Quit Bugging Me

Thirteen-year-old Emily hated the bug book with its gigantic millipede under the title. She hated it so much that just looking at it gave her the creeps. It appeared so gross, so life-like it was unnerving. She wanted absolutely nothing to do with it! So, of course her mischievous older brother, Bud, decided to hide it under her pillow. He figured it would be his brotherly duty to have his sister wake up nestled above the book - jam-packed with millions of disgusting bugs-all night. What Bud didn't realize, however was that those pages upon pages of bugs looked incredibly realistic for a very good, and terrifying reason. The truth is that this book had legs, and wings, and teeth, and bulging eyes, and flitting antenna and slime -and the power to attack children from inside -- and out. And thanks to Bud's antics, unlucky Emily discovered it first-hand. If Emily, Bud, and their teen friends don't uncover what the book really is, and how to untangle themselves from the bizarre bug book world, they could end up completely buggy. Or dead.

Thirteen-year-old Emily hated the bug book with its gigantic millipede under the title. She hated it so much that just looking at it gave her the creeps. It appeared so gross, so life-like it was unnerving. She wanted absolutely nothing to do with it! So, of course her mischievous older brother, Bud, decided to hide it under her pillow. He figured it would be his brotherly duty to have his sister wake up nestled above the book - jam-packed with millions of disgusting bugs-all night. What Bud didn't realize, however was that those pages upon pages of bugs looked incredibly realistic for a very good, and terrifying reason. The truth is that this book had legs, and wings, and teeth, and bulging eyes, and flitting antenna and slime -and the power to attack children from inside -- and out. And thanks to Bud's antics, unlucky Emily discovered it first-hand. If Emily, Bud, and their teen friends don't uncover what the book really is, and how to untangle themselves from the bizarre bug book world, they could end up completely buggy. Or dead.

Karen Laven worked as the feature writer for The Drummer Newspaper in Wright County, Minnesota for seven years. She has also had her articles, poetry, essays and other fiction and nonfiction works published in a variety of magazines across the country.