A Boy, A Dog, A Frog and A Friend

by Mercer and Marianna Mayer

1 One day a boy went fishing with his dog and his frog.

He sat by the side of a pond and patiently waited for a fish to bite.

2 All of a sudden he felt a bite!

3 It had to be a big fish because it bent the pole and started to pull the boy into the water.

4 The fish was so strong it yanked the boy and his pole right into the pond. The dog and frog jumped in after the boy.

5-6 Well, it turned out it wasn’t a fish at all. It was a turtle! The turtle swam across the pond with the boy’s fishing pole and began to walk away with it. When the boy saw what was happening, he yelled at the turtle. “You come back here with my fishing pole!”

7 The dog swam over to the turtle and started to bark and paw at him.

8 While the dog distracted the turtle, the boy took back his fishing pole. The turtle didn’t like the dog barking at him so he bit the dog’s paw.

9 The boy tried to help his dog by pulling him away from the turtle, but the turtle wouldn’t let go.

10 The boy put the dog over his shoulder and started to walk back across the pond. The stubborn turtle still wouldn’t let go of the poor dog’s paw.

11 Finally, when they were in the middle of the pond, the turtle couldn’t hold on any longer and he fell into the water.

12 The boy carried the dog out of the pond and the frog climbed out too. The boy was happy the turtle was gone. So was the dog who licked his sore paw.

13 The frog and the dog waited for the boy while he packed up his fishing gear. The dog’s paw was still sore so he licked it some more while his tail dangled in the water.

14 Oh no! The turtle snuck up on the dog and grabbed his tail.

15 The turtle yanked the dog right into the water! The dog struggled to stay afloat. The boy didn’t know what to do.

16 While the boy started to take his clothes off, the frog jumped toward the water as hard as he could. The turtle pulled the dog farther and farther under the water.

17 The boy hurried to take off his clothes. The frog dove in the water but the dog was now all the way under.

18 The boy was almost undressed when he saw the dog come swimming back to shore.

19 The dog was wet and weary from his underwater struggle. The frog looked under the water for the turtle.

20 They were all shocked to see the turtle floating on his back. The turtle had died!

21 The boy used a stick to pull the turtle out of the water.

22 The boy and the frog became angry at the dog. They thought he had drowned the turtle.

23 The boy held the turtle in his arms and sadly they all left the pond.

24 The boy laid the turtle on the ground and started to dig a hole in which to bury him.

25 While the boy was busy digging the hole, the frog noticed that the turtle has his eyes open.

26 The dog saw the turtle too. The turtle was not dead after all! In fact, he was heading straight for the boy’s fishing pole – again!

27 The turtle picked up the fishing pole and brought it to them. He wanted to be their friend.

28 The boy picked up the turtle and raised him in the air. They were all very happy.

29 So off they went with their new friend.