Bruny Youth Stories Prize

CHAPTER ONE: THE BEGINNING 
Hello. My name is Lily. I'm a Blue Wren and I live near cabin 4 at the Captain Cook Caravan Park  on Bruny Island. One day I was at my home in Adventure Bay. I was hopping around the campsite,  hoping for a few crumbs from the visitors* when Mama screamed “Look out behind you!” I spun  around, just in time to see a dog charging towards me. I quickly jumped out of the way and flew up  to my nest. “Woof, woof” barked the dog, trying to get up into the tree. I turned back around to see  my Mama being carried away in the dog's paws! I called to my friend Honey, a dog that belongs to  the owners of the caravan park, and who is my friend. Honey chased the stray, but the stray was  strong and fast from living in the wild, and he easily out ran Honey.  
 

CHAPTER TWO: THE BEGINNING FROM A DIFFERENT POINT OF VIEW 
Hello. My name is... well, actually, I don't have a name yet, but I'm a puppy. You see, I was only  born a few days ago. Suddenly, mum barks “Look out behind you!” I spin around, to see a hyooman bean (sorry, human being), coming towards me. I quickly jump out of the way, and grip the ground  with my paws. “It's alright” soothes the hyoo- sorry, human, trying to pick me up. I turn around to  see my mum being taken away in another human's hands. I call to my friend Milly, a poodle. She  runs after the human, but can't catch him. 
 

CHAPTER THREE: DISCOVERIES 
I wake up the next morning. Something feels different. Then I remember. The dog. Mama. Gone. I  wish everything was normal again. I want Mama back. My dog friends Honey and Milly come over. (Milly is another one of my dog friends. She also belongs to the owners of the caravan park).  “I'm sorry about your Mama” says Milly. “I once knew a dog who had a similar thing happen to  him. His name was... well, actually, he didn't have a name.”  
“What was he like?” I ask eagerly.  
“He had big brown eyes, brown shaggy fur, and a white patch around one eye.” Milly says. Honey  and I look at each other. “The stray!” we both say.  
*
 

We set off to look for the stray dog. Eventually we find him under the Captain Cook Creek bridge.  He says he'll give Mama back, if he can come and live at the campsite. So now he lives here with  us. We're all friends now, and Milly and the Stray (who we now call Captain) are going to have  puppies! 

*I dunno why they give me crumbs. They taste good, though (the crumbs, not the people. And especially when they have red gooey stuff on them) (again, the crumbs, not the people). 
 

Winners of the Bruny Youth Story Prize will be announced at The Bruny Island Bird Festival on Sunday, the 22nd of March at 12 pm in the Adventure Bay hall. This prize is proudly brought to you by The Bruny Kids and Nature Project, led by Claire Boost and the Tasmanian Community Fund.