Oasis de Inglés

Que trata del libro de terror escrito por R. L. Stine

Lectura en inglés justo a tiempo para el mes de octubre. Lector, ¿estás listo para el horror? It Came from Beneath the Sink! (¡Lo Encontramos Debajo Del Fregadero!) es un libro de terror de la serie de libros Goosebumps (Escalofríos en español) escrita por el autor estadounidense R.L. Stine. Es una historia fácil de leer, divertida e ideal para iniciarse en la lectura.

¿Crees que Kat empujó a su padre? O tal vez la culpable sea la esponja malvada? 😱🧽

🧽Chapter 5🧽

Mom, Daniel and I gathered together around Dad. His eyes flickered open. He blinked. “Uh?” he muttered. “What happened?” Dad shook his head and leaned on his elbows to get up. “I think I’m fine, kids”, he said in a quivering voice. Dad tried to stand up, but he collapsed to the floor. “My ankle. I think it could be broken”, he groaned in pain. We helped Dad make it to the sofa, I stood at his side and Mom stood at his other side. “Ouch, it really hurts”, he complained. He rubbed his ankle gently.
“Daniel, bring a little ice in a towel for your father”, said Mom. “Kat, go get a cold drink.” “Now, honey”, whispered Mom, drying Dad’s forehead, “tell me what happened.” When I returned running to the living room with a glass of cold water, Mom and Dad had the strangest expression in the world written on their faces. “Kat”, said my mom angrily, “did you push your father?” “Why did you push the ladder?” asked Dad, rubbing his ankle. “Huh? What?” I blurted out. “I didn’t push you! I would never do that!” “We’ll talk about this later, young lady”, said Mom sternly. “Right now, I have to take care of your father.” She leaned over him and placed the ice pack on Dad’s hurt ankle. I felt like my face was becoming red. How could Dad think that I had pushed him? I lowered my gaze and I realized that I still had the sponge. And I noticed something else. Something strange and frightening. Instead of beating gently, the sponge vibrated in my hand. It vibrated wildly. Ba-bum, ba-bum, ba-bum. It vibrated… as if someone had turned on a blender to the highest speed. The sponge was practically purring with excitement. Gu-ahh. Gu-ahh. I sat down on the floor of the foyer, trembling. “What’s happening here?”, I asked myself. Daniel thought that I had pushed him. And later, Dad had said the same thing. They both thought that I had pushed them. Why? Ba-bum, ba-bum, ba-bum. The sponge continued pulsating and it felt hot in my hand. I felt a chill of fear. Suddenly, the sponge seemed to be something terrifying. I didn’t want to have that thing close to me… or my family. I ran out in a hurry. I found a big, metal trash can close to the garage. I lifted the lid. I put the sponge in. I firmly closed the lid. On the way back to the house, Mom called me into the living room. “I think your Dad’s ankle is only twisted”, she said. “Now, tell me what happened.”

It was Thursday, I was sitting at my desk and writing the names of the guests invited to my birthday party. There were only two days left until the big day. I had to give Mom the list today, so that she could call the other parents for Sunday. I heard Daniel chatting with Carlo while they came up the stairs loudly. “Look at it… it looks like an old sponge. But it’s alive!” explained Daniel. “I bet it’s a prehistoric creature, like a dinosaur or something like that.” I jumped up and I ran out of my room. “Hey!” I shouted at Daniel. “What are you doing with that?” I pointed to the sponge that he had in his hands. “I threw that thing away.” “I found it in the trash can”, Daniel replied. “It’s way too interesting to throw away. Right, Carlo?” Carlo shrugged his shoulders, his coarse, black hair grazed his shoulders. “It looks like an old sponge. What’s so special about it?” “It’s very special” I replied. “And that thing is definitely not a sponge.” I took out a bulky book from my new book shelf. “Look through the encyclopedia”, I explained. “What it says about sponges.” “You should have left it in the trash, Daniel.” “You really should have left it.” “What does the encyclopedia say?” asked Daniel anxiously, getting comfortable on the bed. He had the sponge in his hands. “It says that sponges don’t have eyes”, I answered. “And that they can only live in the water. If they stay out of water for more than thirty minutes, they’ll die.” “You see, Carlo? It’s not a sponge”, Daniel declared. “Our creature has eyes. And has been out of water since we found it.” “Well, I don’t see any eyes. And I don’t think it’s alive”, said Carlo without conviction. Daniel jumped up from the bed and offered the sponge to his friend. “Take it. Look at it.” Carlo handled the sponge carefully. His big, brown eyes got even bigger. “It’s hot! And… and… it moves. And it’s writhing! It’s alive.” Carlo turned around to look at me. “But if it’s not a sponge, then… then, what is it?” “I don’t know yet”, I admitted. “Maybe it’s some type of supersponge”, Daniel said. “So powerful that it can live on land.” “It could be a cross between a sponge and some other animal”, added Carlo, looking at the sponge. “Can I take it to my house for a bit? It will really get Sandy’s attention.” Sandy is Carlo’s babysitter. “I’ll bring it right back”, promised Carlo. “No way, Carlo”, I quickly said. “I think I’ll keep the sponge here until I know exactly what it is. Here… inside this old hamster cage.” “Please”, begged Carlo, petting the sponge on its wrinkled head. “See? I get along well with it.” “There’s no way! I replied. “Daniel, tell your friend to stop bothering me.” “Okay, okay”, muttered Carlo. “Listen, what does this thing eat?” “I don’t know”, I replied. “But it seems to do well without eating. Put it in the cage.” Carlo reached the cage and put the creature in it. While he was doing that, an expression of terror appeared on his face. I saw that his hand was trembling. Then, he let out a horrifying cry. “Ow! My hand! It ate my hand!”

Que trata del libro de terror escrito por R. L. Stine.

Lectura en inglés justo a tiempo para el mes de octubre. Lector, ¿estás listo para el horror? How I Got My Shrunken Head (Cómo Conseguí Mi Cabeza Humana Reducida) es un libro de terror de la serie de libros Goosebumps (Escalofríos en español) escrita por el autor estadounidense R.L. Stine. Es una historia fácil de leer, divertida e ideal para iniciarse en la lectura.

💀¡Dos cabezas son mejor que una!💀

🌴💀Chapter 2💀🌴

What I saw was a head. A human head, wrinkled and leathery. Approximately the size of a tennis ball. Its pale and dry lips were stretched out and pulled back into a smile. The neck was sewed up with thick black string. Two completely black eyes looked at me fixedly. A shrunken head… A real shrunken head! I was so shocked, so seriously surprised by finding a shrunken head upon opening the front door that it took me a while to notice the lady who was holding it. She was a tall lady, approximately my mom’s age, maybe a little older. She had short, black hair with gray streaks. She wore a long raincoat that was buttoned-up all the way even though it was a hot, sunny day. She smiled at me. I couldn’t see her eyes. They were hidden behind a pair of big, black-framed glasses. She held the shrunken head by its hair, its thick, black hair. In her other hand she carried a suitcase. “Are you Mark?” she asked. She had a smooth, sweet voice, like an actress in a commercial. “Uhhhh… yeah” I answered, looking fixedly at the shrunken head. They never look so ugly in the photos that I had seen. So wrinkled and dry. “I hope I didn’t surprise you with this thing”, the lady said smiling. I was so eager to give it to you that I took it out of my bag. “Uh… give it to me?” I asked without taking my eyes off the shrunken head which stared at me with those black, glass eyes. They looked more like the eyes of a stuffed animal than the eyes of a human being. “Your Aunt Benna sent it to you”, said the lady. “It’s a gift.” She gave me the head. But I didn’t take it. I had spent all day capturing shrunken heads in the game. However, I wasn’t sure I wanted to touch this one. “Mark… who is it?”, my mom appeared behind me. “Oh… Hello!” “Hi!” replied the lady warmly. “Did Benna write and tell you guys that I was coming?” I’m Carolyn Hawlings. I work for her. On the island. “Oh… Goodness! exclaimed Mom. “Benna’s letter must have gotten lost. Come in. Come in.” She pulled me backwards so that Carolyn could enter the house. “Mom, look what she brought for me”, I said pointing to the little green head that was hanging by its hair in Carolyn’s hand. “Gross!” shouted mom, putting a hand on her cheek. “It’s not real, is it?” “Of course it’s real!” I shouted. “Aunt Benna wouldn’t send a fake one, would she?” Carolyn went into the living room and put down her suitcase. I took a deep breath. I gathered up some courage. And I stretched out my hand toward the shrunken head. However, before I could touch it, Jessica came in… and she took it from Carolyn’s hand. “Hey!” I shouted, catching up to her. She got away quickly, laughing, with her red hair flying behind her. She carried the head with both her hands. Then she stopped. Her smile went away. And she stood looking at the head horror-stricken. “It bit me!” Jessica screamed. “It bit me!”

🌴💀Chapter 3💀🌴

I stood there breathless. Mom squeezed my shoulder. Jessica started to laugh; it was one of her dumb jokes. She tossed the head from one hand to another and smiled at me. “You’re a dummy, Mark. You believe anything.” “Just give me back my head!” I shouted angrily. I leaped across the room and grabbed the head. She started to pull it to take it from me, but I grabbed it firmly. “Hey… you scratched it!” I screamed. It was true. I held the head close to my face to examine it. Jessica had put a long, white scratch on the right earlobe. “Jessica… please” begged Mom, crossing her arms and lowering her voice. That’s what Mom does when she’s about to burst. “Behave. We have a visitor.” Jessica crossed her arms and pouted. Mom turned toward Carolyn. “How’s my sister Benna?” Carolyn took off her glasses, and put them in the pocket of her raincoat. She had silvery eyes. She looked older with her glasses off. I could see hundreds of tiny wrinkles around her eyes. “Benna is doing well”, she replied. Working hard, too hard. Sometimes she disappears into the jungle for a couple days. Carolyn sighed and starting unbuttoning her raincoat. “I’m sure you know that work is Benna’s life” she continued. “She spends all her time exploring the jungle of Baladora. She wanted to come too, but she couldn’t leave the island. Instead, she sent me. ” “Well, it’s very nice to meet you, Carolyn”, Mom said warmly. “I’m sorry I didn’t know you were coming, but any friend of Benna is more than welcome.” She took Carolyn’s coat. Carolyn wore khaki-colored pants and a short-sleeve shirt of the same color. Her clothes seemed to really be an outfit for exploring the jungle. “Come, sit down”, Mom said to her. “What would you like to drink?” “Coffee would be good”, replied Carolyn. She started to follow Mom into the kitchen, but she stopped and smiled at me. “Did you like your gift?” I looked at the wrinkled, leathery head I had in my hands. “It’s beautiful!” I exclaimed. That night before going to bed, I put the head on my dresser; I brushed back its thick, black hair. Its forehead was dark green and wrinkled like a prune. The black, glass eyes looked forward fixedly. Carolyn told me that the head was more than a hundred years old. I leaned against the dresser and I looked at it attentively. It was hard to believe that at one time it belonged to a real person. Yuck! “How could that person have lost their head?” I asked myself. “And who decided to shrink it? And who had preserved it after they had shrunk it?” I wished Aunt Benna were here. She would have explained everything. Carolyn slept in the guest room that was downstairs. We had been sitting in the living room, talking about Aunt Benna all night. Carolyn described the work that Aunt Benna is carrying out on the jungle island and the amazing things she is discovering there, in Baladora. My Aunt Benna is a pretty famous scientist; she’s been in Baladora for more than 10 years. She studies the animals of the jungle and also the plant life. I loved listening to Carolyn’s stories. It was as if my computer game, Jungle King, had become real. Jessica wanted to keep playing with my shrunken head, but I didn’t have any intention of letting her. She had already scratched its ear. “It’s not a toy. It’s a human head”, I told my sister. “I’ll trade you two toy balls for the head”, offered my sister. I mean was she crazy? Why would I trade a priceless treasure for some toys? Sometime I worry about Jessica. At ten o’clock at night, Mom sent me to bed. “Carolyn and I have a lot of things to talk about”, announced Mom. I said goodnight and headed upstairs. I put the shrunken head on my dresser and I put on my pajamas. The dark eyes of the head seemed to flash for a second when I turned out the light. I got in bed and got under the covers. The silver light of the moon shined into my room through the window, and I could clearly see the shadowy head that sat on my dresser. “It’s got such a hideous smile”, I thought shivering. “Why does it have that scary look on its face?” I answered my own question: “Mark, you wouldn’t be smiling either if someone had shrunken your head!” I fell asleep looking at the dreadful little head. I slept deeply, without dreaming. I don’t know how much time I slept. But at some time in the night, a terrifying whisper woke me up. “Mark… Mark…”

Que trata del libro de terror escrito por R. L. Stine

Lectura en inglés justo a tiempo para el mes de octubre. Lector, ¿estás listo para el horror? Egg Monsters From Mars (Los Monstruos Ovíparos De Marte) es un libro de terror de la serie de libros Goosebumps (Escalofríos en español) escrita por el autor estadounidense R.L. Stine. Es otra historia fácil de leer, divertida e ideal para iniciarse en la lectura.

¿Qué fue primero, el huevo o el monstruo?

🥚Chapter 1🥚

My sister, Brandy, wanted an egg hunt for her birthday. And she always gets what she wants. She flashes her smile, that smile that makes her dimples show, and puts on her baby face, opens her green eyes and she plays with her red hair. “Please? Please? Can I have an egg hunt at my birthday party?”. There’s no way Mom and Dad could say no to her. If Brandy were to ask for a red, white, and blue ostrich for a birthday present, Dad would be painting it right now in the shed. Brandy is good at getting her way, really good. I’m her older brother, Dennis Johnson. And I’ll admit it, it’s even difficult for me to say no to her. I’m not small nor am I pretty like my sister. I have straight, black hair that falls over my forehead, I wear glasses, and I’m somewhat pudgy. “Dennis, don’t act so serious”. Mom always tells me that. “Dennis is an old soul”, my grandmother Evelyn always says. I don’t actually know what that means, I suppose it means that I am more serious than the majority of twelve-year old kids. Maybe that’s not true. I’m really not that serious all the time, it’s just that I’m curious about a lot of different things: I’m really interested in science, I like studying about insects, plants, and animals. I have an ant farm and two tarantulas in my room, and I have my own microscope. Last night, I studied a snail with it. It’s a lot more interesting than you guys might imagine. I want to be a scientific researcher when I grow up. I’ll have my own laboratory, and I’ll study whatever I want. Dad is a chemist. He works for a perfume company. He mixes substances together to make new aromas, he calls them fragrances. Before Mom met Dad, she worked in a laboratory experimenting on rats. So, both my parents are happy with my interest in science, they encourage me to continue forward. But that doesn’t mean that they give me everything I ask for. If I were to ask my dad for a red, white, and blue ostrich for my birthday, you guys know what he’d tell me? He would say: “Go play with your sister’s!” Anyways, Brandy asked for an egg hunt for her birthday, which is a week before Easter, so it’s not really anything ridiculous. We have a big backyard, it extends all the way until a thin stream. The backyard is full of bushes, trees, and flowers, and also there’s a humongous doghouse , even though we don’t have a dog. There are a ton of places to hide eggs, so Brandy got her egg hunt. She invited all of the kids in her class. Maybe you guys think that an egg hunt couldn’t be something exciting. But my sister thinks so. Brandy’s birthday arrived. It was a hot, sunny day, only a few cumulus clouds were high up in the sky. (By the way, I like studying clouds). Mom headed hastily to the backyard after breakfast, carrying in her hand an enormous bucket of eggs. “I’ll help you hide them”, I told her. “That wouldn’t be fair, Dennis”, replied Mom. “You’re also going to participate in the egg hunt… don’t you remember?” I had almost forgotten. Brandy usually doesn’t want me to be around when her friends are here; nevertheless, now she had said that I could participate in the egg hunt and so could my best friend, Anne Gravel. Anne lives in the house next door, my mom and her mom are best friends. Mrs. Gravel gave my mom permission to hide eggs in her backyard too. So, it was only fair that my friend could take part in the egg hunt too. Anne is tall, really skinny, and has long reddish-brown hair. She’s taller than me; almost a head taller. For that reason everyone thinks she’s older than me, but she’s twelve too. She’s really funny, and is always joking around. She makes fun of me because she says I’m too serious. But I don’t care, I know she’s only joking. That afternoon, Anne and I were in the driveway and saw my sister’s classmates arrive. Brandy gave each of her friends a little straw basket. They were really excited when Brandy talked about the egg hunt, and the girls became even more thrilled when she told them what the grand prize was… one of those expensive dolls called American Girl. Of course, the boys started to complain. My sister should have had a prize that a boy would like. Some of the boys started using their baskets as Frisbees and others started to fight on the lawn. “I was much more sophisticated when I was ten”, I whispered to Anne. “When you were ten, you liked the Ninja Turtles”, replied Anne lifting her eyebrows. “That’s not true!” I protested. “Yes it is, I remember”, insisted Anne. “You would wear a Ninja Turtles t-shirt every day.” I kicked some gravel on the sidewalk. “Just because I wore a t-shirt doesn’t mean that I liked them”, I replied. Anne brushed back her long hair. She laughed, mocking me. I hate when she does that. “You had Ninja Turtles cups and plates at your tenth birthday party, Dennis. And a Ninja Turtles tablecloth and we played something called Throw the Pizza to the Turtle.” “But that doesn’t mean I liked them,” I exclaimed. Three other girls from Brandy’s class arrived running through the grass. I recognized them, they were the Hair Girls, as I called them. They aren’t sisters, but they spend all day in Brandy’s room brushing each other’s hair. Dad moved slowly through the lawn towards them. He had the video camera out. The Three Hair Sisters waved to the camera and shouted: “Happy Birthday, Brandy!” Dad records all of our birthdays, vacations, and important events. He keeps the tapes on a shelf in his office. But we’ve never watched them. The sun was shining. The lawn had a sweet, fresh smell. It was spring and the trees were starting to blossom. “Okay… everyone follow me!” ordered Brandy. The kids lined up two by two and three by three, with their baskets in their hands. Anne and I followed them, Dad walked behind us, filming everything diligently. Brandy guided us to the backyard. Mom was waiting there. “The eggs are hidden all over the place”, announced Mom, waving a hand in the air. In any place you can imagine. “Okay, attention! shouted Brandy. When I count to three, the egg hunt begins! One…” Anne bent down and whispered in my ear: “I bet you five dollars I find more eggs than you.” I smiled. Anne always knows how to make things more interesting. “Two…” “You’re on! I said to her. “Three!” All the kids cheered. The egg hunt had begun. Everyone started to look in the backyard, bending over to pick up eggs, some made progress by crawling on the lawn, others worked as a team, and others looked for eggs by themselves. I turned around and saw that Anne crouched down and was moving quickly toward one side of the shed. She already had three eggs in her basket. “I can’t let her beat me!” I told myself. I got down to work. I passed in front of a group of girls who were around the doghouse and I continue moving. I wanted to find an area to explore alone. A place where I could grab a lot of eggs without having to compete with the others. I ran through some tall grass, heading to the rear part of the backyard, I was completely alone, close to the stream, and I began to search for eggs. I spotted a hidden egg behind a rock, I had to move fast, I wanted to win the bet. I crouched down, I lifted it up and quickly tossed it in my basket, after I kneeled down, I placed my basket on the ground, and I started to search for more eggs. Nevertheless, I jumped up when I heard a scream.

Que trata del libro de terror escrito por R. L. Stine

Lectura en inglés justo a tiempo para el mes de octubre. Lector, ¿estás listo para el horror? It Came from Beneath the Sink! (¡Lo Encontramos Debajo Del Fregadero!) es un libro de terror de la serie de libros Goosebumps (Escalofríos en español) escrita por el autor estadounidense R.L. Stine. Es una historia fácil de leer, divertida e ideal para iniciarse en la lectura.

Al final del tercer capítulo, nuestra protagonista Kat y su hermano Daniel, el mocoso, descubrieron que esa esponja vieja y redonda está viva. Han encontrado a Bob Esponja? 🧽Hoy nos toca leer el cuarto capítulo.

🎃Chapter 4🎃

Ouch! They could probably hear Daniel’s howl of pain a couple of blocks away. That got Mom’s attention. She came in through the back door. “What happened? Who shouted? Did something bad happen?” Mom asked. Daniel came out from under the sink, holding his head. He looked at us with half-shut eyes. “I hit my head on the sink”, he hollered. “Kat pushed me!” Mom kneeled down and put her arm around Daniel. “Poor baby”, she said consoling him. She gave him a gentle pat on the head. “I didn’t push him”, I said. “I didn’t even touch him.” Daniel groaned and rubbed his head. “It really hurts”, he complained. “I’m probably going to have a huge bump.” He looked at me furious. “You did it on purpose! And anyways, it’s not your sponge. It was in the house. So it belongs to all of us!” “It is so my sponge!” I insisted. “What’s your problem? What’s with you, Daniel? Why do you always want what’s mine?” “That’s enough!” yelled Mom, losing her patience. “I can’t believe you two are fighting over a dumb sponge!” Mom turned towards me. “Kat, you’re supposed to be watching your brother, right?” she asked. “And you, Daniel, don’t take things that aren’t yours.” She turned to leave the room. “Not another word about that dumb sponge! Or you’ll both be sorry!” As soon as Mom left, Daniel stuck his tongue out at me and crossed his eyes. “Thanks for getting me in trouble”, he grumbled. He left the kitchen, with Killer following close behind him. Alone in the kitchen, I bent down, put my hand under the sink and took the sponge. “Everyone’s shouting around here”, I whispered to the sponge. “Are you causing a lot of trouble… or no?” I felt a little silly for talking to a sponge. Nevertheless, it didn’t seem to be a sponge after all. “It’s warm”, I thought surprised. “Warm and damp”. “Are you alive?” I asked the wrinkled ball. I closed the palm of my hand gently around it… and the strangest thing ever happened. The sponge began to move in my hand. Well, it wasn’t moving exactly. It was pulsating… gently and pleasantly. Ca-chunk. Ca-chunk. It moved like the plastic heart we used in science class. “Could what I was feeling be a heartbeat? I inspected the thing with great curiosity. I passed my fingertips over the wrinkles that covered it, pulling back the folds of spongy and damp material. “Wow!” I shouted, surprised. Two black and moist eyes looked at me fixedly. I shuddered. Yuck! Gross! “You’re not a sponge”, I thought. “Sponges don’t have eyes, or do they? What are you?” I needed some answers. Fast. But who could I ask? Not Mom. She didn’t want to hear about the sponge. “Dad!” “Dad!” I called him, moving quickly toward the living room. “Where are you?” “Mmmmmf”, he shouted. “Mmmmmf.” “What?” I shouted, running through the house. “Oh, there you are.” Dad was standing on a ladder in the foyer of the house. He had a hammer in one hand and a big roll of black electric tape in the other hand. And a whole bunch of nails in his mouth. “Mmmmmmf”, he murmured. “Dad, uh, what are you trying to say?” I asked him. He took the nails out of his mouth. “Sorry” he groaned. “I have to make this chandelier work. These old wires…” He looked intently at a bunch of tools that were on the floor. “Kat, pass me the pliers. If I can’t manage to do this. I’ll have to call the electrician. Dad is really good at making flowers and grass grow. But when it comes to handyman things around the house, he messes things up. Really often. One time, he tried to fix a ceiling fan… and he caused a power outage in the whole community. “Here you go, Dad”, I passed him the pliers and I held the sponge up. “Look at this”, I said to him. I stood up on my tiptoes so that he could see the sponge up close. “I found it beneath the sink and it’s warm. It has eyes and it’s alive. I don’t know what it is.” Dad looked down from under his baseball cap. “I’ve got to take a look at it”, he said. I put the sponge up higher so that he could reach it. I didn’t see that the ladder was wobbling. Nor did I see that he started to fall. I only saw that the expression on Dad’s face changed. I saw his eyes getting bigger. And his mouth opened wide to let out a surprised shout. As he was falling, he grabbed the ceiling light to stop himself. “No!” The chandelier fell also crashing on his head. Dad went flying off the ladder. He lay stretched out on the floor of the foyer completely motionless. “Mom! Ma… Mom! Mom! I screamed. Come quick! It’s Dad!”

Que trata del libro de terror escrito por R.L. Stine

Lectura en inglés justo a tiempo para el mes de octubre. Lector, ¿estás listo para el horror? How I Got My Shrunken Head (Cómo Conseguí Mi Cabeza Humana Reducida) es un libro de terror de la serie de libros Goosebumps (Escalofríos en español) escrita por el autor estadounidense R.L. Stine. Es una historia fácil de leer, divertida e ideal para iniciarse en la lectura.

🌴💀Chapter 1💀🌴

Have you guys ever played Jungle King? It’s a computer game, and it’s really awesome. Unless you sink in the pit of quicksand or living vines crush you. You have to be fast to swing from vine to vine without letting them wind themselves around your body. And you have to catch the shrunken heads that are hidden under the trees and bushes. If you catch ten shrunken heads, you get an extra life. You need a lot of extra lives in this game. It’s not for beginners. My friends Eric and Joel play Jungle King with me. They’re twelve years old like me. My sister Jessica is eight. She spends all day going around in circles close to where we are when we’re playing, but we don’t let her play. Because she always throws herself into the pits of quicksand. She likes the sound of glup, glup, glup that she hears when her body is sinking. Jessica doesn’t understand the game. “Mark, why can’t we play a different game?” Joel asked me. I know why he wants to stop playing. A red rhinoceros just stepped on him, the most evil of all rhinoceroses. During our summer vacations, Joel, Eric, and I spent all our time upstairs, in my room, on the computer. Whereas Jessica, seated beside the window, read a book. The sunlight fell upon her, making her red hair shine. “Kah-li-ah!”, I shouted upon catching my eighth shrunken head. Kah-li-ah is my jungle cry. It’s a word that occurred to me all of a sudden, I suppose I invented it. My face was five inches away from the computer monitor. I ducked when from behind a fern full of leaves, appeared a bunch of spears flying towards me. “Kah-li-ah”, I threw out my battle cry when I caught another shrunken head. “Let’s go, Mark”, begged Eric. “Don’t you have any other games?”, asked Joel. “What about Crazy Basketball? That’s an awesome game!” “Or Mutant Football?, asked Eric. “I like this game”, I answered, with my eyes fixed on the screen. Why do I like Jungle King so much? I think it’s because I love to swing from vine to vine through the sky. You see, I’m kind of chubby. Actually, I’m short and chubby. I look a little like the red rhinoceroses. And that’s why I think I like being able to swing so high, fly over the ground like a bird. Also because it’s an amazing game. Joel and Eric don’t like the game because I always win. In our first game this afternoon, a crocodile split Joel in half. I imagine that put him in a bad mood. “You guys know what game my dad bought for me?”, asked Joel. “Solitaire Battle!” I got closer to the screen. I had to pass by one side of the biggest pit of quicksand. With one slip, I would sink in the sandy mud. “What type of game is it?” Eric asked Joel. “It’s a card game”, Joel told him. “You know, Solitaire. Except the cards fight against each other.” “Awesome”, responded Eric. “Listen, guys… I’m in a tough spot”. “Don’t bother me, okay? I have to concentrate. I’m right at the quicksand pit.” “But we don’t want to play anymore”, complained Eric. I hung on to a vine. I swung with force. Then I stretched to reach the next one. And then someone hit my shoulder. “Hey!” I saw out of the corner of my eye a few locks of red hair and I knew that it had been Jessica. She hit me again and she burst out laughing. I watched myself falling on the screen. And I sank in the bottomless pit of muddy slime. Glup, glup, glup. I died. I turned around really angry. “Jessica!” “It’s my turn!”, she said with a big smile, showing her teeth. “Now we have to start from the beginning again!”, I announced. “No way”, protested Eric. “I’m going home”. “Me too”, said Joel, adjusting his baseball cap. “One more game!”, I begged them. “Come on let’s go, Mark. We have to go outside”, said Joel, pointing out the shining light of the sun that entered through the window of the room. “Yeah. It’s an excellent day. We should play Frisbee or something like that,” suggested Eric. “Or we should take out our skateboards.” “One more game. After that we’ll go outside”, I insisted. I saw them heading for the door. I really didn’t want to stop playing the jungle game. I don’t know why I like jungles so much. But I’ve been obsessed with them since I was a little boy. I like to watch old movies about jungles on TV. And when we were little, we would pretend that I was Tarzan, the king of the jungle. Jessica always wanted to play too. So we let her be Chita, the talking chimpanzee. She was really good at doing that. Nevertheless, after she became six or seven, Jessica refused to be a chimpanzee. Instead of that she became a full-time nuisance. “I’ll play Jungle King with you, Mark”, she told me after my two friends left. “No way!”, I answered, shaking my head. “You just want to throw yourself in the pit of quicksand” “No. I’ll play like I’m supposed to play”, she promised. “I’ll try to win this time. Seriously.” I was just about to let her play when the doorbell rang. “Is Mom home?” I asked, trying to hear her footsteps. “I think she’s in the backyard”, Jessica responded. So, I went hurriedly to answer the door. Maybe Eric and Joel had changed their mind. Maybe they were back to play another round of Jungle King. I opened the front door. I stood there looking fixedly at the most disgusting thing I have ever seen in my life.

Que trata del libro de terror escrito por R.L. Stine

Lectura en inglés justo a tiempo para el mes de octubre. Lector, ¿estás listo para el horror? It Came from Beneath the Sink! (¡Lo Encontramos Debajo Del Fregadero!) es un libro de terror de la serie de libros Goosebumps (Escalofríos en español) escrita por el autor estadounidense R.L. Stine. Es una historia fácil de leer, divertida e ideal para iniciarse en la lectura.

Al final del segundo capítulo, nuestra protagonista, Kat, y su perro fiel y miedoso, Killer, habían encontrado una vieja y sucia esponja debajo del fregadero. Pero las esponjas no son peligrosas. ¿O sí? Hoy nos toca leer el tercer capítulo.

🎃Chapter 3🎃

“Uh? What is it, Kat?” shouted Daniel. I just stood there shocked, looking intently at the little sponge. “Maybe my eyes are playing a joke on me”, I murmured. “It’s so weird!” “Come on, Kat!” insisted Daniel. “What is it?” I inspected the sponge a little more. “Wow!” I gasped. My eyes weren’t tricking me. The round sponge was moving in my hand, gently and slowly, inward and outward, inward and outward at a lazy rhythm. As if it were breathing! Nevertheless, sponges don’t breathe. Or do they? This one was definitely breathing! That was a fact! I could even hear its shortness of breath: Gua-ah. Gua-ah. “Daniel! I don’t think this is just a sponge”, I stuttered. “I think it’s alive!” I chucked it into the cabinet beneath the sink. I must admit. I was a bit scared. My brother put his hands on his hips. “That is a really bad joke”, he mocked. “But, Daniel… I started to say. “I’m not going to fall for that, Kat.” “It’s an old sponge”, he insisted smiling. “An old, dirty sponge that probably has been there for a hundred years.” “Okay, don’t believe me!” I exclaimed. “When I’m famous for having discovered this thing, I won’t say you’re my brother.” Mom walked in carrying a pile of winter coats. I knew that she would believe me. “Mom!” I shouted. “The sponge! It’s alive!” “Okay, sweetie”, she murmured. “Only a couple more things to carry.” “Now, where did I put that box with the silverware?” My mom was acting as if she hadn’t even heard me! “Mom!” I started again, in a louder voice this time. “The sponge! Beneath the sink! It’s breathing!” She ignored me and continued walking through the kitchen; then, she left out the backyard door. Nobody cared about my amazing discovery. Except Killer. He seemed really interested. Maybe too interested. Killer lowered his neck, put his head inside the cabinet, looked fixedly at the sponge… and growled a deep growl. Grrrr. Grrrr. Why was he growling again? Killer touched the sponge with his damp nose. He gave it a shove and continued sniffing it. He turned to look at me for a moment, with an expression of surprise on his dog face. Grrrr. Grrrr. Killer opened his mouth and grabbed the sponge with his teeth. “Hey, that’s not food!” I shouted, grabbing him by the collar and taking him out of the kitchen sink cabinet. “That could be an important discovery.” I turned toward my brother. “You see, Daniel? Killer knows that it’s alive”, I insisted. “I’m serious. It’s not a trick.” “Come closer… I promise you’ll see it breathe.” Daniel smiled with satisfaction as if he didn’t believe me. Nevertheless, he stuck his head inside the cabinet. “Hey, Wow! You might be right”, he admitted. He came out of there and looked at me. “I think it’s alive! And I also think… it’s mine!” After saying that, he crouched down and went inside the cabinet to grab the sponge. “No way!” I protested. I grabbed him by the back part of his shirt and I pulled him. “I saw it first.” “The sponge belongs to me!” He broke free and crouched down again. “Finders keepers, losers weepers!” he shouted. I was going to grab him again. But before I could even touch him. Daniel let out a hair-raising, spine-chilling, terrifying scream of pain. 😱🧽

Que trata del libro de terror escrito por R.L. Stine

Lectura en inglés justo a tiempo para el mes de octubre. Lector, ¿estás listo para el horror? It Came from Beneath the Sink! (¡Lo Encontramos Debajo Del Fregadero!) es un libro de terror de la serie de libros Goosebumps (Escalofríos en español) escrita por el autor estadounidense R.L. Stine. Es una historia fácil de leer, divertida e ideal para iniciarse en la lectura.

¡Qué susto me llevé cuando al final del primer capítulo, esa garra peluda y oscura sujetó la mano de Kat. ¿Sobrevivirá nuestra protagonista? ¿Podrá escapar de las garras de la criatura? ¿Qué pasará? ¿Quién sabe? Por eso tendremos que seguir leyendo. Hoy nos toca leer el segundo capítulo. 😱

🎃Chapter 2🎃

“Daniel! You scared me to death!” I shouted. I gave him a jab in the back. Laughing uncontrollably, my brother took off the stupid rat costume that he had insisted on packing. “You should’ve seen your face!” he shouted. “You know what? I’m going to start calling you Scaredy-Kat!” “Ha, ha. Very funny” I replied looking up. Did I mention that Daniel also thinks he’s the king of jokes? Suddenly I remembered what my brother was supposed to be doing. “Dad asked you to find Killer. Where is he?” “I didn’t have to find him.” Daniel replied mockingly. “He was never lost.” “What do you mean?” I asked. “I tied him up in the basement.” he said proudly. “While you were on the porch, I came in through the side door and I hid under the kitchen sink.” “You really are a true rat!” I exclaimed. I heard a gentle, odd tap on the linoleum floor. “What is that noise?” I asked. Daniel’s mouth opened wide. “Oh no it’s a real rat!” he screamed. “Kat look, watch out, move!” Without even thinking, I jumped on top of a chair, at the same time that… Killer came running into the kitchen. Daniel let out a loud laugh. “You fell for the same trick twice!” he was so proud of himself. I pounced on my brother, ready to tickle him. “Prepare to die!” I shouted. “Stop! Help! No!” he gasped. “Kat, please. Stop, please. No… I can’t… take it!” “Do you give up?” I asked. Daniel nodded. “Yes!” he said panting and laughing. “Alright”, I said generously. “You can get up now.” “Thanks!” he said. “Hey, what’s Killer doing over there?” “No way I’m falling for one of your tricks again”, I declared. Nevertheless, when I looked back, the cocker spaniel seemed to be interested in something that was in the cabinet under the sink that I had left open. The dog moved away, then sniffed. He pushed it with his nose and growled. “That’s weird”, I thought. Killer never growls. “What’s there, boy?” I said calling him. The dog didn’t even turn around. Woof… woof… woof… rrr. I moved closer to get a better view. “What is it, Kat?” asked Daniel. “It’s no big deal” I replied indifferently. “I think it’s just an old sponge.” Woof… woof… woof… rrr. The sponge looked totally normal… small, round, with a light-brown color. A little bigger than an egg. Nevertheless, Killer was excited and nervous because of it. The dog danced around it, barking and growling. I took the sponge from him to see it better. And my sweet dog tried to bite me! “Killer!” I yelled. “Bad boy!” He curled up in a corner. And with a howl of embarrassment, he lay down with his head on his paws. I held the sponge close to my face, in order to inspect it better. “Wow! Wait a second!” All of a sudden I understood Killer’s strange behavior. “Daniel… look at this!” I exclaimed. “Wow! I can’t BELIEVE IT!” 😱

Que trata del libro de terror escrito por R.L. Stine

Lectura en inglés justo a tiempo para el mes de octubre. Lector, ¿estás listo para el horror? It Came from Beneath the Sink! (¡Lo Encontramos Debajo Del Fregadero!) es un libro de terror de la serie de libros Goosebumps (Escalofríos en español) escrita por el autor estadounidense R.L. Stine. Es una historia fácil de leer, divertida e ideal para iniciarse en la lectura.

🎃Chapter 1🎃

Before my brother and I found the strange little creature beneath the sink, we were a normal, happy family. In fact, I have to say that we were very lucky. Nevertheless, our luck changed quickly when we brought out the creature from its dark hiding place. This sad and terrifying story began the day we moved. “We’re here kids”, Dad said happily honking the horn when we turned the corner on Maple Street and parked in front of our new house. “Are you ready to get down to work, Kitty Kat?” My dad is the only person who can call me Kitty Kat. My real name is Katrina (Yuck!) Merton, but only my teachers call me Katrina. To everyone else I’m just Kat. “Of course, dad!”, I shouted. I jumped down from the van. “Woof! Woof!”, barked our cocker spaniel Killer in a sign of approval and he followed me down to the sidewalk. Daniel, my stupid younger brother, is the one who gave the dog that name. What a dumb name! Killer is afraid of everything. The only thing he’s capable of killing is a rubber ball! Daniel and I had already passed by the new house a bunch of times on our bikes. It’s only three blocks from where we used to live, on East Street. Nevertheless, we still couldn’t believe that we were going to live there. I mean, I always thought that our old house was really nice. But this place is astonishing! It has three floors, it’s located at the top of its own hill, it has yellow blinds, and at least a dozen windows. A white porch surrounds the entire house. The front yard must be the size of a football field. It’s not a house… It’s a mansion! Well, practically a mansion. Enormous… but not exactly luxurious. It’s what Mom calls “a big old, run down, comfortable house”. Actually, today it looked a little disorganized and old. Some of the blinds were beat-up, the lawn needed to be trimmed, and the whole place seemed to be covered with a few inches of dust. Nevertheless, like Mom said: “Nothing that couldn’t be fixed with a good cleaning, a coat of paint, and a couple of blows with a hammer”. Mom, Dad, and Daniel got out of the car, and we all stood excited looking at the house. Today I was finally going to see the inside! Mom pointed at the second floor. “Do you guys see that big balcony?”, she asked. That is the room where your father and I will sleep. The next room is Daniel’s. She lightly squeezed my hand. “The little balcony… that is protruding is your room, Kat”, she announced smiling. My own private terrace! I stood on my tiptoes to give my mom a big hug. “I love it”, I whispered in her ear. Naturally, Daniel started to complain immediately. He’s ten years old, but most of the time he acts like he’s two. “Why does Kat’s room have a balcony and mine doesn’t?”, he complained. It’s not fair! I want a balcony too! “Behave, Daniel”, I murmured. “Mom, tell him to be quiet!” I mean, am I not going to get something for being two years older or what? Well, almost two years. My birthday was two days away. “Quiet, kids!”, ordered Mom. “Daniel, you don’t have a balcony. But you’ll have something fun too… bunk beds. This way Carlo will be able to sleep over whenever you want.” “Great!”, shouted Daniel. Carlo is Daniel’s best friend. They are always together… and always bugging me. Daniel is nice…most of the time. But he always insists on being right. Dad calls him Mr. Know-it-all. And sometimes Dad calls him the Human Tornado because he runs all over the place like a whirlwind and makes a mess out of everything. I’m more like my dad… I’m quiet and calm. Well, generally calm. And our favorite meals are the same: lasagna, sandwiches with a lot of garlic, and mocha ice cream with chocolate chips. I even look like my father: tall and thin with a ton of freckles and reddish hair. Usually I wear my hair in a ponytail. The amount of hair my dad has doesn’t cause much concern. Daniel is more like my mother. He has straight, light brown hair that always falls over his eyes and what Mom calls a “robust” appearance. (That means he’s chubby.) Today, Daniel was definitely acting like a Human Tornado. He ran toward the green lawn and started to go around in circles. “It’s huge”, he shouted. “It’s gigantic. It’s… It’s… It’s a super house!” He jumped onto the lawn. “And this is a super yard! Hey, Katie, look at me… I’m Super Daniel!” “You’re super dumb!” I said to him, messing up his hair with my hands. “Hey, stop it! Let go of me!”, groaned Daniel. He took out his water gun and shot water on my shirt. “I captured you”, he said. “You’re my prisoner!” “I don’t think so”, I answered, grabbing the water gun. “Give me the gun!”, I ordered. I pulled it with more strength. “Give it to me!” “Okay!”, he said smiling. He let go of it so suddenly that I staggered backwards… and I fell on the sidewalk. “How dumb!”, Daniel mocked. I knew how to catch him. I got closer to the steps of the porch. “Hey, Daniel”, I called him. “I’m going to be the first to enter the new house!” “There is no way!”, he exclaimed, lifting himself up from the lawn. He leaped toward the steps, and he grabbed my elbow. “Me first!” “Me first!” At that moment, Dad approached from the road with a full box that had the word KITCHEN written on one of its sides. Two moving guys followed him, dragging our big blue sofa. “Listen you two, stop wasting time! Mom and I really need your help today. That’s why we let you skip school”, he said. “Daniel, take Killer inside… and give him some food and water. Kat, watch Daniel.” “And Kat, clean the inside of the cabinets in the kitchen, okay? Dad added. “Mom wants to start to put the plates and pots in their places right away”. “Of course Dad”, I answered. I saw that Daniel was rummaging through a box that was on top of the lawn. The box was marked with: CARDS AND COMIC BOOKS. “Hey, where’s the dog?” I yelled at him. He shrugged. “Daniel!” I said annoyed. “I don’t see Killer anywhere. Where is he?” He took out a bunch of baseball cards. “It’s alright. It’s okay. I’ll find him”, he muttered. He got up and headed for the sidewalk, calling for the dog. As soon as he disappeared from that part of the house, I quickly headed for the box marked with CARDS AND COMIC BOOKS and I went through it. I was sure that the little brat had robbed some of my comic books. I put them under my arm and went in the kitchen to clean the cabinets. A quick glance made me groan. The cabinets covered every inch of the spacious and well-lit room! Sighing, I took our paper towels and a bottle of cleaner from the box that said CLEANING SUPPLIES and I started scrubbing. I sprayed and scrubbed, sprayed and scrubbed. This could take me hours! After I finished one cabinet, I took a step back to admire my work. After, I got on my knees in front of the cabinet that was beneath the sink. However, something… a creaking noise, similar to the sound of a footstep on an old wooden step, made me stop. “What could that be?”, I asked myself, my heart began beating faster. I slowly opened the cabinet. I tried to look inside. I opened the door a little more. A little more. I heard the sound again. My heart was now beating violently. I opened the door of the cabinet a few more inches. And then, it grabbed me. A furry, dark claw. I couldn’t break free. I screamed. 😱