Cover of the book, “Aaron Slater and the Sneaky Snake,” by Andrea Beaty. The illustrations are by David Roberts. A green snake is on the head of Aaron Slater. Several drawings of green snakes doing different things are present around.

  THE QUESTIONEERS SERIES

  Iggy Peck, Architect

  Rosie Revere, Engineer

  Ada Twist, Scientist

  Sofia Valdez, Future Prez

  Aaron Slater, Illustrator

  Rosie Revere’s Big Project

  Book for Bold Engineers

  Iggy Peck’s Big Project

  Book for Amazing Architects

  Ada Twist’s Big Project

  Book for Stellar Scientists

  Sofia Valdez’s Big Project

  Book for Awesome Activists

  Aaron Slater’s Big Project

  Book for Astonishing Artists

  Rosie Revere and the

  Raucous Riveters

  Ada Twist and the Perilous Pants

  Iggy Peck and the Mysterious Mansion

  Sofia Valdez and the Vanishing Vote

  Ada Twist and the Disappearing Dogs

  Title page of the book, “Aaron Slater and the Sneaky Snake” by Andrea Beaty. The book is presented by, “The Questioneers.” The illustrations are by David Roberts. A sketch of Aaron holding a book, “The Green Snake,” by Frederick Revere with a bucket is shown below the title. Amulet Books logo is present at the center bottom.

  To our Abrams family. Thank you for making the world a better place!

  —A.B. and D.R.

  PUBLISHER’S NOTE: This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

  Cataloging-in-Publication Data has been applied for and may be obtained from the Library of Congress.

  ISBN 978-1-4197-5398-5

  eISBN 978-1-6470-0272-5

  Text copyright © 2023 Andrea Beaty

  Illustrations copyright © 2023 David Roberts

  Book design and coloring by Charice Silverman

  Published in 2023 by Amulet Books, an imprint of ABRAMS. All rights reserved. No portion of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, mechanical, electronic, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without written permission from the publisher.

  Amulet Books® and Amulet Paperbacks® are registered trademarks of Harry N. Abrams, Inc.

  Amulet Books are available at special discounts when purchased in quantity for premiums and promotions as well as fundraising or educational use. Special editions can also be created to specification. For details, contact specialsales@abramsbooks.com or the address below.

  ABRAMS The Art of Books

  195 Broadway, New York, NY 10007

  abramsbooks.com

  CHAPTER

  1

  Once there was a dragon the color of the sun, who slept in the craggy mountains above the Kingdom. Each day, the people wondered when the Sun Dragon would swoop down upon them with its fiery breath. It had not happened in an age. But such things are remembered from age to age.

  There was another dragon, the color of the sea, who slept in the deep waters beyond the shore. Each day, the people wondered if the Sea Dragon would save them once more. It had not happened in an age. But such things—

  WHOMP!

  A checkered pillow flopped onto Aaron’s face, interrupting his latest story. In a single motion, Aaron pulled it off and flung it back at his brother, who sat laughing in his bed.

  WHAP!

  The pillow hit its mark and Jacob toppled over, giggling.

  Aaron sat up.

  “Stop doing that!” he said while karate chopping his right hand into his left palm in the American Sign Language (ASL) sign for STOP!

  Aaron and Jacob freely mixed sign language and speech. The whole family took sign language classes with Jacob, who was hard of hearing. The whole family was Mom, Mum, Gabriel, Tracy, Jacob, and Aaron. Their cats, Oberon and Eugene, relied on meowing loudly and cuteness to communicate.

  Aaron and Jacob shared a room, which was fine most of the time. Except when Aaron was thinking or drawing or reading or sleeping or . . .

  WHOMP!

  The pillow hit Aaron again.

  “Get up,” said Jacob.

  “I’m busy,” said Aaron. “I’m making up a story.”

  “Here’s a story,” said Jacob. “Mum is waiting for you and you are LATE!”

  He dramatically flapped his right hand down and back in the sign for LATE.

  “Late for wha—” Aaron started, but he instantly remembered. “The zoo!” he said, jumping out of bed.

  The Questioneers often helped Zookeeper Fred at the zoo. This week, they were working on Frogville, and Aaron had almost forgotten. He grabbed his sketch pad and ran out of the bedroom, but not before he sent the pillow in a beeline toward his brother’s face. Jacob caught the pillow, ready to bean Aaron with it, but it was too late. Aaron was already out of the house and on his way to the zoo.

  CHAPTER

  2

  Aaron was the first Questioneer to reach the native habitat at the center of the zoo. It used to be a boring concrete pool surrounded by wide gravel paths. Now it was Frogville, a big pond in a garden with benches, curvy paths, and birdhouses. The Questioneers were helping plant native flowers and shrubs to attract pollinators and provide homes for local insects, birds, and especially, frogs.

  Zookeeper Fred was very worried about frogs. Their populations were dropping fast all around the world because of chemicals and climate change. Even in Blue River Creek, fertilizers and weed killers were running off lawns with each rain. The chemicals ran into the stream and hurt the frogs and other animals that lived there. Frogville could give frogs a clean habitat with insects to eat and water that was safe for their tadpoles. And it could show people a new way to use their yards and help nature.

  Aaron sat on a bench and sketched a dragonfly. He drew a different animal each time he visited the zoo. Maybe one day, his sketches would hang in the zoo gallery. He hoped so, anyway.

  Suddenly, Aaron heard laughter.

  “Ha-ha-ha! Cut it out!”

  Aaron looked around. A wiggling pair of legs was sticking out of the hydrangea hedge. Aaron ran to the hedge. The wiggling legs belonged to Zookeeper Fred.

  “Hee-hee-help!” yelled Zookeeper Fred.

  “Are you okay?” asked Aaron.

  “I’m stuck!” cried Zookeeper Fred. “Ha-ha-ha!”

  “What’s so funny?” asked Aaron.

  “Hyenas!” called Ada Twist, who was running toward them.

  “Hyenas!?!” cried Aaron. “Where!?!”

  “Through the hedge,” said Ada. “This is the backside of the hyena habitat. Hyenas give him the tickles every time he sees them.”

  Aaron peeked through the hedge. Sure enough, two large hyenas with sharp teeth were looking back at him through a wire fence. Their barks sounded like laughter and sent Zookeeper Fred into another fit of giggles.

  Hee-hee-hee! Ha-ha-ha!

  Just then, Rosie Revere arrived with Iggy Peck and Sofia Valdez. Zookeeper Fred was Rosie’s uncle. She looked at his wiggling legs and sighed.

  “Did the hyenas get Uncle Fred again?” she asked. “The gardeners planted the hedge to keep that from happening! Stop laughing, Uncle Fred.”

  “I can’t,” snorted the zookeeper. “It’s just too fun-hee-hee-hee!”

  “Think of something sad!” said Aaron.

  “Like mushy cereal!” said Sofia.

  “Or melted ice cream!” said Ada.

  “Or Gothic style windows in an Art Deco mansion,” said Iggy, who loved architecture.

  The Questioneers looked at Iggy.

  “What?” he asked. “It’s an architectural nightmare!”

  “Iggy’s right!” said Uncle Fred. “The wrong windows ruin the whole design.”

  He stopped laughing. He sniffled. He looked like he might even cry.

  “Pull it together, Uncle Fred!” said Rosie.

  Zookeeper Fred wiggled and waggled and plopped onto the path. He brushed off his uniform and straightened his mustache.

  “Thank you,” he said. “I was looking for Vern in the hedge when the hyenas got me laughing.”

  “Who’s Vern?” asked Aaron.

  Zookeeper Fred pulled out a photo of a tiny green snake hiding in a sandwich.

  “Vern is the sweetest snake I’ve ever met,” he said, brushing away a tear.

  Aaron wasn’t a big fan of snakes, but he had to admit that a tiny green snake in a sandwich was pretty cute. Unfortunately, not every animal at the zoo was cute. The zoo was filled with big predators with very big teeth and very, VERY big appetites. They would love a little green snack if one slithered by.

  Aaron looked at his friends. He could tell he wasn’t the only one thinking it. Vern was in danger. And there was nothing funny about that.

  CHAPTER

  3

  The Questioneers wandered around the zoo, looking for Vern. It didn’t take long to realize they had a problem. The zoo had lots of animals, but it had a million times more plants! How could they find a tiny green snake in a giant green jungle? They gave up looking and went to Uncle Fred’s office
. The zookeeper looked sadly at his lunch.

  “Vern loved hiding in sandwiches,” he said with a sigh.

  “It was kind of a problem,” said Rosie. “One time, Uncle Fred thought Vern was a pickle and almost took a bite! I invented some machines to keep Vern out of Uncle Fred’s lunch.”

  Rosie pointed to a shelf of contraptions. Each was labeled SNAKE-AWAY, followed by a number. There were seventy-three!

  “Did they work?” asked Sofia.

  “Not really,” said Rosie. “It makes me wonder what scared Vern away this time?”

  “Man,” said Aaron, “Vern is a sneaky snake.” He looked closely at the gizmos. “This one’s cool,” he said, pointing at the Snake-Away 47. “Is it a trebuchet? Can we try it out?”

  The word sounded like tray-boo-shay. The machine was a kind of catapult with a long arm on one end and a weight on the other.

  “I love a trebuchet!” said Iggy. “You can use them to toss boulders over castle walls!”

  “Or junk into the recycling bins!” said Sofia. “C’mon! Let’s take out the recycling!”

  “Thank you, kids,” said Uncle Vern sadly. “We’ll work on Frogville tomorrow. I’ll go back to hunting for Vern after lunch. I hope he’s okay.”

  Rosie hugged her uncle. “Vern is a smart snake,” she said. “He’ll be okay. We’ll be outside when you’re ready to look some more.”

  Sofia grabbed the recycling basket and headed out the door to the bins along the path. Aaron grabbed the Snake-Away 47. Iggy, Ada, and Rosie followed them.

  Aaron put the trebuchet on the path and Ada loaded it with an empty soda can.

  The can flew over the bin, hit a tree, and plopped back onto the path.

  SWISH! PLUNK! CLUNK!

  “Hmm,” said Ada. “Too much force.”

  “Wrong angle,” said Rosie.

  Ada and Rosie made some calculations and adjusted the trebuchet for the perfect shot. They loved working together on engineering and science problems.

  Sofia reloaded the soda can. Aaron launched the trebuchet and—

  SWOOSH!

  The can sailed in a smooth arc straight into the bin.

  “Woo-hoo!” the Questioneers cheered.

  Iggy loaded the next can and Aaron launched it.

  SWOOSH!

  The Questioneers launched cans, cups, and paper wads into the bin. Each time, they cheered loudly.

  A woman with triplets stopped to watch.

  Aaron held up a paper coffee cup with a plastic lid.

  “The last one,” he said, loading it on the trebuchet.

  He launched the trebuchet.

  SWISH!

  POP!

  Halfway through the air, the lid popped off the cup and a tiny green head poked out. It was Vern! He wiggled and waggled, sending the cup off course. It bounced off a tree and Vern flew out of the cup.

  Up, up he soared!

  The triplets clapped.

  Down! Down he fell.

  The triplets cheered.

  PLOP!

  Vern landed on a triplet’s head.

  The triplet squealed with delight.

  “I’ve got a snake hat!” he yelled.

  “I want one!” yelled a triplet.

  “Me too!” yelled the other one.

  “EEEEEEK!” screamed the woman. “A snake! A snake!”

  “Yay!” they yelled together. “He’s cute!”

  “No, he’s not!” yelled their mom, running this way and that.

  Uncle Fred heard the commotion and ran outside, sandwich in hand.

  “Can I help y—” he started. “Vern!” he cried.

  Zookeeper Fred ran to the kid wearing Vern, and Vern saw his chance! He sprang onto Uncle Fred’s arm and squeezed into the sandwich.

  “EEEEEEK!” the woman shrieked. “That poisonous snake just attacked my son!”

  “Vern is not pois—” started Uncle Fred.

  “He might have squeezed my boy to death!” she cried.

  “Vern is not a boa constrict—” started Uncle Fred.

  “Or swallowed him whole!” she cried.

  Uncle Fred looked at the rather large kid and the teeny, tiny snake. He squinted, trying to imagine Vern swallowing anything bigger than a bug.

  “Could he?” he asked. “I don’t think—”

  Before he could say anything more, the woman grabbed her kids’ hands and ran for the zoo gates.

  “Thank you for finding Vern!” Uncle Fred called after her. “I’m sorry he was on your son’s head!”

  But she was gone.

  Fred gently touched Vern’s tiny head.

  “It’s okay, Vern,” he said. “The trouble is over.”

  The Questioneers spent the rest of the afternoon helping Zookeeper Fred in Frogville. They had a lot of fun. What they did not have was a clue. Not even a teeny, tiny, itsy-bitsy clue how wrong Uncle Fred was.

  How very, VERY wrong indeed.

  CHAPTER

  4

  That evening . . .

  CHAPTER

  5

  The next morning, Aaron was the last one up. His sister, Tracy, was practicing guitar on the window seat when he came into the kitchen. His brothers, Gabriel and Jacob, sat at the table, eating Crunchy Munchy cereal. Aaron’s favorite. He poured himself a big bowl and reached for the milk.

  It was empty. He shook the carton and looked inside. It was still empty.

  Aaron glared at Gabriel.

  “EMPTY!” he signed.

  Gabriel grinned, crammed a heaping spoon of cereal into his mouth, and chomped as loudly as he could.

  CRUNCH. CRUNCH. CRUNCH.

  MUNCH. MUNCH. MUNCH.

  “This cereal really is crunchy and munchy!” Gabriel said with his mouth full of cereal. “And that milk is sooooo good!”

  Aaron rolled his eyes.

  CRUNCH. CRUNCH. CRUNCH.

  MUNCH. MUNCH. MUNCH.

  Tracy picked up the beat on her guitar.

  STRUM. STRUM. STRUM.

  STRUM. STRUM. STRUM.

  “YOU SNOOZE, YOU LOSE!” signed Jacob with a grin.

  He tapped his fingers on the table.

  TAP. TAP. TAP.

  TAP. TAP. TAP.

  Aaron groaned. He knew what came next.

  CRUNCH. CRUNCH. CRUNCH.

  STRUM. STRUM. STRUM.

  TAP. TAP. TAP.

  Tracy closed her eyes, tilted her head, and began to sing.

  Her voice was smooth and full of emotion.

  Aaron’s got the blues . . .

  STRUM. STRUM. STRUM.

  Yeah, he’s got the blues . . .

  STRUM. STRUM. STRUM.

  He’s got the

  doggone,

  milk’s gone.

  Cereal Blues!

  He’s got the blues!

  STRUM. STRUM.

  The Cereal Blues!

  STRUM. STRUM.

  He’s got the

  bowl’s dry

  wanna cry

  Cereal Blues . . .

  The blues poured out of Tracy and filled the kitchen with music that was sweet and crunchy and soggy and sad all at the same time. Jacob drummed his spoon on the table. Gabriel crunched along in rhythm. Aaron tried to frown, but it was impossible. Some version of the “Breakfast Blues” happened every day at his house. Music was part of a complete balanced breakfast for the Slater family.

  The fourth verse of the “Cereal Blues” was in full swing—with Aaron playing the cereal box like a tambourine—when Mom and Mum got home with groceries. Mum plunked a paper bag onto the table and pulled out a carton of milk and a newspaper.

  Meanwhile, Mom grabbed two mugs and danced over to the coffee machine. She danced back again and set down the mugs just as Tracy wrapped up the song . . .

  Our moms just got back.

  STRUM. STRUM. STRUM.

  There’s milk in the sack.

  STRUM. STRUM. STRUM.

  It came from a cow

  and now you know how

  we’re gonna end these Cereal Bluuuuuuuueeeeeeeees!

  The note hung in the air like perfume. And then it was gone. With a final strum, Tracy stood up and took a bow. Everyone clapped and cheered. Everyone, that is, except Aaron, who sat stone-still, staring at the newspaper.

  City Investigates Snake Incident at Zoo

  The city is reviewing reports of an incident at the Blue River Creek Zoo involving a snake and a boy. A citizen reported a small, green snake dropping onto the head of her son during a visit. There are no reports of injuries.