Tube World

By David Swanson and Shane Burke

Did you know the center of the Earth was hollow? Do you know the words that can take you there, if you're under the covers in your swimming suit and prepared for the trip? Can you imagine traveling anywhere in the world where there's a swimming pool -- and being home again in time for breakfast? If you haven't been to Tube World yet, this book will tell you the secrets you need to know. And it will tell you about some children who discovered Tube World and used it to make the whole world a better place.

• Language: English
• Publisher: eBookIt.com
• Release date: Apr 26, 2016
• ISBN: 9781456610524

Book preview

suits!"--Hallie

PART I: SINKING ISLANDS

1. Talking in the Waves

One summer, Wesley’s family spent a week at the beach in Delaware. His cousins Hallie and Travis, and their parents, came too. The three children had endless fun riding bicycles, zipping down waterslides, riding on amusement park rides, and — above all — playing on the beach, digging holes in the sand, constructing sand castles, and jumping into the water to ride the waves on boogie boards. When dolphins swam by, Wesley would swim underwater to listen to the squeaky noises they made to talk to each other.

Hallie and Travis were Wesley’s only cousins and his favorite people to play with in the whole world. They were also the ones who had introduced him to Tube World. Hallie was the oldest, then Travis, with Wesley the youngest of the three. When Hallie said she had something important to tell her brother and her little cousin, right away Wesley would stop acting silly and listen carefully. Travis, who might have heard it already, or who just didn’t feel like listening to his sister, was a little harder to focus.

This is important, Hallie said. Travis, are you listening? Travis was filling a cup with wet sand and trying to turn it upside down on the top of his head to create a sand castle hat.

Travis! his big sister said. This is very important.

So is this, said Travis. I’m going to create the world’s first biodegradable hats that crabs can live in.

Wesley began laughing at Travis, and Hallie saw that she was about to lose her cousin’s attention too.

Wesley and Travis, she said quietly. I have to talk to you about . . . and she whispered: Tube World.

The two boys immediately paid complete attention. The three kids walked out, knee-deep into the ocean. Nobody else was close enough to hear them over the roar of the waves if they spoke softly.

Do you see this ocean? said Hallie, enjoying the fact that the boys were finally listening to her.

Yes. Yes.

It’s higher than it used to be. It’s only a few inches higher, but it’s going to get higher and higher and higher. It’s going to rise more and more quickly than it’s been rising. By the time people can see the difference, it will be about to rise very high. By the time the beach is in danger of disappearing, the boardwalk and the street will be in danger of disappearing too. Do you understand?

Because of melting icebergs, said Travis.

"If they all melt it’ll be safe for the Titanic to sail," said Wesley, who had recently learned about the famous ship that had struck an iceberg and sunk to the bottom of the ocean. Wesley wanted to build a new Titanic.

No, said Hallie. "It won’t be safe for anything. We’re turning the whole world into the Titanic. I want to show you, and we have to use Tube World to see it. When is your next Tube World trip, Wes?"

Wesley said it was next Tuesday, after he got back home to Virginia from Delaware.

Wesley’s mom was calling to the three children from the beach. She was saying something about soft ice cream. It would look suspicious for them to ignore soft ice cream, and they didn’t want to ignore it.

O.K., said Hallie to her little cousin, speaking very quickly. When you are passing through the center of the Earth on the way back to bed on Tuesday, schedule your next trip for one week later, the next Tuesday, at 1:36 a.m. Eastern Time Wednesday morning. You’ll go to Maldives tube 3047. Got it?

Wesley whispered it to himself three times. Got it, he said. Tube trips didn’t have to be scheduled ahead of time, but it guaranteed no waiting — always helpful if trying to travel as a group.

We’re coming! Hallie shouted.

2. Can an Island Sink?

That next Tuesday night, Wesley set his silent vibrating alarm watch for 1:35 a.m. in the middle of the night. When the watch woke him up, Wesley did exactly what Travis had taught him to do. When Wesley had turned six years old, Travis had told him the secret of Tube World.

Wesley changed into his swimming suit and nothing else. He hid his pajamas. He left a note for his parents, just in case. He crawled under the covers, shutting out all light. At exactly 1:36 he whispered Sebut Nepo.

WHAM! There was nothing under Wesley’s feet, and he was falling fast — faster than a race car or a roller coaster, faster than spinning on a ride at the park that usually made Wesley dizzy. But this was dizzier. Wesley was falling like a rock through a bright, shiny tube at 100 miles per second. The air was blowing his hair straight up. It felt like it was blowing his skin up too. Wesley was totally out of control. But he knew he would be all right.

After 33 seconds, Wesley entered the center of the Earth, feet-first. He slowed down but was still moving very quickly. He was inside a giant sphere full of air. The inside surface of the sphere was made up of the round openings for 5,607 billion tubes. Some of the tube entrances were closed off with rubber trampolines. Wesley aimed his feet for a trampoline a little to his right and bounced.

Then Wesley looked quickly above his head. His eyes scanned the names of the open tubes. He found one labeled Maldives 3047. Wesley stuck his hands into the tube, followed by his head, shoulders, and the rest of him. A half a minute later, Wesley took a breath and closed his mouth just in time.

Wesley shot up from the bottom of a swimming pool. He swam towards the surface. It didn’t take much effort, as he was already moving so fast. But Wesley spotted his big cousin Hallie’s feet right above him. There was nothing to do but tickle!

When