And Then it Happened
Written by M & L Wade
Books for Boys $6.99
Recommended for ages 7-12

At Benjamin’s Books, it is our job and pleasure to introduce customers to new books as they are published however occasionally we hear of a great book from our customers. We were made aware of this gem of a series by loyal customers a few years ago and we have been sharing them with our friends ever since.

Self-published by a husband and wife duo in Strathroy, Ontario, these books regale us with the wild adventures of three buddies by the names of Gordon, Paulo and the narrator (whose name I have yet to see). There are nine books in the series and each book has no less than 12 chapters which are individual stories in and of themselves.

Gordon is always the leader in the escapades while his friends, although sometimes hesitantly, are the followers. In one especially funny story, Paulo’s grandmother is visiting from Portugal for her 90th birthday. She is feeling sad that no one is staying home from school and work to celebrate her momentous occasion. The boys come up with a plan to keep her company on her big day. They decide that Archie, Gordon’s pet parrot, should be her companion for the day. However despite his ability to talk and do tricks, Archie has an unfortunate disease that has caused all of his feathers to fall out. In the morning before she wakes up, the boys leave Archie with a note for Paulo’s grandmother but as with most of their predicaments there is a misunderstanding and the result is hilarious.

The wonderful thing about this series of books is that each story is independent of the others yet the characters are familiar. Adults enjoy reading these to children just as much as the children enjoy listening to them. Visit BoysBookshelf.com for more information.