In this third part of of the children's series Mike & Alex, the overly large rabbit and wild boar arrive on the coast of France. There, they meet the Dol-Phin family. They bring our friends to Wally the Whale, who is in great pain on a quiet sandbank off the English coast because of a harpoon in his back. Mike and Alex manage to remove the harpoon and heal the wound with many unique types of seaweed worldwide. In gratitude, Wally offers them a world cruise by whale. You can read those stories in Book 4: Humans Get Their Dirt Back. This book is for the ages 6-12 years old.
In this third part of of the children's series Mike & Alex, the overly large rabbit and wild boar arrive on the coast of France. There, they meet the Dol-Phin family. They bring our friends to Wally the Whale, who is in great pain on a quiet sandbank off the English coast because of a harpoon in his back. Mike and Alex manage to remove the harpoon and heal the wound with many unique types of seaweed worldwide. In gratitude, Wally offers them a world cruise by whale. You can read those stories in Book 4: Humans Get Their Dirt Back. This book is for the ages 6-12 years old.
Chapter 1Â
At the edge of the Great Salt WaterÂ
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It was a lovely walk through the dunes, among the tall grass, some bushes scattered here and there. âThese are the dunes of Normandy. Itâs quiet now that summer is over, but in the summer months, itâs full of people making noise,â Jean-Pierre, the guide, told Mike and Alex. Like Mike, Jean-Pierre was a rabbit but needed four hops, and Mike got by with one. For this reason, the French bunny soon grew tired.Â
âWe know all about the noise people make. Itâs awful!â said Alex. âWeâve already had the opportunity twice before to help those two-legged beasts quieten down. How we laughed, didnât we, Mike?â âYes, we did!â replied Mike. âYou know, Jean-Pierre, the first time, we ran through the middle of a party with all the other animals: cows, wolves, rats, foxes, deer, pigs, and boars. You should have seen those two-leggers! They ran back to the farm so quickly, they almost left their shadows behind!âÂ
âWhatâs a farm?â the French rabbit inquired. âA farmer lives there and cares for his animals: cows, horses, chickens, pigs, and the landâŚâ âOh, une ferme! Yes, we like to go to those too. You can always find something to eat there. And they often have beet and roots.âÂ
Talking happily like this, they progressed through the dunes. Mike and Alex smelled a fresh, unfamiliar wind. It was not unpleasant. âWe are almost at the sea now,â the French dune rabbit told them. âThe water of the sea is not very nice. Itâs salty.â Mike and Alex glanced confused, but Jean-Pierre continued to chatter. âThatâs why weâll walk to the dune lake first. You can drink as much as you want there. Itâs the best water in the world. But we must hurry because we have to get to the sea in time.âÂ
âWhy?â asked AlexÂ
âSometimes the water of the sea is high. Thatâs what the two-leggers call âflood.â Sometime later, the water is low. They call that âebbâ. We have to be by the sea at high tide because then I can show you the dolphins playing. Itâs so much fun. The dolphins are beautiful animals; you can talk to them.âÂ
A little later, the trio arrived at the dune lake, and Mike and Alex drank from the water to their heartsâ content. It was indeed delicious! The trio went on with their walk. âOh, Mike, I can hardly keep up with you,â Jean-Pierre complained. âMike, pick the little one up and put him on my back. Itâll be faster, and heâll have a better view of where we need to go,â said our not-so-wild boar, Alex.Â
Now that Jean-Pierre was seated up high, they were managing a quicker pace. However, the French hopper could not shut his mouth for over two seconds. His monologue about the route to follow was peppered withâfor Mike and Alex âincomprehensible nonsense about the grandeur of the dunes and the dangers that lurked around them. The friends had already looked at each other and shaken their heads in puzzlement. They were not afraid of anything, as they were big and strong. Besides, they had already experienced a lot, with two-legged creatures, even bigger animals, a very dark forest, and the mountains; they had also learned about natureâs abundance and hunger. Â
At one point, Mike and Alex couldnât take it anymore. Mike picked up Jean-Pierre and put him on the ground. âNow, keep your pie hole shut for two seconds! We want to pad along, enjoy nature, and also hear any dangers that might lie ahead.â âYou smell danger. You donât hear it!â the little Frenchman chimed in. Our friends were getting fed up, so they increased their pace. Of course, Jean-Pierre struggled to match them due to his much smaller legs. The friends enjoyed the quiet at last: the scenery of the dunes and the peculiar, soft, bubbling sound they heard. The French rabbit had told them this came from the sea. Mike and Alex were curious and headed toward the sound, undisturbed by Jean-Pierreâs chatter.Â
They climbed another dune, reaching the top. Yes! From there, only the sea was as far as the eye could see. They saw that the water moved toward the dunes; it rolled, and at the top, it was white. Then, the water tumbled on top of itself, making the sound they had heard. Â
Of course, Mike and Alex were curious about the dolphins Jean-Pierre had mentioned. They watched them as they danced happily, leaping gracefully and having fun. With his vast ears, Mike could now hear a large dolphin calling him and Alex by name. He waved. The dolphin responded with a giant leap from the sea's water, and with many splashes, he plunged back into it. âWe have to come to the seaâs edge, Alex,â said Mike. âThatâs what that big dolphin is saying. He wants to ask us something.âÂ
So the friends walked to the edge of the sea. The dolphins swam close to the beach. âI am Father, Matt; Iâm here with my family. Mr. Lowie Fox told us about you, Mike, and Alex. That is who you are, right?â Â
Mike and Alex felt one with nature and deeply connected with the dolphins. Mr. Fox, of course, was Lowie from the Big Animal Forest (see Part 1).Â
Mike shouted back a reply, but his voice did not rise above the roar of the waves. Alex opened his mouth. âYes, thatâs us!â he echoed across the vast sea. Â
âWe have come to ask you to help us. Our friend Big Wally is very sick. Mr. Fox said you can make him well again.âÂ
Mike told Alex what to call back, âWeâre not sure. Weâd like to, but we arenât doctors!âÂ
âBig Wally doesnât want to see a two-legger, but you look like one because you only have two Â
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âŚAlex, Mike, and Jean-Pierre watch the dolphinsâŚÂ
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Legs, too! Mr. Fox described you for us: two legs and gigantic ears. So you must be Mike!âÂ
Mike gave a thumbs up and smiled broadly. Mr. Fox and Mr. Dol-Phin had a good chat. He liked that; he felt he could trust Matt. âAlex, would you ask Matt who this Big Wally is because I donât see him? And how is it that heâs sick? And where exactly in the sea is he?âÂ
Father Matt had already understood. So had his children, who were also not stupid, so they spontaneously began to sing a response:Â
Wally is a Whale, a WhaleÂ
Heâs of a massive scaleÂ
From a two-leggers boat, he was shotÂ
And that hurts him a lotÂ
An arrow sticks out of his backÂ
It was an uneven attackÂ
So Daddy shoutÂ
to pull that thing outÂ
otherwise, it means his endÂ
in that dirty sand!Â
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The beautiful singing of the two young and adventurous dolphins thrilled Mike and Alex. Even little Jean-Pierre, the youngest of the group, was clapping his front paws in excitement. However, their mother, Mama Dol-Phin, seemed upset. She had always led their choir, but now, with the presence of the land animals, she felt excluded. Their father, noticing her sadness, whispered, âOur children are growing up, my dear, becoming more independent.â Â
Unexpectedly, Mike dashed up the sandy beach, narrowly avoiding a wave threatening to soak his legs. Alex, being slower than Mike, had soaked his paws. âHurry, the tide is rising! The sea will soon flood the beach. Are you coming with us? Itâs time for you to decide,â Father Dol-Phin called out.Â
For a moment, Mike and Alex looked at each other. âYes,â Mike nodded. Alexâs voice echoed over the sea again, âYes, weâll go with you, but how do we get there?â Â
âThe boys are coming to get you. Theyâll swim up to the beach. When they get stuck on the sand, help them turn toward the sea. Then climb on their backs, and the boys will swim with you back to us when the sea brings more water to the beach. Then the girls will help you transfer to me and Mommy for the big swim to Wally. Okay?âÂ
Mike and Alex sprang into action. They managed to turn Luigi and then Marco towards the sea. Mike helped his less agile friend onto Luigiâs back and smoothly hopped onto Marco. âWhat unique names you have! Where did they come from?â Alex asked, his curiosity piqued. Â
âLuigi, you are the older of the two of us, you tell them,â said Marco. âYes, brother,â replied Luigi. âWell, dearest back-sitters, itâs like this: When Papa and Mama have children, then, of course, they have to give them a name. Well, they choose a name from the country where we happen to be at birth. We were born when they were near Italy.â Â
âWhat is that, Italy?â asked Mike.Â
Marco: âItâs a piece of land that lies past the tip of Africa and Europe where the sea is always nice and warm, but there are many two-leggers there. We are now between France and England; if you go further, you will reach the vast open sea; you can swim nicely and very fast, and we try to jump from one high wave top to another. Itâs so much fun!âÂ
Meanwhile, they had reached the other family members. âHey! Youâre a handsome guy!â one of the girls, who turned out to be named Love, called out to Alex. âFellows,â Luigi said to his guests, âthat girl is always teasing; like her sister, she is a year younger than us, and they were born when we were near Ivory Coast in Africa. Thatâs on this side of Africa, where the two-leggers are black, and itâs even hotter than in Italy. Itâs too hot for us, but thereâs lots of food.âÂ
Papa Dol-Phin explained how the switch from the boysâ backs to his and Mamaâs was supposed to go. âFirst, Mike will switch from Marco to Mama. Michelle, you will lie between Mama and your brother very rigidly. And Love, you will keep watch! In case of emergency, you will be the rescuer!â âWhat about you, Dad?â cried the cheeky daughter. âYoung lady, youâre too cheeky! You know Iâm the captain. Be quiet, and do as I say!â Â
Mike jumped onto Mama Dol-Phinâs back with ease. Cautiously, Mike the Rabbit jumped onto the girl dolphinâs back and, from there, quickly jumped onto her motherâs enormous back. Michelle tumbled because she was exhaling when Mike landed on her, so she didnât have enough air to stay afloat. Her dad burst out laughing at her immaturity. Michelle had learned her lesson!Â
Alexâs daring transition from Luigiâs back via Michelleâs and on to Papaâs was thrilling! Alex nearly rolled off Luigiâs back. The boar did not go head-under in the sea thanks to Marcoâs lightning-fast reaction to dive up between Luigi and Michelle. Marco even managed to get Alex on Michelle's back. The two brothers shared a knowing look as the wild boar sat there recovering, somewhat bewildered. Both understood that they had proven their bravery. Â
âSay, clumsy boar on our sisterâs back, listen carefully. We will jump from the side onto Michelleâs back. She will sink a little into the water, so youâll get wet paws and maybe a wet belly. But thatâs okay. Please pay attention: with our two snouts, weâll throw you up so youâll end up on our fatherâs back. Once youâre on there, you get to sing for us!âÂ
Alexâs initial fear was quickly replaced by excitement as he watched the two young dolphins swim far away. They turned around, and there they came, swimming so speedily! Suddenly, Alex felt the thrill of wet paws, and the next moment, he was soaring through the air. Boing! There, he landed on Papaâs back. For a moment, it seemed like the air was squeezed out of Papaâs lungs by the thump of the massive boar on his back. âLetâs go!â shouted Marco, and together with Luigi, they went swimming ahead to break the waves a little for their parents. With Mike and Alexâs weight on their backs, they couldn't swim as fast as before. The girls swam at the back of the group, watching on, ready to give help if necessary. It was all exactly as agreed upon beforehand, and it was indeed a thrilling adventure. Â
Alex found it a little tricky on the dolphinâs back. His stomach felt terrible, and his face was splashed with salt water. That was not so fun. He couldnât see where he was because he had closed his eyes because of the splashing seawater. On the other hand, Mike did not have the same problems. Mama Dol-Phin swam softly, ensuring only a few drops of water splashed upon him. Occasionally, her back slipped under the water, so his lower body got wet, but he held on tight to Mamaâs dorsal fin. Â
Suddenly, one of the boys called out, âThereâs Wally! Iâll go quickly to him.â Luigi darted off to Wally. How happy Wally was to see the young dolphin! With the severe pain in his back, Wally had reached the sandbank with the help of Father Dol-Phin. The sandbank lay in a tranquil spot in Cardigan Bay. Â
When Father Matt came across the seriously injured Wally, he accompanied him to the sandbank at Cardigan Bay on the west coast of Wales. It is a tranquil place, where the difference between high tide (flood) and low tide (ebb) is about 6 meters. âThis way, youâll be washed with enough water twice a day to stay fresh,â Matt had said. Matt also said he had heard about two land animals who always managed to solve problems for other animals. Thatâs why he swam to Normandy, France, with his family. He had asked the dune rabbit Jean-Paul to look for the land animals there. Matt, his wife, and children were overjoyed that their teamwork and efforts had paid off in finding Mike and Alex, a testament to the power of unity and cooperation.Â
âHello Luigi, are your father and mother coming too? And are the land animals there?Â
âYes, Wally, everyone is coming. Now, we are going to improve you all. Â
Fifteen minutes later, the family arrived at Wallyâs sandbank with the strange cargo on Papa and Mamaâs backs. The whale wanted to sing to them, but it hurt so much with the harpoon in his back that after a few seconds, he couldn't continue. Â
Alex watched as Mama Dol-Phin swam very close to the sandbar on which Wally lay. Part of the whale's belly was in the water. When Mama lay almost still, he saw how his friend stood up. Indeed, the giant rabbit leaped! Right on the sand, but oh no! Mike nearly slipped into the water. Sassy Michelle reacted quickly to push the rabbit with her snout and ploof! There he was, next to Wally. Alex could hardly contain his laughter. Was Mike a giant, strong rabbit? He looked like a little toy following that whale's considerable belly.Â
âNow we have to get you on that sandbank, big strong boar!â shouted Father Matt Dol-Phin. âYou have to get off my back on the left side so that you can reach the sand. Then take a good gulp of air because you'll probably fall into the water. The girls will give you a push to get back on the sand. Â
Alex didn't like the thought of falling into the foul-tasting salt water. But the girls were there, ready to help him. âGo!â roared Father Dol-Phin. Alex hesitated and hesitated again. When Papa swam again past the landing site, Alex hopped. But he missed Father Dol-Phin completely and landed straight in the water! Alex was startled, coughing, his mouth full of seawater, when he suddenly felt himself being lifted. He opened his eyes momentarily as he felt the wind rushing past his face. âNow I'll get ground under my feet again!â Alex thought. But, splash, he fell straight back into the water, then was tossed up into the air, back into the water, and the air again. âWhat on earth was going on?â he wondered before realizing that he had become a toy for the girls, and the boys were also joining in. The girls threw Alex into the air with their snouts towards the boys, who dropped him in the water and lifted him onto their noses to toss him at the girls. Â
But that was not what they had come here for! Alex was not a toy; he and Mike had to get that harpoon out of Wally's back! Angry Papa Dol-Phin yelled, âChildren, kindly deposit Alex onto the sand; he is not your toy!â Hearing their fatherâs words, Michelle and her sister swam to the sandbar with Alex on their snout.Â
Then the young lady dolphins flung their heads forward momentarily, and Alex rolled through the water and onto the sand! Â
Protesting, he got to his feet. His little ears shook from the laughter of Big Wally. The next moment, he felt his friend put a paw around his shoulder. âI'm glad you're back with me safe and sound,â said Mike. That was a lovely, reassuring thing to hear. Â
~* ~* ~* ~Â
Peter van Wermeskerken has written an animal adventure series featuring Mike the rabbit and Alex the boar. In Mike & Alex Part 3, The Big Salt Water, Mike and Alex embark on an unexpected sea adventure.Â
The story begins with an intriguing plot where Mike and Alex are asked to remove a harpoon from a whaleâs back. However, the plot has many issues. Firstly, Chapter 2 begins with, âThe harpoon is removed from Wally.â But on the next few pages readers see, âThey went to look at the iron thing sticking out of Wallyâs back.â This could be confusing for some readers. Upon re-reading and examining all the chapters, it may become evident to observant readers that the first line is a title and not the start of the chapter. The writer could make the reader's job easier by using capital letters or italics to distinguish between the chapter synopsis and the first line of the chapter.
Secondly, there is more telling than showing. This could be due to the plethora of characters in the story. Most of them are not fleshed out to show who they are. Instead, they are mentioned by name and the writer tells the reader what they will do.Â
As it relates to characters, the sheer number makes it hard to keep track of each one. The writer makes it harder by being inconsistent with the names. For example, readers will meet âPapa Dol-Phinâ, âFather Dol-Phinâ, âMr. Dol-Phinâ, âFather Mattâ and 'Father Matt Dolphin'. It seems as though they all refer to one character.
The storyâs language is simple for children to understand. But the writer mixes the style of dialogue. In some cases the reader will see what looks like speech for a play:Â
Matt: âThanks, Iâll tell Wally.â
At other times speech is written using quotation marks and tags like âMatt saidâ or âasked Mikeâ. In other instances tags are not used at all, leaving the reader to track the conversation. The characters' speech also seems stilted and unnatural. One example is, ââSay, clumsy boar on our sisterâs back, listen carefullyâŚ" Also, all the characters sound the same which could make it difficult for readers to keep track of each character.Â
The writer explores themes related to the Environment, Kindness and Friendship which should appeal to young children. Although an adventurous story for kids who enjoy learning about animals and caring for their world, this story could definitely benefit from a revised plot, consistent characters and basic editing.Â