6-65. Bobby the Bookworm

Bobby loves to read books. He reads every chance he gets. He reads fiction and nonfiction. He reads history and biography. Bobby also loves mystery and science fiction. But Bobby's favorite books are about science, especially plants.
     All of the kids in school call Bobby bookworm. But they don't always mean it in a nice way.
A lot of kids tease Bobby and call him bad names. But Bobby tries to ignore them.
     One day Bobby's class went on a field trip to Rockbridge Park. Bobby was in a group with five other students. One of them, named Kyle, made fun of Bobby all the time.
     "Where's your book, bookworm?" Kyle said.
     "Class, stay in your groups, please!" Mrs. Murphy called.
     The class followed Mrs. Murphy and the park ranger as they walked into the forest. The ranger explained about the different types of trees and plants.
     Suddenly Bobby felt someone grab his bag.
     "Hey, bookworm! What's this?" teased Kyle.
     "Give me back my book!" said Bobby.
     "Come and get it!" said the boys.
     Bobby wanted his book, so he ran after Kyle and Frank. Kyle and Frank ran deeper and deeper into the woods. Bobby finally caught up with them.
     "Give me back my book!" demanded Bobby.
     "My pleasure!" said Kyle. He threw the book on the ground.
     "Let's get out of here," said Frank.
     "Which way do we go?" asked Kyle.
     "Uh, Kyle, I think we're lost," said Frank.
     "I'm getting cold," said Kyle.
     "I'm hungry," Frank whined.
     "Me too. And my feet are killing me," complained Kyle.
     Bobby quietly took out some candy. He gave it to Frank and Kyle.
     "Hey, thanks, bookworm," said the boys.
     "Hey, look! Let's eat those berries!" said Kyle.
     "No! Don't eat those! They're poisonous!" shouted Bobby. "That's the red baneberry. The flower petals are white and it smells like a rose. But the berries and roots are poisonous," said Bobby.
     The three boys walked and walked. They looked for the rest of the class.
     "I'm getting tired," cried Frank.
     "Let's sit here and rest," said Kyle.
     "Wait! Don't sit there!" shouted Bobby. "That's poison ivy!"
     "Gosh, how do you know so much about plants?" asked Frank.
     "I read about them in books," answered Bobby. "Come on, I'll show you some other poisonous plants and berries."
     Bobby led the two boys along the path. They stopped in front of bushes and trees. Bobby explained about the different flowers and plants. The boys were very interested in what they saw. Soon they forgot they were lost!
     "Wow! You're so smart," said Kyle.
     "I wish I knew as much as you do," said Frank.
     "It's not because I'm smarter than you," said Bobby. "It's because I read about plants in books."
     Suddenly they heard a familiar voice. "Kyle! Frank! Bobby!" It was Mrs. Murphy. She was with the park ranger.
     "Are you okay?" asked Mrs. Murphy.
     "We were very worried because the forest has many dangers and poisonous plants!" said the park ranger.
     "Bookworm . . . I mean, Bobby is an expert on plants, so we were okay," said Kyle.
     "Well, you boys are in big trouble! You will go to the library and do research on all the poisonous plants in North America. Then you will present it to the class," said Mrs. Murphy.
     The three boys looked at each other and smiled.
     "What are you smiling about?" asked Mrs. Murphy.
     "Nothing, Mrs. Murphy. We're sorry!" the boys said together.
     From then on, every Saturday, the three friends went to the library. Kyle and Frank soon realized why Bobby loved to read so much. They decided to start a club. They called it The Bookworm Club.