“Do you think he will wander back?”
“No. Usually they just wander and wander. We will have to look for him.”
Everyone went out in the garden. The fence was broken, and Drooly was gone.
“We will track him,” Captain Noodlekugel said.
“Maybe he left a trail of drool,” Nick said.
“That is disgusting,” Maxine said.
“He does not drool that much,” Captain Noodlekugel said. “We should look for things he has squashed with his feet.”
“Later we will repair the fence,” Mrs. Noodlekugel told Fuzzface.
“Look in the trees. Sometimes bears climb trees,” Captain Noodlekugel said.
“We do not see him in any trees,” Nick and Maxine said.
“Look for hollow logs,” Captain Noodlekugel said. “Bears like to hide in hollow logs.”
“There are no hollow logs,” Nick and Maxine said.
“You know, there are tall apartment buildings all around us,” Fuzzface said. “There are no spaces between the buildings for him to wander through.”
“Then he is hiding nearby!” Captain Noodlekugel said. “Drooly! Where are you, Drooly? Come, Drooly! Nice Drooly!”
Captain Noodlekugel, Mrs. Noodlekugel, Nick, Maxine, Fuzzface, and Oldface walked in all directions, whistling and calling. “Drooly! Drooly! Where are you, Drooly?”
“How can something as big as a bear hide in an area this small?” Captain Noodlekugel asked.
“Is not hide,” Oldface said. “Is gone.”
“How can he be gone? There are buildings all around.”
“Gone out same way you came in,” Oldface said. “How you came in?”
“Let me think,” Captain Noodlekugel said. “How did I come in? That is a good question. How did I come in?”
“The Captain has a poor sense of direction,” Mrs. Noodlekugel said. “That is why he gets lost at sea.”
“We came in through our apartment building,” Nick and Maxine said.
“Of course you did!” Captain Noodlekugel said. “Clever children! Show us how you did it!”
Nick and Maxine showed Captain Noodlekugel the little door in their apartment building, and everyone crowded through.
They found Drooly sitting in the little room with Mike the janitor. They were eating stewed tomatoes out of cans and listening to the radio.
“Is this your bear?” Mike the Janitor asked. “He is a nice bear.”
“Thank you for looking after my bear,” Captain Noodlekugel said.
“You will sleep in the garden tonight,” Captain Noodlekugel told Drooly. “Mrs. Noodlekugel will lend you some blankets. Do not wander away. In the morning we will go somewhere. I have a new plan.”
“What is your new plan?” Mrs. Noodlekugel asked.
“I have decided to go back to sea. I will take Drooly with me. He will make a fine able-bodied sea bear.”
“Yes, that is a good plan.”
That night Nick and Maxine struggled with the mice, trying to tuck them in.
“It is interesting staying with Mrs. Noodlekugel,” Maxine said.
“Yes, it is,” Nick said. “I wonder what will happen tomorrow.”
DON’T MISS THE FIRST TWO BOOKS ABOUT MRS. NOODLEKUGEL!
Hardcover ISBN 978-0-7636-5053-7
Paperback ISBN 978-0-7636-6452-7
Also available as an e-book
Hardcover ISBN 978-0-7636-5054-4
Paperback ISBN 978-0-7636-7658-2
Also available as an e-book
www.candlewick.com
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either products of the author’s imagination or, if real, are used fictitiously.
Text copyright © 2015 by Daniel Pinkwater
Illustrations copyright © 2015 by Adam Stower
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, transmitted, or stored in an information retrieval system in any form or by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, taping, and recording, without prior written permission from the publisher.
First electronic edition 2015
Library of Congress Catalog Card Number 2014945448
The illustrations were done in ink.
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visit us at www.candlewick.com
Daniel Pinkwater, Mrs. Noodlekugel and Drooly the Bear
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