by Angela Fish
‘Every time you see the moon like that,’ Lox said, ‘you’ll know that everyone in the spider kingdom is thinking of you – especially me. We hope you won’t forget us, and perhaps one day we can meet again. Goodbye, Ben. Goodbye.’
Lox ran out of the window, over the ledge, and was gone.
Ben didn’t have time to say anything, so he just whispered, ‘Goodbye.’
He looked up at the moon again, and just for a moment he was sure it was covered with a golden cobweb.
Ben’s Shrinking Rhyme
Hold my breath and count to four,
breathe out slow and count four more.
Turn three circles, count to ten,
touch the floor, turn once again.
Close my eyes and touch my nose,
now make me small from head to toes!
Read on to see what Ben and Jess do next
Ben and the Spider Lake
In the summer holidays Ben, his family, his dog Scoot, and his best friend Jess, stay in a cottage near the Dark Mountains. Ben and Jess find out that there’s a lake inside the mountain called Spider Lake and they wonder if it’s the place that Ben’s Gran had told him about in the spring, when she gave him the power to make himself small so that he could help the Spider Wizard to save the Spider Prince. Scoot gets into trouble when he finds a way through a cave onto the path around the lake where Ben and Jess meet a white owl called Hiboo and a mysterious lady.
When Ben arrives home he finds out that the lane at the back of his garden is going to be dug up. He’s worried because he knows that the spiders who live under the lane will lose their home and could even be hurt. He has to find Lox, the guardian of the spider kingdom to tell him what’s going to happen. Ben and Jess try desperately to think of somewhere that the spiders could live but they only have four weeks before the workmen arrive. Can they find a safe home for the spiders in time? If they do, how will they move them? Is there anyone who could help? Maybe Gran has some ideas.
Ben walked into the cave very carefully. The floor was bumpy and there were pools of water everywhere. He shone his torch beam along the walls and he could see that there were lots of little passageways in the rock. He listened again and could hear Scoot barking.
Ben squeezed through the tunnel. When he stood up he couldn’t believe what he saw. Lots and lots of water. He knew right away that this was the lake. This was really Spider Lake! Scoot was standing on a big stone. He was barking at something in the grass. Ben ran towards him and caught hold of his collar. Lying in the grass was a white bird. Ben knew it was an owl.
‘Oh Scoot. What have you done?’
Find out more in September 2016
Did you miss Ben’s first adventure? Turn over to learn how he met Lox for the first time.
Ben and the Spider Gate
Ben loves chatting to his wise gran, playing computer games with his best friend Jess, and helping his dad to train his clever dog Scoot. Best of all though, he likes playing ball in the garden with Scoot.
Then one hot, summer day Ben meets Lox, the gate-keeper of the spider kingdom under the garden hedge. Lox desperately needs Ben’s help before the end of the autumn, but can Ben save the spider kingdom without leaving the garden and going into the deep, dark wood? The leaves are starting to fall, and Ben and Jess must take a brave decision if the spiders are to have a safe winter.
Talking to Gran, Ben begins to suspect that she might know more about his quest than she’s admitting.
Ben threw the ball high in the air and Scoot jumped up after it and then chased it down the garden path. The sun was hot and after a while Scoot lay down in the shade of the garden shed and rested his head on his paws. Ben began to feel sleepy as well and his eyes started to close.
When he opened them again he thought he was still asleep and dreaming. He wasn’t a big boy any more, he was a very little boy. He wasn’t much bigger than one of the daisies that were growing in the grass!