Jungle Surprises by Patrick Lewis

A Great Gusting Mystery
    â€œWhat a perfect day to stay inside and work on my next poem,” said Teeny. “Now if I could just find my lucky writing hat.”

    Â 

    â€œWhere did you see it last?” asked Tugg.
    â€œYesterday it was on the porch but it is not there now,” Teeny said.
    â€œLet’s play detectives, Teeny,” said Tugg. “I’m sure we will be able to find it.”

    Â 

    When they came to the waterhole, Pinkie Flamingo looked very sad.
    â€œI am sorry but I have not seen your lucky hat, Teeny,” she said, “and my prettiest feather has disappeared.”
    â€œFollow us then,” said Tugg, “on the great hat and feather hunt.”

    Â 

    â€œHave you seen Teeny’s hat?” Tugg asked Flap the Elephant.
    â€œNo,” said Flap. “Have you seen my umbrella? Elephants are supposed to have good memories, but I forgot where I put it.”
    â€œOkay, Flap,” said Tugg. “We will help you find your umbrella.”

    Â 

    â€œWill you help me too, Tugg?” asked Margie Barge. “I set my inner tube on the shore of the waterhole, and the next thing I knew, it was gone!”
    â€œJoin us, the Jungle Detectives, Margie,” said Tugg. “We are happy to help another friend and together we will find our treasures.”

    Â 

    So they walked up and down the jungle.

    Â 

    And they asked everyone they met.

    Â 
    But no one had seen a thing.

    Â 

    Everyone started to bicker and argue about who had taken the missing items.
    Just as they were ready to give up and go home, a big gust of wind blew up.
    To escape the blustery wind, they all huddled under a tall tree.

    Â 

    Â 

    Tugg shouted, “Look up there! You have solved the mystery at last, you brilliant detectives!”
    He said, “Now we know who took Teeny’s hat and Pinkie’s feather and Flap’s umbrella and Margie’s inner tube.
    â€œIt was that sneaky fellow, the wind.”

The Zig-Zag Race
    Teeny and Tugg had just finished dinner when they heard hoofbeats outside their window.
    Zig and Zag, the wacky zebra brothers, were running to the waterhole.

    Â 

    Teeny shouted, “Hey, which one of you is faster?”
    The brothers stopped and looked at each other. “Who knows?” they said.
    â€œWhy don’t we have a race to find out?” said Teeny.

    Â 

    â€œI hope Zag wins,” said Teeny. “What about you, Tuggboat?”
    â€œThey are both fast runners, Monkeyface,” said Tugg. “May the best zebra win.”
    Rory Lion gave the starter roar, and the zebras were off!

    Â 

    First one, then the other took the lead.
    Zig, Zag, Zig, Zag.
    Back and forth, neck and neck.
    Teeny got dizzy just watching them.
    The whole jungle cheered wildly.

    Â 

    It was a very close race, but at the finish line, one zebra pulled ahead of the other.
    Teeny cried, “Who won?”
    â€œI am not sure who won,” said Tugg.

    Â 

    They ran over to where the zebra brothers stood, out of breath.
    Tugg yelled, “Wait! Who won?”
    â€œI did!” answered both brothers.
    â€œBut you two look exactly the same. Who is who?”

    Â 

    â€œThat’s easy,” said one brother. “I have black stripes on white.”
    â€œAnd I have white stripes on black,” said the other.
    â€œBut you both have the
same
black and white stripes,” said Teeny.
    â€œYou also look exactly alike
from behind,
” said Tugg.

    Â 

    Just then Dr. Giraffe walked up.
    â€œOnly a zebra can tell one zebra from another,” he said. “But try this simple trick to tell Zig from Zag: Whenever you meet them, just tell a funny story.”
    â€œA funny story?” asked Teeny.

    Â 

    Turning to Zig and Zag, Teeny began, “Once upon a time there were two wacky zebra brothers ...”
    Right away the zebras started laughing out loud.
    â€œThere, you see?” said Dr.