PREVIEW: Seven Towers of Wonder Vol.II: Hope

th e sev en towers of wonder The Tower of Hope

t he se v en tow er s of won der t he tow er of hope Volume 2

THE SEV EN TOW ER S OF WONDER Stories of Virtue Compiled & Retold by bill gor dh With Drawings by john hutton the tow er of hope Volume 2 thor n willow pr ess 2 01 2

For Jenny, Cody and Rachel; and in memory of my mother and father, Gwen and George Gordh. bil l g or dh

To Becky, Alice & Doug Karo; and in honor of my teacher, Walter Crane (1 8 45-19 15 ) joh n h u t ton

c op y r igh t 2 0 1 2 t hor n w il low pr e s s , lt d.

procl a m ation from the k ing a nd queen of thor n w illow woods Let it be known that the following volumes were put forth on paper by the Royal Scribe and illustrated by the Master Illuminator. They recount the adventures, discussions, and stories collected by Possum and Raccoon. The stories can be found in the Seven Towers of Wonder erected by Possum and Raccoon with the assistance of many friends in Thornwillow Woods. Upon the discovery of these story-filled towers, the king and queen of Thornwillow, recognizing their value to wonderers, wanderers, thinkers, seekers, dreamers, and readers throughout the world, have overseen the creation and distribution of these books.

c on t e n t s Volume 2 the tow er of hope Our two daring adventurers, Possum and Raccoon, set out on a story-collecting mission. The goal of discovering and securing seven stories to fulfill their dream of a Tower of Hope leads them down another path through Thornwillow Woods where they encounter a dazzling array of taletellers who offer them the following adventurers:

The Woodcutter’s Dream (Eastern Europe)

15

The Boulevard of Somersaults ( Mexico)

25

Magpie and Milk ( Turkey)

35

Hansel and Gretel ( Germany)

45

The Peaceful Night ( Scotland)

59

The Happy Man’s Shirt ( Italy)

65

Pandora and the Beautiful Box ( Greece)

77

I

won der …” s a id pos su m one day while he and Raccoon were lying on their backs gazing at the beautiful Tower of Courage.

“Wonder what?” asked Raccoon.

“I wonder if we can build another tower?”

“You wonder?” asked Raccoon. “Of course we can build another tower! Shall we?”

“Of course!” cried Possum. “Let’s get started.”

Possum jumped up excitedly, ready to get to work. A worried look crept onto his face. “Oooooo, I sure hope we can find seven more good stories,” said the concerned possum. Then he added, “And what should they be about?”

“Hope!” said Raccoon. “You said, ‘I hope we can find seven stories.’ Hope is a perfect theme for our next tower–hopes and dreams! Possum, you came up with it again!”

Possum was a little confused about what his contribution had been but still pleased that they had their theme.

13

So off they went in search of stories for their Tower of Hope.

They set out on a different path from the one they took on their quest for stories of courage. The Thornwillow Woods were huge, and there seemed to be an endless choice of possible trails to follow. Each was its own adventure. They had not traveled far when they heard some chopping. They followed the sound to find their old friend, Rachel the woodcutter. Rachel was a friend of all the animals and worked for the king and queen of Thornwillow. She loved the stories in the Tower of Courage and was excited to hear about plans for a new tower.

Rachel smiled. “Hopes and dreams,” she said. “I have a story for you about a dream and about following that dream wherever it may lead. Would you like to hear it?”

“Sure,” chorused Possum and Raccoon. “Tell us!”

14

the woodcu t ter’s dr e a m A Tale From Eastern Europe