Don’t miss the boat! Dive into this watery issue of Cricket!

Do you prefer to take it easy when you feel pooped? Do you like your food piping hot? In this month’s Cricket, you’ll learn how these and other common expressions come down to us from the days of sailing ships and pirates. You’ll also enjoy “The Pirate King,” a story about a tough cat who lives by the sea. Even the bugs get their sea legs when they hunt for pirate treasure. Arrr!

In “Stage Fright” you’ll read about a boy who overcomes his fear of performing before an audience. And you’ll be inspired by two stories of true heroes: “Mary on Horseback” about Mary Breckinridge, who saved lives throughout rural Kentucky when she founded the Frontier Nursing Service; and the conclusion of  “The Girl from the Tarpaper School,” the story of high-school junior Barbara Johns, a Civil Rights pioneer who in 1951 led a student strike against segregated facilities in her town in rural Virginia.

There’s a new poetry contest, a puzzle, and of course, some interesting and wise words from Old Cricket. The coast is clear for adventure in this month’s Cricket!