The Golden Acorn
Jack Brenin’s adventures continue in
Glasruhen Gate
,
the sequal to
Catherine Cooper’s award winning
The Golden Acorn
Pub date: 22 Feb 2011
Retail price: £7.99
Format: Paperback
Pages: 320
ISBN: 9781906821708
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Born in Wellington, Shropshire, Catherine Cooper was a primary school teacher for 29 years before deciding she’d love to write for children. She has now self-published three books which she promoted and distributed herself. Catherine’s love of history, myths and legends and the Shropshire countryside shines through in her charming stories.
THE
GOLDEN
ACORN
CATHERINE COOPER
ILLUSTRATIONS BY
RON COOPER and CATHERINE COOPER
Copyright text © Catherine Cooper, 2009
Copyright illustrations and cover image © Ron Cooper
and Catherine Cooper 2009
The right of Catherine Cooper to be identified as the author
of this book has been asserted in accordance with the Copyright,
Designs and Patents Act 1988.
First published in 2009 by Pengridion Books
This edition 2010
Infinite Ideas Limited
36 St Giles
Oxford
OX1 3LD
United Kingdom
www.infideas.com
All rights reserved. Except for the quotation of small passages for the purposes of criticism or review, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, scanning or otherwise, except under the terms of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 or under the terms of a licence issued by the Copyright Licensing Agency Ltd, 90 Tottenham Court Road, London W1T 4LP, UK,
without the permission in writing of the publisher. Requests to the publisher should be addressed to the Permissions Department,
Infinite Ideas Limited, 36 St Giles, Oxford, OX1 3LD, UK,
or faxed to +44 (0) 1865 514777.
A CIP catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
ISBN 978–1–906821–65–4
Brand and product names are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective owners.
Cover designed by D.R.ink
For Ron
for being there
PROLOGUE
Nora tapped her wand impatiently on the kitchen table before speaking to Camelin.
‘I’m sure I’m right. Jack Brenin is
The One
.’
‘He can’t be, he’s so small and weedy; he’s supposed to be strong and brave.’
Nora thought for a while before she spoke again.
‘He’s a Brenin.’
‘Well, there has to be a better Brenin than this one.’
‘The prophecy’s quite clear and this Brenin was born on the right night, in the right place and at the right time. The trees have been watching him since he arrived, they seem satisfied he’s
The One
.’
‘The trees could be wrong,’ Camelin mumbled in case he was overheard. He knew how fast word could travel from one tree to another. If Arrana, the ancient Hamadryad, heard him he’d be in big trouble. She lived in the oldest oak tree in the heart of Glasruhen Forest and was always
very
well informed.
‘I’m sure he’ll help us. If he doesn’t all will be lost. He’s our last hope and we’re running out of time.’
‘If he’s our last hope we’re doomed.’
As Nora paced up and down the kitchen, the end of her wand began to splutter; red sparks erupted from the tip.
‘We need help. I’m going to write to Elan; she needs to be here.’
As Nora wrote Camelin hung his head. He knew she was right. Time was running out; Arrana was slowly dying. She was the only Hamadryad left on Earth and without her protection the tree spirits of the forest would eventually fade away and only hollow trees would remain. Unless they found someone willing to help them find a way to open the portal into the Otherworld and bring back new Hamadryad acorns, their own time on Earth would end too. As each year passed Arrana grew weaker. It would need a very special person to accept the challenges which lay ahead. Camelin continued to sulk. Jack Brenin had not impressed him.
‘He’s not the kind of boy who’s going to care if the spirit of an ancient oak tree lives or dies.’
‘If he passes the test he will.’
There was a long silence. Eventually Nora fished in her pocket and produced a beautiful golden acorn and placed it carefully on the table.
‘Put this where the boy will see it, it’s the only way to be sure.’
‘I bet he kicks it. I was watching him yesterday kicking cans and stones about. What kind of help could he possibly be? The journey we’ve got to make might be dangerous, too dangerous for the likes of Jack Brenin.’
‘Take the acorn. If he sees it and picks it up we’ll know he’s
The One
.’
Camelin scowled. He picked up the golden acorn and reluctantly left the kitchen to find a good place to hide and watch. He might have a long wait. He wasn’t happy: Nora was probably right but Jack Brenin was the furthest thing from a hero he’d ever seen.
