Uncle Ulric's Home for Unusual Animals -First Chapter Books

UNCLE ULRIC’S HOME FOR UNUSUAL ANIMALS

By Jason Lang

[Illustration note: the footnotes are stylised to be imbedded within the pages as mini illustrated pop-ups, rather than at the bottom of the page]

Chapter 1

There it was.

Myra’s favourite place in the whole wide world. The rickety sign said:

Uncle Ulric’s Home for Unusual Animals

Uncle Ulric wasn’t just anyone’s uncle. He was Myra’s uncle, and he was the most wonderfully absurd man she had ever met.

“Uncle Ulric, Uncle Ulric? Where are you?” smiled Myra.

The tin bell rang as Myra skipped through the door. The animal sanctuary was dark, damp and dangerous. Or so Myra’s mum always said. Myra loved every gloomy corner of it.

A sea of tiny eyes followed her as she crept through each row. Myra peered into the tanks and read the scrawled sign pinned to each one:

Terry and Lydia - Giant African Land Snails

Rescued November 12th; moving out December 3rd

Terry is happy enough for the most part, but Lydia has a real attitude when she’s hungry. Don’t be late with lunch.

Myra gave them a wave and wandered on:

Stanley - Mexican Walking Fish (Axolotl)

Rescued July 7th; waiting for a new home

Ate two of the goldfish - keep Stanley on his own. Grew his leg back soon after moving in but pretends to limp for sympathy

She couldn’t be sure, but Stanley did look like he was limping a bit too dramatically.

The next tank along was full of thousands of little bugs:

Arty, Boris, Chloe etc - Subterranean Termites

Rescued August 9th; waiting for a new home

Currently getting through one chair a week with their ravenous appetite for anything wooden. We must find them a new home before we have nowhere left to sit down.

The final tank in the row was very dark indeed:

Barbara - Pinkfoot Goliath Tarantula

Rescued September 28th; moving out December 10th

Not entirely certain she’s actually in the tank. Either way, don’t let her scare the stick insects again. I mean it, it’s not funny!

Myra ducked through the door at the back of the sanctuary, paying particular attention to her feet. Last week she stepped in Marmoset poo and the smell still haunted her dreams. Maureen the Marmoset was tucking into some apple slices and barely acknowledged her as she came in.

It made Myra’s blood boil to think of that horrible circus lady, Madame Crateux, who used to own Maureen. Uncle Ulric had crossed paths with Madame Crateux many times before and she was simply the worst. He had told Myra about the tiny cage he’d found Maureen in and it still made no sense - who could be so cruel to these beautiful animals? Thankfully, Uncle Ulric had found a lovely home for Maureen, at a wildlife park down south. She’d be joining a friendly pack of Marmosets and Myra was thrilled for her.

Blowing Maureen a kiss, Myra stepped through to the dimly lit room at the back. There, with his back to her, was her Uncle Ulric. It looked like he was giving a health check to a new animal.

Oo, I wonder what it is, thought Myra. She knew he’d been expecting a desert fox and it should be arriving any day now!

********************

“Uncle Ulric, what is it?” asked Myra excitedly.

Myra darted over to Uncle Ulric, squeezed him tight and immediately quizzed him again about his new resident.

“Alright, alright Myra,” chuckled Uncle Ulric, “come and see for yourself…”

Myra looked down at a little bundle of brown fur.

“A hamster?! Uncle Ulric, this is not a Home for Normal Everyday Animals!” laughed Myra, “what’s unusual about a hamster??”

Uncle Ulric looked down at Myra, an amused smile spreading across his face. 

“Is there nothing different you can spot? Watch him for a bit and see what you think…”

Myra watched the hamster drinking for a while but then got bored and went to help Uncle Ulric cut the Komodo dragon’s toenails (a job that needed quick reflexes and lots of plasters).

“Myra,” Uncle Ulric asked, as he wrestled the dragon, “how’s your mum doing? Is she still mad at me for those crickets you had last month?”

One of the many reasons Myra loved her uncle was that when he didn’t have enough space to look after an animal he rescued, he would trust her to look after them for a bit. The smile that this put on Myra’s face almost made her mum forget that she did not like animals. Almost, but not quite.