It's a No-Go! Edward Almost Sleeps Over by Rosemary Wells

It was a snowy day when Edwards' mother answered the ring of the telephone. It is Anthony's mother, inviting Edward over to build a snowbear in the backyard.

"WON'T IT BE FUN TO PLAY IN THE SNOW AT ANTHONY'S HOUSE!" SAYS EDWARD'S FATHER.

As he is bundled in his snowsuit and buckled into the car for the trip, Edward is not so sure. He makes his parents promise to come back for him
soon. They promise.

Anthony is waiting with a cookie for Edward, and they do have a good time in the snow. But soon new snow begins to fall hard.

SOON IT WAS SNOWING SO HARD THEY COULD NOT SEE.

Inside Anthony's house, Edward has just begun to drink his cocoa when the phone rings. It's his parents. His mother says the roads are too snowy for driving.

"YOU'LL HAVE TO SPEND THE NIGHT AT ANTHONY'S HOUSE," SAID EDWARD'S MOTHER.

But Edward does not feel brave. He feels sad. He's not hungry for supper and he's not sleepy at bedtime, not even when he gets to wear Anthony's new pajamas.

Suddenly Anthony's mother puts on her parka and goes out to shovel a path to the car. Anthony's dad crawls under the car to put the chains on the tires.

"I WASN'T QUITE READY FOR OVERNIGHTS UNTIL I WAS 21!" HE CONFESSED.

And they drove right behind the snowplow all the way to Edward's house.

Edward wasn't quite ready for that first overnight, in Rosemary Wells' sweet snow story in her Edward Almost Ready series, Edward Almost Sleeps Over (Edward Almost Ready Book 1) (Open Road Media). Celebrated author-illustrator Rosemary Wells is the master of sensitive stories about preschoolers, letting her charming illustrations of toddler animal characters reveal the feelings involved in those encounters with new experiences, especially for the almost-ready among her fans, as well as the all-too-ready fearless and indomitable Max in her sweet and funny Max and Ruby series, as in Max's Chocolate Chicken (Max and Ruby) and Max's Christmas (Max and Ruby).