Page Title

This story is half truth and half fiction. The characters and animals in the book are real and the garden does exist, so without giving too much of the story away you will have to read it to the very end to find out the 'Mystery of the Tree Top.'

Chapter One

It just so happened to be, that Sam loved to stay with his Granny and Grandad, who had a large overgrown garden

full of trees of every description. There were apple trees, plum trees, holly and fir trees, just to mention a few.

Grandad parked his tractor and trailers there, and logs that he and Sam's Dad sold in the winter.

The garden was the home of several woodland animals and birds, they felt so happy and at home there. First of all there was Bobtail the Rabbit, who lived in the wood-pile, which had been stacked up with lengths of wood for the winter.

Secondly, Freddy the Fox, who had a den in the hedge beside a hole that Brock, the Badger had dug, to make a 'Set' where he could live.

Under a big flat stone, lived Toady, Mr Mole with his wife, Molly and Sammy Shrew with his family. In the treetops lived all the birds that you could possible think of. Bobby Redbreast, the Robin, Squawky the Crow, Mr and Mrs Blue-tit, Beady Eye the Hawk, Ollie the Owl, who lived just over the hedge in the large oak tree with Hazel the Squirrel and many more.

Chapter Two

Christmas was just around the corner. The shops were full of toys and sweets, and the sparkling lights of all shapes and colours lit the dull wintry street that ran alongside the garden.

Ollie Owl was very wise and intelligent, he came up with this rather unusual but brilliant idea.

"Why don't we have a Christmas party? Everyone else does, so I don't see why we shouldn't."

All the other animals agreed and said it would be such fun, so they decided to have a meeting and arrange it. They all gathered together at seven o'clock the next evening, sat around in a circle, under the apple tree, and Ollie chaired the meeting.

Chapter Three

"We need food for the party," said Ollie, blinking one eye.

"Oh, that's easy," butted in Bobtail and started to blurt out all the conceivable foods he could think of that were in the garden.

"We have apples that have fallen down and late blackberries. Then moving on to Grandad's vegetable patch we have juicy carrots and cabbages."

"And Granny always fills up the peanut cages when Christmas is near," chirped Mrs Blue-tit, who actually added them up.

Hazel said, "I could provide some hazelnuts that I have gathered down at the bottom of the tree for my winter collection."

"Ollie suggested, "What about you Freddie, you are good at getting eggs from the hen house on the next farm, aren't you? I am sure Farmer Brown wouldn't mind, just for the party."

"No problem," replied Freddie, twitching his nose and whiskers and scratching his ear.

"I can easily take a bag from the shed and nuzzle out some out some eggs into it with my nose and I will do better than that! I will tale a plastic bag too and dip it into the warm milk churn just after the cows have been milked.

"Yum yum," snorted Brock the Badger. "I am feeling hungry already and my mouth is watering so much that I have started dribbling."

"That's the food sorted out," said Ollie, tucking a large feather that he had been making a note with under his wing .

"We need music," said Thistle the Thrush, who loved to sing. "Can't have a party without music."

"No problem," warbled Mrs Blackbird, who also liked a singsong. " All the birds of the air can sing together to provide the music, it's called the 'Dawn Chorus' you know."

"Wonderful." replied Ollie.

"Next, the trimmings. Any suggestions?" asked Ollie.

Jenny Wren piped up in her small voice, "There are plenty of decorations in the old shed in the corner of he garden; I spotted them when I was in there looking for a place to make my nest." It was a dilapidated old shed but full of old treasures.

"There is blue and orange binding cord and straw that will shine in the moonlight, as this is what will be providing our light with the help of the sparkling stars," continued Jenny Wren.

"There is also some shiny silver paper and bags with pretty pictures on them, which Granny keeps to put her runner beans in, and what about the holly trees? They have a lot of ruby red berries on them," squawked Squawky.

"Brilliant" answered Ollie, "all the birds can hang the trimmings on the tops of the trees, to gently blow in the wind."

At that moment one of Grandad's bees from the hives in the garden landed on the holly and buzzed, "Hang on folks. You have forgotten us. We might be small but there is an army of us. We can bring some honey to the party, and act as bouncers, with a sting such as we have, unwanted guests will run for miles."

"That's the food and decorations sorted out, now for the games."

" I know! "suggested Hazel, "We can hide some of my nuts to find."

"And a lovely bright orange carrot!" Bobtail added.

"One of Freddy's eggs too," said Ollie, " but we'll have to handle it carefully, so as not to break it" he added.

" What about a lovely shiny pebble?" squawked Squawky the Crow, " I have seen a beauty on the driveway, glimmering in the sunshine."

"Excellent" said Ollie, " I think I have seen the same one glisten in the moonlight when I have been flying over the drive at night. I think that will be enough objects to be hidden away now," decided Ollie. So he nominated Hazel Squirrel to hide them all, as it was her idea.

"Everything organised?" Molly the Mole asked as she gave a heavy sigh of relief. She was feeling rather sleepy now, as it was her bedtime.

"Not quite" said Ollie, who loved to be in charge; "One thing has slipped our minds. The invitations!!"

"We'll soon sort that out" said Mr. Mole, putting his paw around Molly's neck, to comfort her. "We can squash some of the late blackberries to make some gorgeous red ink."

"Bobby can write neatly with that feather, it fell out when she was preening her feathers while listening to all that's been going on."

All out of the blue, Goldie the Goldfinch, whom you seldom saw as she was so shy, twittered, "May I ask what she will write the invitations on?"

"Easy peasy," replied Brock the Badger, "there are plenty of big brown dried-up old oak leaves that have fallen off the tree now that it's winter. I have been walking over them every day on my way to search for food."

"Oh yes!" shrieked Bobby with delight, getting quite excited, "I'll do that with pleasure."

"Now that really is all," stated Ollie, closing the meeting. "Work may commence tomorrow at dawn, and make sure that no one is left out Bobby! Everyone has to have an invitation."

Chapter Four

The next day arrived and all the preparations for the party began. It took all day for everything to be put into place. It was then decided that everyone should go home for a well deserved rest and wait for the moon to come up at seven o'clock when the party would then commence.

The moon started to rise and the stars in the clear sky started to twinkle and sparkle. One by one the animals and birds started to arrive, for the party in the garden under an apple tree.

"Right," said Ollie, taking over again, "is everyone here that is supposed to be here? Can anyone notice if someone is missing?"

"Well," said Bobtail, stroking his long fluffy ear, "only Mr and Mrs Snail and Timothy the Tortoise from down by the farm pool aren't here, but they are so slow that they always arrive last, in fact they are so slow that they could n't even catch a cold," he joked...