Fox and Crow Are Not Friends Read online

  Text copyright © 2012 by Melissa Wiley Cover art and interior illustrations copyright © 2012 by Sebastien Braun

  All rights reserved. Published in the United States by Random House Children’s Books, a division of Random House, Inc., New York.

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  Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

  Wiley, Melissa. Fox and Crow are not friends / by Melissa Wiley ; illustrated by Sebastien Braun.

  p. cm. — (Step into reading. Step 3) Summary: Continuing Aesop’s fable, Fox and Crow tussle over pieces of cheese, but Mama, one of the three bears, outwits them both. eISBN: 978-0-375-98574-4 [1. Foxes—Fiction. 2. Crows—Fiction. 3. Bears—Fiction. 4. Characters in literature—Fiction.] I. Braun, Sebastien, ill. II. Title. PZ7.W64814Fox 2012 [E]—dc23 2011043350

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  v3.1

  For Kelly and Sean, who are good friends most of the time —M.W.

  To Graham —S.B.

  Title Page

  Copyright

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Fox and Crow

  did not like each other one bit.

  You might have heard about their very first fight.

  It started over a piece of cheese.

  Crow found it first.

  She flew to a tree to eat it.

  Fox spotted

  the big hunk of cheese.

  He loved a nice bit of cheese.

  Crow was about to gulp it down.

  Fox had to act fast.

  “Hello, Crow!” he called.

  “How are you on this fine day?”

  Crow did not answer.

  Fox tried again.

  “How fine you look

  up there in that tree!

  Your feathers shine

  in the sun.

  You make the sky

  look more blue.

  What a lovely bird you are!”

  Crow was pleased.

  She gave her wings a proud flap.

  Still, she did not answer.

  Fox tried again.

  “I bet your song is

  as fine as your feathers.

  I would love to hear you sing!”

  Crow could not resist.

  She opened her beak and sang.

  “Caw! Caw! Caw!”

  The cheese tumbled down.

  It fell right into Fox’s mouth.

  He gobbled it up, lickety-split.

  He licked his lips and laughed.

  Crow glared at Fox.

  “You had better watch out, Fox,”

  she said.

  “You may be a sly fox,

  but crows are very smart.

  You took my cheese.

  I will get even with you!”

  “You don’t scare me, Crow,”

  said Fox.

  Crow dived at Fox,

  but Fox ran into the bushes.

  From that day on,

  Fox and Crow were enemies.

  Crow had a plan.

  The plan needed three things—

  a piece of string,

  a piece of cheese,

  and a good smell.

  The string was easy to find.

  Crow tied one end to a tree.

  She looped the other end and

  placed it on the ground.

  The cheese was harder to find.

  Crow put the cheese

  inside the loop of string.

  She hid the string under leaves.

  Now all she needed

  was a good smell.

  But that was the hardest part.

  Crow could not carry a smell.

  She saw some fish frying

  in a pan over a fire.

  But that was not a smell

  she could carry.

  She saw a skunk

  spraying her perfume.

  Crow could carry that smell,

  but she did not want to!

  She flew away fast.

  Then Crow found

  a very good smell.

  She spied three bowls of stew.

  The smell of stew

  would be perfect

  for Crow’s plan.

  But she could not carry a bowl.

  The stew in the big bowl was too hot.

  The stew in the middle bowl was too cold.

  The stew in the little bowl

  was just right.

  Crow could wear that stew.

  She poured it right over her head.

  It ran all over her feathers.

  Crow flew past Fox’s den.

  The good smell flew with her.

  Fox sniffed.

  The smell made

  his mouth water.

  Fox came out of his den.

  Crow flew from tree to tree,

  leading him along.

  Fox did not see her.

  He was following the good smell.

  Crow led Fox to the cheese

  and the hidden loop of string.

  When Fox saw cheese

  instead of stew,

  he was surprised..

  But Fox liked cheese even

  better than he liked stew.

  He could not wait to gobble it up.

  Crow pulled on the string.

  The loop closed tight around Fox’s paw.

  He was trapped!

  Crow flew down

  and Fox flew up.

  Fox yelled.

  Crow laughed and laughed.

  Fox dropped the cheese

  right into Crow’s open beak.

  “Delicious!”

  she said.

  “Thank you, Fox,

  or that tasty snack.

  I do love a nice bit of cheese.”.

  Fox shook his paw in the air.

  “I’ll get even with you, Crow!”

  he shouted.

  “No one outfoxes a fox!”.

  That was the second fight.

  The third fight was even worse.

  Fox fumed.

  He did not like flying up

  in the air. He did not like losing.

  He did not like Crow

  He plotted a way to get even

  with her.

  For his plan, he needed three things—

  a scarecrow,

  a piece of cheese,

  and a birdcage.

  Step one was easy.

  There was a scarecrow

  in the cornfield.

  Step two was a little harder.

  He did not know where Crow kept

  finding all that cheese!

  He looked in burrows

  and nests

  and dens.

  Finally he found

  a nice piece of cheese

  in a little cabin.

  Fox found some wood

  and built a cage.

  Fox’s plan was perfect.

  He went to the cornfield.

  He hid the birdcage

  in a haystack.

  He hid himself

  in the scarecrow’s clothes.

  He held out the cheese

  and waited.

  Soon, along came Crow.

  She spotted the cheese

  in the scarecrow’s hand.

  Crow landed

  on the scarecrow’s hand.

  Just as she took the che
ese

  in her beak, the scarecrow’s hand closed

  on her leg.

  “I’ve got you now, Crow.

  I told you I would get even

  with you!”

  cried Fox.

  Crow could not get away.

  Fox shoved Crow

  into the birdcage

  and locked it tight.

  He grabbed the cheese

  from Crow’s beak.

  He was about to gobble it up

  when a net fell over

  both Fox and Crow.

  “Help!” yelled Fox.

  “Help!” yelled Crow.

  I’ve got you now,

  Fox and Crow!”

  said Mama Bear.

  “That will teach you

  not to steal my cheese.”

  Fox and Crow looked

  at each other.

  They were both sly.

  They were both smart.

  But they were not as sly or smart

  as Mama Bear.

  Fox and Crow are still enemies.

  But now they do not fight

  each other.

  They have to work together,

  making cheese for Mama Bear.

 

 

  Melissa Wiley, Fox and Crow Are Not Friends

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