← The Green

Gullwick, the Island That Shares · ages 6-8

The Bridge That Went Out with the Tide

The idea: fair swaps, and making eight.

Read it

One story, three ways: Sprout for a new reader, Grower in short chapters, Reader as a full chapter book. Same plot, same ending.

Who is in this book

Every recurring character has a short tune, so you can tell who is on stage before a word is said. The tunes play only when you tap, and the Reading Access sound switch turns them off.

The Honest Page

Which parts of this story are true, stretched or made up?

True

  • Two dice make seven six ways, more than any other total.
  • A swap is fair when both sides end up better off. Source
  • Three planks and two planks make five; five and two make seven; seven and one make eight.

Stretched

  • The tide does not number driftwood patches or roll them like dice. What we simplified: The seven patch stands in for a dice game so the odds can be seen.

Made up

  • Gullwick, its bridge and its talking islanders are made up.
  • No island has a Fair-o-meter. People have to check that themselves.

Tell it back

Tell the story in your own words: who was there, what went wrong, and what they found out. Then the first span's last plank, carved FAIR goes on your belt.

Ring the hammer for someone

Pick this book for someone younger. The link carries only the book, and it will wait for them on the Green.

Across the Table → For the grown-up: the story in three lines, one question to ask, and one thing to do together.