The Adventures of Barnaby Sprout

By Ryan Thomas

A hybrid project, The Adventures of Barnaby Sprout is a combination of two passions - Fantasy and Food.
Born on the faraway island of Asic, begins the story of the young fairy-tale character named Barnaby Sprout. Born into a species known as Alumni, a proud bunch they are, classing themselves as the best cooks in the known land. Unfortunately poor Barnaby however, could not stir something for the life of him.
You see, from birth each Alumni is matched with a pink bird like creature called a Flapingo. Throughout their lives they both form a strong bond that sees the two of them help each other out in any way possible.
Barnaby however was born without his buddy, and some say may be the cause of him not knowing how to cook. Follow ’his’ journey, as Barnaby embarks on an adventure of a lifetime in search of his very own Flapingo. On the way he bumps into an array of fairytale creatures, one wackier than the other that teach him all sorts of things, most importantly - how to cook! Learn to make these easy to prepare recipes yourself, whilst at the same time embark on a breathtaking voyage that lets your imagination run wild.

• Language: English
• Publisher: ReadOnTime BV
• Release date: Oct 21, 2012
• ISBN: 9781742841618

Book preview

Chapter 1

Barnaby Sprout was a peculiar little Alumnus. From the moment he was born the Sprouts knew there was something very different about the boy. After all, who actually comes out of their pod feet first? Everyone knows Alumni only pop out with their heads, or else how would they ever find their Flapingo buddies?

The old rooster crows from the top of Albion Valley as dawn breaks over the land of Asic. This signals the start of yet another day; however, today was a very special one because it was time for something that only happened once every ten years.

For on this pleasant morning we welcome the next generation of Alumni! Thousands of them, all at once, would pop out of their beans as the first rays of sunlight strike the top of their hard shells. Their mothers had planted these pods exactly 9 years 364 days ago and throughout this time the little Alumni would grow until it was time to emerge into the world.

The thing you should know about Alumni, however, is that when they are born they are fully grown! That’s right, throughout their entire life they will never change shape or form, which makes guessing their age quite a difficult one. No one really knows the reason behind this, but some believe it might be due to the fact that Alumni have always been good eaters since the dawn of time.

Mr. and Mrs. Sprout waited eagerly around their pod listening intensely for any sign of movement from within. Mr. Sprout knocked gently with the tip of his long fingers on the top of the hard brown shell that poked about a foot out of the ground.

Rap a tap, tap, but no answer, none at all.

Rap a tap, tap, he tried again.

Be patient will you Russell, Mrs. Sprout whispered.

"I know you are excited to be a father for the first time, but please be patient".

Sorry dear, whispered Mr. Sprout.

Russell Sprout was a proud little Alumnus. Standing at just over four feet he most certainly was one of the tallest in the land. He was thin and long with a freckly, bald forehead and shiny, grey hair receding toward the back of his head. You would often find him lazing around on his deck chair with his glasses on, pipe in his mouth, reading the Daily Asic. Russell absolutely adored Mrs. Sprout and listened to whatever she had to say.

Russell fetch me some herbs from the garden. – Russell would do it.

Russell I think the hedges need a bit of pruning. – up and at ‘em Russell would be at her beck and call.

When in the garden or anywhere else for that matter, you would always find Russell sporting a white singlet that hugged his bony chest tightly with only a slight bump where his tummy lay.

Mrs. Sprout on the other hand stood at two feet three inches tall. She was well known and respected in the whole of Asic for her culinary skills. She had hosted many a feast in the main compound outside the front of their tiny, square house in the two hundred or so years since moving there.

You see, Alumni have a very long lifespan and since they never grow taller or shorter since birth you would think it is quite a problem for the tiny beings to tell each other’s ages. Not at all, for these ingenious little creatures thought of a very clever way. How you may ask? Simple – food!

You see, through the generations, as far back as you and I could ever remember Alumni have been cooking. That’s right, they have been making breakfast, lunches, dinners, desserts, brunches, scrunches - you name it and they have made it all!

When born, from day one their mother or father would start teaching them to make different sorts of meals. They start simple and as the years go by they move on to more and more exotic foods. Why though, do these people cook so much? Surely there must be something more productive to do? Not true, because Alumni trade in food. Asic is known for its exotic cuisine and creatures from faraway lands, sometimes even the rare dragon, would come to devour the various flavours.

It has been told that once a year, just the once, the Sultan from Millimeal would hop on his boat with 500 strong men and they would row for two months through treacherous waters just so he could spend one evening eating Mrs. Sprouts food. He would then hop back on his boat and sail home that same night. So now you probably have an idea of how popular Ruby Sprout’s cooking was. And you can now also guess that by the popularity of her food, she must have started cooking hundreds of years ago! That is how Alumni tell each other’s ages. The tastier the food they make, the older they are thought to be.

Chapter 2

As the morning fog slowly lifted over Albion Valley and the sound of faint chirping sparrows began to fill the air, a synchronised Ahhhhh was heard from each and every Alumni - some in suspense whilst others in excitement! After all, they had been waiting for this day for the past ten years so they had every reason to feel whatever emotions they were feeling. Some began to cry, some smile, some even got into a ritualistic dance around their pods, while others were still half asleep.

Russell Sprout, however, was eager and agitated at the same time and he kept pacing up and down the muddy path that surrounded his pod. Every so often he would tap on the top of the nutty shell, but only to be told off by his wife to be patient. Peter Theatre skipped over to where Russell was standing.

Beautiful morning in’ it Russell?

Russell at first seemed quite preoccupied and did not really pay much attention to his unexpected guest.

Russell? said Peter once more.

Russell suddenly realised that Peter was standing right next to him.

Oh yes, yes Peter, replied Russell. It’s a very fine morning indeed and a fine morning to welcome in the new one, don’t you think?

Russell Sprout and Peter Theatre had been neighbours for many years. You would think that by knowing each other for so long they would be the best of friends. But this wasn’t so, as Russell and Peter just had the odd chit-chat here and there.

Indeed Russell, Indeed….I say have you thought of a name for the little chappy? Boy or girl?

Ummm a boy Peter, this one’s a boy, replied Russell before thinking for a second, one eyebrow pointed up whilst silently he mumbled something to himself.

Peter moved in closer to see what was going on.

What’s that Russell?? Did you say something?

The fact of the matter was that Russell Sprout had been so caught up in all the excitement of his first child that he had not even given any thought to a name! All Alumni have to name their first born before their pods open. This was a tradition that had been going on for years and years. The name is the first word the new born hears whilst within their pod and it sticks with them straight away. Another thing is that only the fathers were allowed to name the children, so as you can imagine Russell started to get extremely twitchy.

Umm….ahem, of course I have thought of his name….it’s…..it’s….

Russell looked up at the sky; it was a clear day with a slight scattering of fluffy red clouds that looked like giant marshmallows floating around. He then looked down at the ground; it was brown and mucky where he stood. Peter Theatre waited impatiently for an answer. In the distance Russell caught the glimpse of an old barnyard on top of a hill that housed the tractor that ploughed ole Albion Valley in the springtime. To the left of it grew a tall apple tree and a winding path behind that led down to the waterfall. Then Russell turned straight back to the old barnyard.

By George that’s it!! he cried out!! Barnaby!!....his name shall be Barnaby! …Barnaby Sprout, he said out loud and proud.

Good for you Russell!…that’s a fine name for the young lad, said Peter whilst snapping his fingers in excitement.

Mine’s a girl! We’re calling her Max!

Max? ...that’s no name for a girl, chuckled Russell quietly to himself.

I heard that! snapped Peter.

But before Russell could respond, Peter Theatre was on his way back to his pod where his wife had been frantically waving her hands in the air trying to grab his attention.

Hurry, hurry Russell! Ruby cried out as well. It’s about to begin!

A faint fluttering sound could be heard in the distance. Russell knew this was the beginning and hurried back to his pod where he stood next to Ruby who was waiting patiently. The fluttering started to get louder and louder. It sounded almost like a big bed sheet flapping in the wind. Russell looked up to the sky and there in the distance he saw it. At first it appeared to be a pinkish glow coming from afar.

It’s them, whispered Russell, They’re here.

Ruby ignored him and focused her eyes solely on the top of the pod. She, of course, knew who was coming. In fact every Alumnus knew and a sense of excitement began to show on their faces.

A soft wind began to blow which made the hairs on the back of Russell’s head flutter around as if they were doing some sort of dance. The blob of pink started to grow larger and the wind got stronger. Ruby squeezed her hand into Russell’s, gripping each one of his four fingers tightly. Russell did not seem to mind that half her hair was now blowing all over his face. He seemed fixated on the pink mass approaching Albion Valley. He narrowed his eyes slightly and tried to make out the figures in the distance - and that’s when they all heard it. A loud screeching noise, almost deafening to you and me, but to Alumni it was the sound of joy, for the Flapingo had arrived!

Hundreds and thousands of them flew closer and closer filling the sky whilst screeching at the top of their voices. It really was the most ghastly screech you could ever imagine, but the Alumni seemed to enjoy it, jumping up and down in glee, cheering and waving their hands in the air. The sky was filled with pink almost blotting out the sunlight with only glimpses of rays that made it through their long, pink-webbed arms. Round and round in circles they flew, all in perfect formation, beaks held low, staring at the land beneath them eyeing each and every pod.

What are these creatures you might ask? To be quite honest, creature is the most appropriate name you and I could give them as they seemed to be half-bird, half-beast. The closest resemblance would be to our very own flamingos, but with a few noticeable differences. For one, they do not have feathers. Once upon a time they did, but that eventually changed and they developed a rubber-like body and wings, a bit like a bat. They are tall and pink with a large, curved beak and stick legs with webbed feet. The Flapingo uses its powerful arms and feet to power through the water at tremendous speeds. They were born for the sea and you would rarely see them flying around Asic. This was one of the rare occasions to see them up in the air.

Round and round in a circle they flew, time and again gliding around the valley that stretched out for miles, never taking their eyes off the ground. What could they be waiting for? Whatever it was, they certainly were patient and did not mind flying up there in the air at all.

Salmos!! cried Ruby at the top of her voice, which really was not that loud at all but did have a high pitch to it.

Salmos!!! shouted someone else even louder.

Pretty soon this was echoed by everyone. Salmos! Salmos! SALMOS! Shouts of Salmos filled the air and the Flapingo above reacted back with an even louder screech.

You see salmos is the Flapingo’s favourite food. It was perfected by Ruby many years ago. She used to and sometimes still does make it for Russell while he is sitting on the front porch reading the newspaper.

One day Russell had left his salmos on the table outside while he went in to check on a few things. When he returned, it was gone! Extremely puzzled, he thought that he might have finished it, but he was still hungry so asked Ruby to make him another one and leave it on the table while he checked on a few more things. When he returned to claim his snack, he noticed that it was missing too. Russell knew that someone or something had been stealing his meal and was determined to find out who the culprit was.

So one day whilst sitting on the porch eating his salmos, Russell deliberately left it on the table and went inside to watch from behind the curtains. Russell only had to wait a few seconds when, in complete silence, his own Flapingo popped out, snatched his snack and ran off into the woods nearby.

From that day on Russell knew that these creatures took a liking to this meal and hence each time Alumni celebrate this glorious occasion Ruby would make a whole stash of these delicious treats.

So what exactly is a salmos you may ask?? Put simply, it’s a salmon sandwich with a few extra ingredients added in for that bonus flavour. Flapingo live by the sea and salmon is their favourite meal, so to have it served to them with extra goodness was truly a meal they could not refuse. How did Ruby make this sandwich? It’s simpler than you think and something we humans would truly enjoy.

*****

Recipe One:

This is what you will need:

2 slices of bread (Ruby preferred to use brown bread)

2 slices of smoked salmon (you can buy these in packets from your local supermarket)

1 tomato, sliced to your desired thickness

1 avocado, sliced to your desired thickness

1 bunch of fresh dill (this herb can be found in your local supermarket as well)

Crème cheese spread

Lettuce leaf

Cracked pepper

Directions:

Whack the slices of bread in a toaster for a couple of minutes so that they become nice and hot.

While the bread is being toasted, get the rest of the ingredients ready. Grab a tomato and slice up an avocado as well into thin or thick slices, whichever you prefer. Flapingo loved the thicker ones. To put it together is quite simple.

When the toast is ready put it on a plate and spread each slice with a bit of crème cheese spread. Then put your smoked salmon slices on top of one slice, followed by your fresh tomato and avocado. Now break off a few of the dill leaves and