Anna Marie and the Crazy Gobbles

One morning a little girl named Anna Marie wakes up because a terrible ice storm has broken her window. When a calico cat brings kittens through the broken window, Anna Marie can't wait to show her mommy. But her parents aren't home! She thinks they must be with her grandmother, Toesie. The cat agrees to accompany Anna Marie on her walk to Toesie's house which is five blocks away, as long as her kittens can stay and rest in Anna Marie's bed. They set off for Toesie's, but all the ice from the storm melts, and the bridge across the Rock Creek is flooded. Charles agrees to lead Anna Marie through the woods to a better bridge where they hope they will be able to cross.

Something unnatural is happening along the Rock Creek. First a freakish ice storm breaks Anna Marie's window! Then, a calico cat with three kittens seeks shelter from the storm in Anna Marie's bed. When the kittens fall asleep, Anna Marie and the cat set off on a journey to find Toesie's house, where they hope to find Anna Marie's parents, but all the ice from the storm melts and the bridge across the Rock Creek is flooded. They have many exciting adventures, as they travel along the Rock Creek looking for a higher bridge, including an apple copter that almost hits a baby bird learning to fly, a snake with a pair of goggles that allow him to see the true nature of things, and a very unnatural war between an army of frogs and an injured coyote. A really fun book for anyone who likes adventures while walking through the woods eating cookies.

The author lives beside the Rock Creek west of Portland Oregon, where the creek wends its way between Aloha, Beaverton, and Hillsboro.