are going to host an exchange scout, a mummy staying at Castle Dracula for the summer. But when their guest’s pet sphinx gets loose, it starts causing trouble by turning people who can’t answer its riddles to stone! Can the scouts and the mummy capture the sphinx, answer its riddles, and convince it to turn everyone back to normal?
The Junior Monster Scouts are going to host an exchange scout, a mummy staying at Castle Dracula for the summer. But when their guest’s pet sphinx gets loose, it starts causing trouble by turning people who can’t answer its riddles to stone! Can the scouts and the mummy capture the sphinx, answer its riddles, and convince it to turn everyone back to normal?
Excerpt
Chapter 1 CHAPTER 1
“IT CAME!” VAMPYRA SQUEALED. SHE was very excited. She was so excited that she ran in circles. Three circles to be exact. That is something you should keep in mind for the next time you are so happy that you cannot contain yourself—run in a circle, three times. Not four. That’s too much, and you’ll probably just get dizzy.
Franky waved down at Vampyra from the window of Doctor Frankenstein. He was helping his grandfather with a new experiment.
“Is that what I think it is?” Franky called down.
“All the way from the desert sands, halfway around the world!” Vampyra said. She waved the postcard back and forth. “Hold on, I’ll be right up.”
Vampyra closed the mailbox. Then she wiggled her toes, snapped her fingers, and closed her eyes. POOF! Vampyra turned into a bat. She flew straight up and through the laboratory window of Castle Dracula.
“Ta-da!” she said, handing Franky the postcard.
“Wow!” said Franky. “This is the coolest!”
“Looks hot to me,” said Doctor Frankenstein, peeking over their shoulders. The postcard showed a great big pyramid in the middle of a desert. “All that sand? And sun? Do you know how warm I’d be in my lab coat if I lived there?”
“No, Grandpa,” said Franky. “?‘Cool’ means that it’s something really awesome. It’s, um… It’s neat. You know, like something really great.”
“If you say so,” Doctor Frankenstein said with a shrug.
“We have to show Wolfy,” said Vampyra.
“Can I go out and play, Grandpa?” Franky asked.
Doctor Frankenstein lifted his goggles from his face. “Would I be a ‘cool’ grandfather if I said yes?”
“The coolest!” Franky said.
Doctor Frankenstein winked at Franky and Vampyra. “Go on, then,” he said. “I can take care of the rest of this contraption.”
Franky wasn’t sure what Grandpa was building, but it had a lot of springs and bolts and bubbling tubes and coils.
“Thanks, Grandpa!” said Franky.
He and Vampyra raced all the way down the spiral steps and through the main hall and out the front gate of Castle Dracula.
“Wolfy, look!” said Vampyra.
Wolfy had just been on his way to visit his friends.
“Is that from Neveen?” he asked.
“Just arrived,” said Franky. “She’s going to be here in two weeks!”
Wolfy howled in delight, and then he and Franky and Vampyra put their paws and claws together and danced in a circle. Three circles. Not four. That just would have made them dizzy.
Why were they so happy? What the heck was going on?
The Junior Monster Scouts were about to have an exchange scout come stay with them for the summer. They would get to have a Monster Scout from another place visit Castle Dracula while they learned about each other’s customs and culture. It was very exciting, and the first time they’d ever had the chance to do it. Neveen was their soon-to-be-guest’s name, and she was from a great big pyramid in an even bigger desert that was halfway around the world!
Isn’t that cool?
“IT CAME!” VAMPYRA SQUEALED. SHE was very excited. She was so excited that she ran in circles. Three circles to be exact. That is something you should keep in mind for the next time you are so happy that you cannot contain yourself—run in a circle, three times. Not four. That’s too much, and you’ll probably just get dizzy.
Franky waved down at Vampyra from the window of Doctor Frankenstein. He was helping his grandfather with a new experiment.
“Is that what I think it is?” Franky called down.
“All the way from the desert sands, halfway around the world!” Vampyra said. She waved the postcard back and forth. “Hold on, I’ll be right up.”
Vampyra closed the mailbox. Then she wiggled her toes, snapped her fingers, and closed her eyes. POOF! Vampyra turned into a bat. She flew straight up and through the laboratory window of Castle Dracula.
“Ta-da!” she said, handing Franky the postcard.
“Wow!” said Franky. “This is the coolest!”
“Looks hot to me,” said Doctor Frankenstein, peeking over their shoulders. The postcard showed a great big pyramid in the middle of a desert. “All that sand? And sun? Do you know how warm I’d be in my lab coat if I lived there?”
“No, Grandpa,” said Franky. “?‘Cool’ means that it’s something really awesome. It’s, um… It’s neat. You know, like something really great.”
“If you say so,” Doctor Frankenstein said with a shrug.
“We have to show Wolfy,” said Vampyra.
“Can I go out and play, Grandpa?” Franky asked.
Doctor Frankenstein lifted his goggles from his face. “Would I be a ‘cool’ grandfather if I said yes?”
“The coolest!” Franky said.
Doctor Frankenstein winked at Franky and Vampyra. “Go on, then,” he said. “I can take care of the rest of this contraption.”
Franky wasn’t sure what Grandpa was building, but it had a lot of springs and bolts and bubbling tubes and coils.
“Thanks, Grandpa!” said Franky.
He and Vampyra raced all the way down the spiral steps and through the main hall and out the front gate of Castle Dracula.
“Wolfy, look!” said Vampyra.
Wolfy had just been on his way to visit his friends.
“Is that from Neveen?” he asked.
“Just arrived,” said Franky. “She’s going to be here in two weeks!”
Wolfy howled in delight, and then he and Franky and Vampyra put their paws and claws together and danced in a circle. Three circles. Not four. That just would have made them dizzy.
Why were they so happy? What the heck was going on?
The Junior Monster Scouts were about to have an exchange scout come stay with them for the summer. They would get to have a Monster Scout from another place visit Castle Dracula while they learned about each other’s customs and culture. It was very exciting, and the first time they’d ever had the chance to do it. Neveen was their soon-to-be-guest’s name, and she was from a great big pyramid in an even bigger desert that was halfway around the world!
Isn’t that cool?
About The Illustrator
© Ethan Long
Ethan Long is the acclaimed author and illustrator of many books for children, among them the Theodor Seuss Geisel Award winner Up, Tall, and High. He is also the creator of the animated, Emmy Award–nominated series Tasty Time with ZeFronk, which aired on Disney Junior.
Product Details
- Publisher: Aladdin (March 15, 2023)
- Length: 128 pages
- ISBN13: 9781534487451
- Ages: 7 - 10
Browse Related Books
Resources and Downloads
High Resolution Images
- Book Cover Image (jpg): Curse of the Crummy Mummy! Trade Paperback 9781534487451
