The Adventures of Captain Kizzy and the Grapes

By Paul Graham

Paul Graham is a 40 year old man who lives in Edinburgh. He was born in Dundee in Scotland and lived in Arbroath until the age of six. At the age of twelve Paul sadly developed a condition called Hydrocephalus. The word comes from the Greek meaning watery head. Hydrocephalus is an abnormal accumulation of cerebrospinal fluid inside the brain. Paul has two shunts in his head due to this condition and it has left him with some brain damage.

On top of this Paul is totally blind.

Paul enjoys playing guitar and writing songs and is a devoted fan of the late Elvis Presley. Paul is also a loyal Celtic supporter.

As a Christian Paul is concerned about the poverty in the world; and he is firmly opposed to war and violence.

Captain Kizzy and the Grapes is not only an exceptionally charming book, and a credit to any writer of childrens stories, but it is an extraordinary achievement for someone with Paul Grahams disabilities.

• Language: English
• Publisher: AuthorHouse UK
• Release date: Jun 7, 2006
• ISBN: 9781481783446

Paul Graham

Paul Graham is Lecturer in Politics at the University of Glasgow.

Book preview

THE GRAPE HOUSE

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Deep in the heart of Grapeland is a little place known as Orchard Hollow. It is there that you can see the big house called the ‘Grape house’. This is where the Grape family live with their pet, our cat friend Kizzy. The Grapes are a fine bunch. They look after Kizzy with a lot of love and care. The top seed is Daddy Grape and he is married to Mummy. Mummy and Daddy also have three small pips, Terry, Annie and Dolly. You might spot that the girls are purple and the boys are green. In this book you will find out more about them and their house. At the back of the Grape house is a secret garden where Kizzy has her adventures; and she has some exciting tales to tell you.

DADDY GRAPE

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This is Daddy Grape, the head of the family. Daddy wants to be successful and have a happy life. No wonder that he works so hard for a living as a jam maker. Monday to Friday he goes to the jam factory in Orchard Hollow to do his job. In the morning from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. Daddy treads the grapes with his clean, bare feet. Daddy Grape squashes every grape right down to the juice. He then takes an hour off to eat his lunch. After his lunch of sandwiches and grape juice he works for another three hours from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. During the afternoon he fills the empty jars with the tasty grape jam. Then the jars are taken in the grape van to Orchard Hollow market where the jam is sold. This is how Daddy Grape makes his living.

At 4 o’clock after a very busy day, Daddy Grape goes home to the Grape house. Daddy Grape has his dinner and then puts both feet up and has a well earned rest. Sometimes he cleans out the goldfish bowl giving the fish fresh water and fresh food. Daddy then watches some TV and listens to his Elvis and Beatles’ CDs.

MUMMY GRAPE

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Mummy takes good care of the Grape house. Each day means cleaning, washing, ironing and cooking for her family. Mummy enjoys doing the chores and is very proud of the house. The Grapes and the Grape house are the envy of Orchard Hollow. Mummy makes sure the children look spick and span in their neat clothes. When she has spare time she also checks Daddy to see if he’s alright. But Daddy knows how to take care of himself and only needs some help. After doing her chores, if she has some time to spare, Mummy Grape potters around in the garden. It’s something that she loves to do. Mummy tends to the flowers, the plants and the vegetables and often cuts the grass. The Grape garden is such a lovely garden.

Mummy Grape also does the shopping.

TERRY GRAPE

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This is Terry, the oldest pip and only boy of the Grape family. Terry is like most boys, as he likes to play football and watch television rather than do his homework. But Terry knows his homework must be done before he can go out to play games with his friends. He’s a good pip and wants to be clever at school, so he listens to the teacher and tries hard at his lessons. Terry’s best subject is reading and he reads every book that his Mummy and Daddy allow him to read. Like most boys of his age he likes to keep fit and take care of himself. His favourite drinks are milk and fresh fruit juice, as he knows that too much fizzy juice and sugary drinks are bad for his teeth.

ANNIE GRAPE

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This is Annie Grape. Annie is the pip in the middle and is only five years old. She is not like the other Grapes as she is very skinny and looks more like a raisin. She likes to help Mummy Grape with the daily chores.

Annie’s best subject at school is maths; and she likes to count everything. She counts all the flowers in the garden, all the windows in the houses and tries to count all the