Stink and the Midnight Zombie Walk Read Online Free PDF Page A

Zombie Friendship. You know, because zombies always stick together and travel in packs.”
     

     
    “Why did you put tape over the campfire badge?” asked Webster.
     
    “Duh! Because zombies hate fire!”
     
    “Zool,” said Stink. “What time do they zopen the doors?”
     
    “Nine o’clock zharp,” said Dad, checking his watch.
     
    “What time is it now?”
     
    “Eight fifty,” said Dad. “Ten more minutes.”
     
    “Zen more minutes,” said Stink. “That’s like an hour in kid years.” He pressed his nose to the window of the bookstore. “Just think, in ten minutes, I’ll be holding Nightmare on Zombie Street, Book Number Five, in my very own hands. In ten minutes, I’ll be reading the actual brand-spanking-new, just-released, way-official
Creature with the Cootie Brain
.”
     
    “Your brain has cooties,” said Judy.
     
    “What time is it now?” Stink asked Dad.
     
    “Eight fifty-three,” said Dad.
     
    “And twenty-two zeconds,” said Mom.
     
    Stink waved his hands at the front door of the bookstore. “Open Zombie!” he commanded. The keys in the front door went
jingle, jingle
. The door went
click
!
     
    “Wow, I must have super magic zombie powers,” said Stink.
     
    “Welcome to the Midnight Zombie Walk!” said the bookstore lady.
     
    “Cootie brains, here I come,” said Stink. He, along with crowds of other kids, pushed through the doors. “Is this zombie rush hour or something?”
     
    “Or something,” said Judy. She reached up to steady her Bridezilla wig.
     
    While they waited, Stink and Judy spotted B.O.B. at the back of the bookstore. B.O.B. was wrapped in a big green bow.
     
    When it was Stink’s turn, he sat Charlie Zombie on the counter and made him talk: “Zombie. Want. Book!” Charlie moaned at the bookstore clerk.
     
    “He’d like Book Number Five, please,” Judy said, translating.
     
    The bookstore lady handed a brand-spanking-new book to Stink. Stink handed over his money.
     
    “Whoa!
Creature with a Cootie Brain
!” Stink sang. He could not help doing a little ‘I got it’ dance with his feet. Then he held the book to his nose and took a whiff.
     
    “Stink. You’re smelling a book,” said Judy.
     
    “So? New book smell is the best.”
     

     
    “Don’t forget your
free
zombie cootie catcher,” said the bookstore lady. “Zombies use them to catch human cooties before they eat your brains.”
     
    “Zank you,” said Stink.
     
    Nightmare on Zombie Street, Book Five.
Creature with the Cootie Brain.
Page One.
A strange darkness fell over Zombie Street.
. . .
     
    For ten minutes, a strange quiet fell over the bookstore. Zombies short and tall, cheerleader to cowboy, had their noses in books. Big zombies read to little zombies. Dad and Mom zombies read quietly to kid zombies.
     
    Stink could not stop reading Book Number Five.
Fred went pale. Hoodoo and Voodoo clutched each other. “This is your last warning,” said Gilgamesh. “Beware the Creature with the cootie brain!”
     
    Stink finished chapter 1.
     
    Ding ding ding!
“Attention, everybody! May I have your attention!” said the bookstore lady. “I have an important announcement to make. I’ve just been told that one of our local schools, Virginia Dare Elementary, has reached one million minutes of reading!”
     
    The crowd went wild. Zombies clapped and whooped and hollered.
     
    Stink’s teacher, Mrs. Dempster, stood up. “To any Virginia Dare students here tonight, your teachers are proud of you. You’ve all worked really hard. Your parents are proud of you, too, but no one is prouder tonight than Ms. Tuxedo, the principal of Virginia Dare Elementary.”
     
    A buzz went through the crowd.
     
    “Where is she?”
     
    “Where’s the principal?”
     
    “Ms. Tuxedo could not be here with us tonight,” Mrs. Dempster continued.
     
    “Awww!” everybody yelled.
     
    Mrs. D. walked over to B.O.B. “So she has asked me to do the honors on her behalf, and open