The Trouble With Jake (The Farting Snake!)

By Steven Holt

Jake is a rattlesnake with a grave disability- born without a rattle! After all, the name rattlesnake says it all! Poor Jake has to endure teasing from his friends when he attends “Rattlesnake School” to learn the ways of being a rattlesnake. Upon arrival, poor Jake is even more depressed to find out that the mean old Rattlesnake School Drill Sergeant has kicked him out for not having a rattle!
Despondent, he slithers home where his mother comforts him. She even opens up and shows him that, she too, was once considered “abnormal” due to the fact that she had only one fang! Jake goes back to school with confidence and succeeds in answering one of the toughest questions posed to the students- what makes rattlesnakes so special? Jake comes up with the correct answer and is deemed a hero for the day! However, upon graduation Jake realizes he’s still an outcast in the reptile society due to his physical “disability.”
He grows up in the world of the desert and runs into some unexpected conundrums; namely, not getting squished by the bigger animals tromping through the undergrowth. One day, when Jake was out on a trail passing up other, younger snakes out looking for food, they are caught in the worst kind of predicament- a cattle stampede! Not being able to rattle his tail and scare the herd away like a regular rattlesnake, Jake tries his best to jump up high and yell at the top of his lungs to get their attention and divert the herd. However, being low to the ground, as he gulps in a big breath of air to make his yell heard, he sucks in some bugs and gunk. This, in turn, agitates his tummy and, at the last second, he jumps up to scream but instead emits a loud fart!!
This bit of bad air and the loud noise scares the cow herd into stopping moments before trampling the snakes. Jake is deemed a hero of the animal world and his mother is so proud of him as he has overcome one of the worst disabilities a rattlesnake could have. He then realizes that it’s not what you don’t have in life, but what you do have! And in Jake’s case, it’s just a bad case of gas....
But, hey, whatever works!

• Language: English
• Publisher: Steven Holt
• Release date: Nov 15, 2012
• ISBN: 9781301645152

Steven Holt

Steven was born and raised in Los Altos, a suburb of San Jose, California in the now famous "Silicon Valley." He graduated from San Jose State University with a Master's degree equivalent and taught Special Education in college as an Adjunct Professor and also was a counselor at the California School for the Deaf as well as an Interpreter for the Deaf, wrestling coach and sports official. He currently lives in Fallbrook, California with his dog. He enjoys road racing motorcycles, herpetology and has written various books including children's and fiction. He is also one of the top free-lance writers in America. He has won several literary awards in poetry.

Book preview

THE TROUBLE WITH JAKE

(The Farting Snake!)

Copyright 2005 TXu001240722

Published by Steven E. Holt at Smashwords

Artwork by Steve Cooney

Edited by Mike Ross

Cover Design Consultant - Tristan Curnow

Formatted by eBooksMade4You

* * *

Smashwords Edition, License Notes

This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to Smashwords.com and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

* * *

THE TROUBLE WITH JAKE

(The Farting Snake!)

Nestled under a flat rock, protected from the hot June sun, a mother rattlesnake was giving birth to a clutch of wiggly, squiggly babies. Just like mammals, rattlesnakes have live births, not eggs like most other reptiles or birds.

As the last little baby was delivered, and exhausted mama rattlesnake gave a big sigh of relief. How many are there?, she asked her friends who were carefully rounding up the little ones. Hard to tell, replied Miss Ruffles, a young Diamondback with the most beautiful markings this side of the Mississippi. She, like the other female rattlers, had come over to the den to help with the birth. I count twelve!, said Susie Sidewinder. They're all tangled up in a ball but I've been counting heads for ten minutes. I wish they'd all just sit still for a moment, an exhausted Penelope Prairie Rattlesnake moaned.

It seemed as if the ball a little snakes was one continuous squirming pile of movement. The other rattlesnakes helped to gently separate each baby from the mass and looked them all over