John Beach

When all the punctuation marks in Mr. Wright's class decide to take a vacation, the students discover just how difficult life can be without them.

Grandpa helps his favorite grandpup to avoid scratching his chicken pox by telling how he once had to fight off an octopus during a terrible storm.

When Barney gets chicken pox, Grandpa tells him a funny story to keep his mind off his itching.

"A beautifully realized city inhabited by musical instruments. A search for one's place in the world provides the storyline: The narrator, a drum, feels like an outcast because he alone--unlike his family and friends--cannot play a melody. Like all kids growing up, he must find out where he fits. The narrator, a drum, wanders the streets of Coelho's vividly realized city of musical instruments--where even the birds sprout miniature trumpets from their...

When Mr. Wright's students express a dislike for silent letters, the offended letters decide to teach them a lesson by going on strike.