Excerpts: 'The Araboolies of Liberty Street'

The Pinches spied on their neighbors all day long. They had nothing better to do. They hated anything that looked like fun. They got upset when Joy hung upside down from a maple tree. They got angry when Katie crept around like a tiger. They got furious when Jack spun around until he felt dizzy. And whenever the Pinches got upset, or angry, or furious, the General would grab his bullhorn and shout "I'll call in the army!" and the fun would have to stop, right then and there.

When summer came, the Pinches ordered the children to stay inside.

Then one day the Araboolies came to Liberty Street and moved in next door to the Pinches. They gave the General and his wife a lot to look at.

For one thing, there were dozens and dozens of them: children and moms and dads and aunts and uncles and grandparents and great-grandparents and great-great-great-grandparents. For another, the Araboolies had pets. They had anteaters and porcupines. Elephants, walruses and sloths. They even had a wok, a few popaloks and a wild barumpuss!

Mrs. Pinch sucked in both cheeks. "Disgusting!" she hissed.

"I'll call in the army!" boomed the General.

Some of the children colored the houses and pasted animal cut-outs in the windows. Others decorated the trees and painted the sidewalks. They put toys everywhere and dragged furniture outside. They worked all night long. The last thing they did was to paint one another's faces.

The Araboolies snored through it all.

It was almost dawn when they were finished. Liberty Street had never looked wilder or more colorful, and the children were very proud.