A Treasury of Curious George Read online

  Yes! It was a party!

  George was happy to see all of his friends. They were glad to see George, too.

  "What great decorations," Bill said.

  "What a lot of presents!" said Betsy.

  "Why don't you play some games with the guests, George?" the man with the yellow hat suggested. "I have one more thing to do."

  When George's friend came back he was carrying a cake covered in candles. This wasn't just any party. It was a birthday party! But George was still curious. Whose birthday was it? He watched to see who would blow out the candles.

  The man with the yellow hat put the cake down right in front of George. That was a surprise! It was George's birthday. The party was for him!

  Everyone sang "Happy Birthday."

  Then George took a deep breath...

  and made a wish.

  "Happy Birthday, George!"

  MARGRET & H.A. REY'S

  Curious George

  Goes Camping

  Illustrated in the style of H. A. Rey by Vipah Interactive

  Houghton Mifflin Company Boston

  This is George.

  He was a good little monkey, and always very curious.

  This weekend George and his friend, the man with the yellow hat, had special plans. They were going camping!

  At the campsite the man with the yellow hat unpacked their gear while George looked at all the tents. He saw tents for big families and one just the right size for a puppy. There were even tents on wheels!

  "Would you like to help me put up our tent, George?" the man asked.

  George was happy to help. It would not be hard to set up a tent, he thought.

  But it wasn't easy!

  "George, why don't you fill our bucket with water at the pump?" his friend suggested. "We'll need it by our campfire later, when we roast marshmallows."

  Mmm, marshmallows.

  George loved marshmallows. He couldn't wait to try them roasted!

  "Now don't wander off and get into trouble," the man warned. But George did not hear him. He was already gone.

  At the pump George worked the handle up and down. Soon his bucket was full. On the way back down the trail, he saw a family packing up.

  George watched a girl pour her bucket of water on a campfire.

  The fire sizzled out.

  George thought that looked like fun!

  He poured his bucket of water on the next campfire.

  "Hey," yelled a camper. "We weren't finished with that yet!" The camper began to chase George. But George didn't mean to cause trouble. Now he only wanted to hide. He ran into the forest as fast as he could, but the camper's footsteps followed close behind. George ran faster and faster. The footsteps came closer and closer until, suddenly,

  they were passing George. Why, it was not the camper chasing George now. It was a deer! What fun to run with a deer! Forgetting all about the camper and the marshmallows, George ran after the deer. But a little monkey cannot run as fast as a deer in the woods. Before long

  George was lost and all alone. He felt tired and stopped to rest. At first he was worried—he was very far from camp. But there were lots

  of other animals to keep him company. He saw a lizard sunning on a rock and a squirrel chattering in a tree. Then he saw the tail of a black and white kitty peeking out from under a bush. He was curious. Would the kitty like to play? George gently pulled the kitty out...

  But it was NOT a kitty!

  It was a skunk—and it was scared. The skunk lifted its tail and sprayed.

  WHEW! The spray smelled awful. The animals tried to get away. George wanted to get away, too. But he could not—the smell was all over him!

  How would he ever get rid of this awful smell? he wondered.

  Too bad he could not take a bath in the woods...

  Then George had an idea. He could wash the smell off in the creek! George jumped into the cold water.

  He splashed and scrubbed.

  But he was still smelly. And now he was wet, too.

  But what could he do? George thought and thought. If he climbed up a tree to dry off, would the smell blow away?

  No. Even dry and high up in the tree, George did not smell better. Poor George. He wished he hadn't wandered so far from camp. He wished he were roasting marshmallows with his friend. Suddenly George heard footsteps heading toward him. Someone was coming!

  It was the forest animals! But they ran right by him. They had seen something scary. And George saw it, too. It was a fire!

  George had gotten into trouble for putting out one fire, but this fire wasn't in the campground...

  This was an emergency!

  Quickly, George climbed down the tree and grabbed his bucket. He scooped it full of water in the creek.

  Then—being careful not to spill—he climbed back up and swung from branch to branch through the trees.

  When George got close enough to the fire, he reached down and poured the water on the flames. Out went the fire with a big hiss!

  Just then George's friend rushed out of the forest with a ranger.

  "George," he called, "I was afraid you would be here."

  "It's a good thing you were here, George," the ranger said. "We saw smoke from the campground, but you put this fire out just in time."

  George was glad to help. And the man with the yellow hat was glad to see that George was safe. But he had a funny look on his face.

  "George," he asked, "what is that smell?"

  Back at the campsite, George's friend helped him get rid of the awful smell. After a strange bath in tomato juice, George smelled fine.

  Then the man with the yellow hat invited the ranger to cook dinner with them over their own small campfire.

  "Fires can be nice, if you're careful," said the ranger.

  George agreed.

  Especially for roasting marshmallows.

  MARGRET & H.A. REY'S

  Curious George

  Goes to a Costume Party

  Illustrated in the style of H. A. Rey by Martha Weston

  Houghton Mifflin Company Boston

  This is George.

  He was a good little monkey and always very curious.

  One day George and his friend, the man with the yellow hat, were on their way to a party at Mrs. Gray's house.

  George could not wait. He liked parties, and he was looking forward to seeing Mrs. Gray. But when the door opened George did not see Mrs. Gray at all—he saw a witch!

  "Don't be afraid, George," said the man with the yellow hat. "This witch is our friend."

  The witch took off her mask. It was Mrs. Gray after all! "Oh dear," she said, "did I forget to tell you this was a costume party?"

  George had never been to a costume party before. Inside he saw more people that he knew. They were all wearing costumes. There was his friend Betsy dressed up like an astronaut. And was that Bill? Why, he looked just like a mummy!

  George wanted to wear a costume, too.

  "I have some dress-up clothes upstairs," said Mrs. Gray. "Would you like to use them to make a costume, George?"

  Mrs. Gray took George to a room with a big trunk filled with clothes.

  "Borrow anything you like, George," she said. "I have just the thing for your friend downstairs."

  George tried on lots of costumes.

  The first was too big.

  The next was too small.

  Another was too silly.

  And this one was too scary!

  At last George found a costume that was just right. George was a rodeo cowboy! He wore a vest and pants with fringe. He even had a lasso and a hat!

  If only he could see himself in the mirror.

  George was curious. Could he see himself if he stood on the bed?

  No. He needed to jump higher.

  George bounced on the bed—just a little—but still he couldn't see.

  He bounced a little more, and a little more.

  Soon George was having so much fun he forgot all about looking in t
he mirror. He bounced as high as he could until—

  CRASH!—George bounced off the bed.

  He smashed into the night table and got tangled up in the tablecloth.

  Suddenly everything went dark.

  George heard the people downstairs gasp, "What was that?"

  "Was that a ghost?"

  A ghost?! George did not want to meet up with a ghost alone. He dashed out of the room and down the hall. He wanted to get back to his friend in a hurry and he knew the fastest way.

  He hopped onto the stair rail and sailed—WHOOSH!—down the stairs.

  "It is a ghost!" someone screamed. Everyone turned. They looked scared, and they were looking at George. The ghost must be right behind him!

  George flew off the rail and landed—PLOP!—in the arms of a farmer. But this wasn't really a farmer. It was his friend, the man with the yellow hat!

  Soon everyone stopped looking scared and started to laugh.

  "That's not a ghost. That's a cowboy!" laughed a policeman.

  "That's not a cowboy. That's a monkey!" giggled a princess.

  "That's not just any monkey," said Betsy. "It's Curious George!"

  Everyone clapped and cheered. They liked George's Halloween trick.

  "You gave us a good scare, George," said Mrs. Gray. "And I'm glad to see you found some interesting costumes. Now why don't I take your ghost outfit so you can join the party?"

  After the guests bobbed for apples, lit jack-o'-lanterns, and played some party games, prizes for the best costumes were handed out.

  There was one prize for Betsy, and one for Bill, and two for Curious George.

  "You were the best ghost and the best cowboy, George," said Mrs. Gray.

  Everyone had a good time at the party, especially George.

  Too soon it was time to say goodbye.

  "Good night, George."

  Happy Halloween!

  MARGRET & H.A. REY'S

  Curious George

  Visits the Library

  Illustrated in the style of H. A. Rey by Martha Weston

  Houghton Mifflin Company Boston

  This is George.

  He was a good little monkey and always very curious.

  Today George and his friend the man with the yellow hat were at the library.

  George had never been to the library before. He had never seen so many books before, either. Everywhere he looked, people were reading.

  Some people read quietly to themselves.

  But in the children's room the librarian was reading out loud.

  It was story hour!

  George loved stories. He sat down with a group of children to listen.

  The librarian was reading a book about a bunny.

  George liked bunnies.

  Behind the librarian was a book about a dinosaur. George liked dinosaurs even more. He hoped she would read it next.

  But next the librarian read a book about a train.

  George tried to sit quietly and wait for the dinosaur book to be read.

  But sometimes it is hard for a little monkey to be patient.

  When the librarian started a story about jungle animals, George could not wait any longer. He had to see the dinosaur book.

  He tiptoed closer.

  "Look, a monkey!" shouted a girl.

  The librarian put her finger to her lips. "We must be quiet so everyone can hear," she said nicely.

  "But there's a monkey!" said a boy.

  The librarian nodded and smiled. "Mmm-hmm," she agreed.

  When she finished reading the jungle story, the librarian reached for the dinosaur book.

  Where did it go?

  And where was George?

  George was all ready to take the dinosaur book home and read it with his friend when another book caught his eye...

  This book was about trucks. George wanted to take it home, too! And here was a book about elephants. George loved elephants. He added it to his pile.

  George found so many good books, he soon had more than he could carry. He leaned against a shelf to rest.

  Squeak, went the shelf.

  "Shhh!" said a man.

  Squeak, went the shelf again—and it moved! Why, it wasn't really a shelf after all. George had found a special cart for carrying books.

  What luck! Now George could carry all the books he wanted.

  He rolled the cart between the shelves and stacked up books about boats and kites and baking cakes. He climbed higher to reach books about cranes and planes.

  At last George had all the books he could handle. He couldn't wait to head home and start reading. And right in front of him was a ramp leading to the door. George was curious. Could he roll the cart all the way home?

  Down the ramp George went. The cart rolled faster and faster.

  "Stop!" a library volunteer shouted. "Come back here with my cart!"

  But George was too excited to listen. The cart was picking up speed, and George was having fun!

  Until—CRASH!—George and the cart ran smack into a shelf of encyclopedias.

  Books flew up in the air.

  And so did George! He landed in a big pile right between O and P.

  "Oh no!" moaned the volunteer when he saw the mess George had made. "How am I going to put away all of these books?"

  "I'd like to borrow this one," said a boy from story hour.

  "And I'll take this one," said a girl.

  With help from George and the children, the books were sorted in no time. Soon there was just a small pile of George's favorites left.

  "Would you like to take those books home with you?" the volunteer asked George. Then he took George to a special desk and helped him get his very own library card.

  George was holding his brand-new card when his friend arrived with a stack of books of his own. "There you are, George!" he said. "I see you are all ready to check out."

  George and his friend gave their books to the librarian.

  She smiled when she saw George's pile. "I was wondering where this dinosaur book went," she said. "It's one of my favorites, too."

  The librarian stamped the books and handed them back to George.

  With his books under one arm, George waved goodbye to the volunteer, the librarian, and the children from story hour.

  "Come see us again, George," the librarian said, waving back. "Enjoy your books!"

  And he did.

  The end.

  Curious George

  in the Big City

  Illustrated in the style of H. A. Rey by Martha Weston

  Houghton Mifflin Company Boston

  This is George.

  He lived with his friend the man with the yellow hat. He was a good little monkey and always very curious.

  Today George was in the big city.

  "Let's stop here, George," his friend suggested. "I would like to get you a holiday surprise before we see the sights."

  George loved surprises. He wanted to get a surprise for the man with the yellow hat, too. Why, here was a whole pile of surprises—all ready to go! Would one of these be right for his friend?

  George was curious.

  He opened a box and peeked inside. The box was empty. (That was not a good surprise!)

  George opened another box, and another.

  They were all empty!

  Suddenly the store clerk came running. "Stop! Please!" he cried. "You are ruining my display!"

  But George did not want to stop. He wanted to go. He wanted to get away—fast! Quickly, he climbed on the escalator. George went up. The clerk went up, too.

  What George wanted now was to find his friend. What luck! George spotted a yellow hat on the escalator going down. Could that be his friend?

  George wanted to find out. Soon he was going down, too.

  George followed the yellow hat out of the store and around the corner.

  He chased it down some stairs. Where could his friend be going? Was this George's surprise?

  No, this was the subway!
r />   George got on the train just in time. He thought maybe his friend was playing a game with him. But where was the man now? George looked around. The train was very crowded. Could that be him on the other end of the subway car? It might be hard to get there...

  but not too hard for a little monkey!

  Suddenly the train stopped—and when the doors opened, the yellow hat disappeared. George followed as quickly as he could,