Thistle and Petey

"Thistle and Petey" is about a young rooster saving young ducks and one of the ducks (Petey) becoming attached to the rooster. The barnyard animals try to figure out how to get Petey to stop being Thistle's shadow. They suggest a disguise, doing things that Petey doesn't like doing, and other approaches that don't work. One proposed solution was even hiking to a haunted bridge at the fringe of the Great Dismal Swamp. In the end, Thistle finds that he is friends with Petey and that he should have talked to Petey in the first place.

"Thistle and Petey" is the story of a young, curious rooster who one night saves the farmyard baby ducks from being kidnapped by young hooligans. Thistle wakes the mama duck, helps chase the boys away and, thereby, becomes a barnyard celebrity. There is, however, an unintended consequence. Petey hits his head when he falls down; and thereafter, to the consternation of Thistle, Petey follows Thistle everywhere -- like a little brother or sister following an older sibling. The barnyard animals meet to come up with a way to get Petey not to be Thistle's shadow. None of the solutions really work; but, in the end, Petey says they should have just talked about the problem. The "problem" solves itself and the answer, as pointed out by Toad the barnyard horse, was always right under their beaks. By the end, Thistle and Petey have the huggiest of all hugs! This book is good for read-alouds to 3- and 4-year-olds and for 6- to 9-year-olds beginning to read chapter books.

Robert Wasilewski is a retiree who has managed investments, coached athletic teams, substitute taught in high school, and taught Economics at a local community college. He grew up as an Army brat, and his family eventually settled in Kensington, MD. Today, having retired to Hightop Mt. in the VA Blue Ridge, his favorite pastime is gathering the grandchildren outdoors and swapping stories with them.