T alent Show
Written by
Ana Siqueira
Debasish Sarma
Illustrated by
COVER to COVER
Erika and the Not-So-Talented
T alent Show
Written by Ana Siqueira
Illustrated by Debasish Sarma
Student Contributor: Emma Landin
Erika read every kind of book there was. Humorous books, mysteries, science fiction, and nonfiction stories filled Erika’s bookshelves.
She didn’t like sports, she despised dancing, and she couldn’t carry a tune.
Reading was all she loved to do.
One day at school, Erika was finishing her favorite book when she saw her classmates jumping up and down with excitement.
“Look,” Alejandra said, “there’s a talent show this weekend.
I’m going to enter. Are you?”
Erika frowned and replied, “No way. I don’t have any talents.”
Her teacher, Mrs. Rodriguez said, “Everybody has a talent.”
“Not me,” said Erika.
“I sing like a hoarse hippo, I dance like a clumsy cow, and my drawings look like spooky scribbles with slimy sticks.”
“That’s too bad,” Mrs. Rodriguez said. “You would love the prize. The winner gets a gift card to the mall. You could buy the new chapter book series you want.”
Erika’s eyes opened wide. She had been saving forever to get those new books, and she would need at least three more months of savings to buy them.
That’s way too long—an eternity, she thought. Getting them now would be a dream come true.
“I’ll think about it,” Erika told her teacher. “ If I can find my talent.”
Erika went on a quest to find her hidden talent.
Could she do magic tricks?
Not without revealing her secrets.
Could she jump rope for an hour without stopping? Absolutely not!
Could she whistle a tune like a bird?
Almost, except she kept spitting in all directions.
Erika sighed. “I have absolutely no special talent at all.”
The next day, Erika watched as her friends practiced for the talent show.
Alejandra danced, sang, and did a split.
Samuel built a gigantic castle with his blocks that didn’t fall.
Yun decorated the most gorgeous cake.
Why am I the only untalented one in the class?
Erika thought.
She decided to watch some videos to learn a talent like her friends.
First, Erika tried tap dancing, but her feet sounded like a stomping stampede.
Next, she tried to hula hoop, but her hips shook like a trembling tower.
And juggling . . . what a disaster! She knocked into Samuel’s block castle and . . . CRASH!
Erika didn’t have an ounce of talent in her.
“How about you help me with my makeup for the show?” Alejandra asked.
“I don’t know if I have a talent for putting on makeup, but I’ll try,” Erika said.
Erika worked on Alejandra’s face: eyeshadow, blush, and lipstick.
When Alejandra looked in the mirror . . .
“I’m a clown!” Alejandra shouted with a smile.
They all laughed so hard.
If only laughing could be a talent, Erika thought.
“I am the most untalented person in the universe,” Erika said.
“You just need to practice something,” Samuel said.
“All I do every day is read,” Erika replied. “That’s not a talent.”
That night, Erika helped put her little brother Logan to sleep. She read him a story she wrote about jumping monkeys, running children, and banana cakes.
Logan clapped and laughed as Erika read the story over and over. Soon he fell asleep.
My only talent is to put my brother to sleep, Erika thought. Not good for a talent show.
Erika really wanted to buy those chapter books.
But the talent show was a big no-go.
“I have no chance to win,” she told herself, and she didn’t want to be humiliated in front of the whole school.
The next morning, she had to let Mrs. Rodriguez know about her decision.
When class started, Erika raised her hand. She was about to tell Mrs. Rodriguez what she had decided about the talent show, but Mrs. Rodriguez didn’t call on her.
Instead, she said,
“Today we will write a story together as a class.
Who has an idea?”
Erika quickly shot her hand up higher. She had many great story ideas.
“A knight is on a quest in a land far away. Suddenly, he encounters a giant,” she blurted out. “The giant is chasing him and is about to gobble him up. The knight tricks the giant into finding a special treasure in the mud. The giant jumps into the puddle and gets stuck. And the knight escapes!”
Erika’s classmates oooed and aaaahed at her idea.
“Wow, Erika,” Mrs. Rodriguez said. “You have a real talent for stories.”
At that moment, an idea came to Erika.
Could that work in the talent show?
“I think I will sign up for the talent show after all,” she said. 23
Saturday night came, and it was time for the talent show.
Samuel built his enormous castle.
Alejandra danced, sang, and did a split like a professional performer.
Yun decorated a cake. It looked so beautiful and yummy.
And then it was Erika’s turn. She trembled and shook onstage.
What if this talent is not a real talent?
Erika took a deep breath. Then she began her story . . .
Once upon a time, a dragon wanted to befriend a beautiful princess. But the princess was afraid. She hid in her tower and called out to the brave knight to fight the dragon.
When the knight saw the dragon, he stared into its eyes. The dragon crept closer, breathing smoke through its nose.
When they were face to face, the knight raised his sword. The dragon’s mouth filled with flames.
“Aw, you’re so cute!” the knight said. “I can’t fight you.”
The dragon sighed. “Oh, thank goodness. I was hoping we could be friends.”
The princess came down from her tower and hugged the dragon. “Me too!”
When Erika finished, she looked at the audience. Everyone sat in their seats staring at her until . . . And the friends played happily ever after.
They gave her a standing ovation!
Erika smiled and bowed.
The audience really loved her story!
When the talent show was over, Erika and her friends came back onstage.
It was time to announce the winner!
“First place goes to . . . ”
Yun! Erika clapped and cheered for Yun. She didn’t mind not winning or waiting to buy her books. She could make up her own stories anytime she wanted.
And she had won something bigger . . .
She had finally found her talent.
This book is dedicated to young readers everywhere. May you thrive in your wondrous reading journeys.
www.mascotbooks.com
Reading Partners Cover to Cover Erika and the Not-So-Talented Talent Show by
Ana Siqueira
©2025. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form by any means electronic, mechanical, or photocopying, recording or otherwise without the permission of the author.
For more information, please contact: Mascot Kids, an imprint of Amplify Publishing Group 620 Herndon Parkway, Suite 220 Herndon, VA 20170
info@mascotbooks.com
ISBN: 979-8-89138-739-3
Printed in the United States Erika and the Not-So-Talented Talent Show illustrated by Debasish Sarma
COVER to COVER
About this Book
All Erika loves to do is read and make up stories. When her school holds a talent show, Erika is convinced she doesn’t have any talent to participate in the show. That is, until she learns the prize is a gift card to her favorite book store! Erika tries all kinds of activities to discover her talent but soon realizes the best way is just to be herself.
About Reading Partners
Reading Partners is a national early literacy nonprofit that partners with schools, community-based organizations, volunteers, and families to provide individualized tutoring and other evidence-based literacy support for students striving to read at grade level. The Reading Partners Cover to Cover series is for readers of all levels with a focus on instructional practices rooted in the science of reading. The stories in the series include and celebrate a broad range of affirming characters and experiences. The Reading Partners team recognizes that learning to read is a civil right, and we aim to ensure students have the resources necessary to foster lifelong literacy skills and confidence to actualize their limitless potential. We envision a future where every reader has the skills they need to read a book from cover to cover and then reach for another!
