Joe Sims reading The Cave at Bristol Museum

Joe: Oh, my goodness, how lucky am I! Today I’ve been invited to come to the iconic Bristol Museum to read a story, and guess who’s going to be there? No one, it’s going to be me and it’s going to be you. Ready to go inside? Let’s do it.

Look at this, this Alfred. He used to be at Bristol Zoo. There loads of stuff here. I can see giraffes, I can see Springboks, I can see parrots, I can see absolutely everything, and I can even see hippos over there. This place is absolutely amazing. If you’ve never been to Bristol Museum, when we’re allowed back out of our houses promise me, you’ll go.

Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls. Thank you so much for joining me here today. I’m going to read one of my favourite stories, for you, because at the moment, we’re in lockdown and we have to stay in our houses. That won’t always be the case but for now what I loved about reading, was that I could be transported to lands and meet lots of beautiful characters and do wonderful interesting things, those words paint pictures in your mind, and that’s why it’s difficult to begin with when we start reading we start learning to read, but stick with it, and it doesn’t matter where you are in the world, you can always be transported to these worlds, just by picking up a book and looking at it. When I was younger, one of my favourite books, was a book called The Magic of the Faraway Tree by Enid Blyton. And I remember thinking that these guys would come to a tree, and then climb it and at the top of the tree there was all these amazing worlds, and it would change every time. So, they climb to the top of the tree, and it always be a different adventure and I thought that was amazing. Also, there was one land, where there were these cookies and you bit into them and guess what, guess what it tasted like? It tasted like whatever you wanted it to taste like. So, every time you bit into this cookie it could taste like candy floss, it could taste like chocolate, it could taste like caramel, it could taste bogies if you wanted it to. But why would you want to? It could taste however you wanted. And that is the beauty of reading it transports your imagination to a million different places and this is why I’ve been going to schools, and going to people’s homes, all across Bristol, and deliver these books for an amazing group called Stories at Home. And stories at Home want to encourage you to pick up books and do lots of reading so you can start on your own adventures and light a fire in your own imaginations. So I’m going to read a book today, and you promise me that you’re going to read a book, with your families, with your brothers, with your sisters. Will you tell me what you’re reading, and what it’s like? Promise? I’ll start.

The first book I’m going to read is one called The Cave and this is by a man called Rob Hodgson, who not only wrote the thing but he did all the pictures as well. He’s an illustrator and an author, can you imagine that. What a talented guy and this is a very fun book. Are you sitting comfortably? Then we’ll begin.

The Cave by Rod Hodgson

There is a cave. A cave that is home to a little creature. A little creature that never leaves its cave… …. because of a wolf.

‘Why don’t you come out to play little creature’ asks the wolf. ‘I’m sure we’d be very good friends.‘

‘No, thank you,’ replies the little creature. ‘I already have two friends.’

So the little creature stays home.

The wolf comes back day after day.

‘Why don’t you come out to play, little creature?’ asks the wolf.

‘I bet you’re so bored in there, all cooped up inside your cave.’

‘No, thank you,’ replies the little creature. ‘Only boring creatures get bored.’

So the little creature stays home.

The wolf never leaves.

Not even to go to sleep.

But the little creature never comes out.

It doesn’t want to climb a tree…

or play ball…

or pick flowers…

and it definitely doesn’t want to feed the birds.

‘Why don’t you come out to play, little creature?’ asked the wolf eventually.

‘I’m getting hungry now!

‘I mean… er… you must be getting hungry n—’’

‘Aaarrrggghhbzzzzzurgh!’

The little creature sniffs.

‘Now you mention it,

I am a little hungry.’

‘Well,’ says the wolf.

‘I have the most tasty doughnut here with your name on it! Why don’t you come and get it?!’

‘Does it have sprinkles?’ the little creature asks.

‘Yes!’ shouted the wolf.

And with a stretch and a shuffle, the little creature…

Comes out to play!

‘I do love donuts,’ says the bear.

‘But I’m still a little hungry…’

‘Why don’t you come out to play, little creature?’ asks the bear.

‘I’m sure we’d be very good friends.’

The end. What a brilliant story and you know what? We’re giving away one of these stories. So, click on the link below, if you want to join in.

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