Sticky 1 2 3 ! v2 — Tara Garrigan Illustration

SYNOPSIS

Hey, a counting book! ONE laughing baby surfs a splash of super sticky frosting on a huge, gooey donut! TWO ecstatic dogs wag and wiggle to love their human! And THREE plants smile, drinking down the luxurious rain!

FOUR – What’s this? We turned the page, but instead of FOUR, we’re still on THREE, only…. Something NEW. Strange, colorful creatures, Blubba and Kiki have interrupted our story, entering the pages of the book itself. (They’ve heard there are donuts in here!)

Ahhh, FOUR at last! FOUR monkeys wearing pajamas bounce merrily through a raucous game of “The Floor is Lava!” And aboard a stairway spaceship, a young astronaut commander and her crew of FIVE tiny stuffed animals Blast Off, “Ssspkoooom!” Tired, SIX little pillow babies doze in the loving arms of great goddess grandma armchair, “Shhh…”

Hey, Kiki’s back, bursting into the page!

Kiki: Grandma! I’m happy you’re here!

Blubba: Yes! See? Now you’re getting it.

Kiki(to Grandma): I’m getting my donut!

SEVEN Monster Kids on the Ghoul Bus dig into ECTO-GREEN BUBBLE GUM! EIGHT unicorns bang drums! RAKKIDAKRAKKIDA! PTTOINK! THRUPPPADOOOSHKANNNG!

NINE Baby Mice in superstomping boots celebrate puddles!

At the page turn, Mice cease stomping – they simply stare at the visitors, Kiki and Blubba. (This is the first time our counting book characters react to the “offstage” interlopers.)

Kiki: Hey! Hold it! Stop reading!

Kiki: Puppies and Puddles, Counting, that’s fun!

Kiki: BUT WHAT’S THIS STORY ABOUT?

Blubba guides Kiki; all eyes closed.

“Kiki, you know what the book is about. You’re making the story happen… what happens next?”

Blubba and Kiki look up at TEN vibrantly hued autumn leaves fluttering down from tree branches. One leaf enjoys this a lot, “WHEEEEEE!”

Blubba: Live what you love. That’s what living’s about. Don’t live like a

mumble…

ELEVEN sticky donuts glisten in a box sitting amidst fallen leaves. Above, Kiki, triumphant, raises high ONE STICKY DONUT WITH A BIG BITE OUT OF IT!

Blubba: Live like a shout!

Kiki: LIVE LIKE A DONUT!

FULL SCRIPT

(Art Title Page 1) Cute little colorful creatures BLUBBA and KIKI hop and skip around / in between HUGE LETTERS of our TITLE PAGE:

Sticky 1 2 3!

The Counting Book That Goes to 11 by David Quinn and Tara Garrigan

Kiki: What’s this, Blubba?

Blubba: Looks like a story, Kiki!

Kiki: Read me!

(Art Pages 2-3) Blubba calms down, now more thoughtful, responding to a happily bouncing Kiki, who is already ready to race ahead to page 4. (They will walk “onstage” again in a few minutes. In fact, we will see that they interrupt this book whenever they choose.)

<Indicia / Legal / Dedication/>

Kiki: Read me a story!

Blubba: A story with rhymes. You like rhymes, Kiki.

Kiki: Rhymes, I love rhymes! Read now!

Kiki: Puppies and puddles and spaceships and donuts!

Blubba: What rhymes with donuts?

(Art Pages 4-5) ONE cute Buddha of a diapered toddler eats and rides a giant sticky donut sailing right toward us on a wave of gooey frosting – a perfect example of the bliss we know when we give ourselves over to the sweet, simple rapture of being one with what we LOVE!

1 One Uno Yi Eins Uno Un Iti Echad 1 (Counting is within the illustration, not type)

All Toddlers are Sticky!

Sticky as Donuts!

Sticky as Goo!

(Art Pages 6-7) TWO mutts jump, skip, pant, lick and TAIL WAG in urgent ecstasy to give and receive LOVE from their human girl child.

2 Two Dos Er Due Deux Ni Shnayim 2

All Dogs are Now!

Now! like “Let’s Go!”

Now! like…

FX: OWOOO!

(Art Pages 8-9) THREE quirky, bright anthropomorphic plants smile and beam as they luxuriate in the falling rain. Rain also falls on a turtle who LOVES to shlurrp raindrops from a leaf.

3 Three Tres San Tre Trois San Shlosha 3

all rain is rain

is rain is rain is rain

<space>

is rain

FX: Shlurrrp!

(Art Pages 10-11) In the background, a slightly askew version of pages 8-9: THREE quirky, bright anthropomorphic plants smile and beam as they luxuriate in the falling rain. Rain also falls on a turtle who LOVES to shlurrp raindrops from a leaf.

3 Three Tres San Tre Trois San Shlosha 3

all rain is rain

is rain is rain is rain

<space>

is rain

FX: Shlurrrp!

In the foreground, Blubba and Kiki are back “onstage;” Kiki points a fingerish thing at the story, accusing it of defying expectations; Blubba coaxes Kiki to enjoy the proverbial show.

Blubba: Plants love it! Lucky!

Blubba: Exactly! And they want us to give in to the fun!

Kiki: Is that allowed?

<beat>

Blubba: You’ll get a donut…

Kiki: Read more!

(Art Pages 12-13) FOUR very young pajama’d monkeys LOVE playing “bedtime obstacle course,” jumping, climbing, or swinging from a twin bed to bunk beds (or vice versa), taking great care not to touch the floor because it is LAVA.

4 Four Cuatro Si Quattro Quatre Si Arba’a 4

All Floors are Lava!

Love that Hot Lava!

Hot Lava, Yo!

(Art Pages 14-15) A smiling young girl in space pajamas wears swimming goggles and a homemade “Astro Helmet” shower cap; she sits on a staircase, LOVING shouting out a loud countdown. Surrounding her, her mission crew! (FOUR tiny toy pandas plus ONE plastic superhero, each of the FIVE wearing a cupcake wrapper helmet.)

5 Five Cinco Wu Cinque Cinq Go Chamisha 5

All stairways are Spaceships!

Astronaut: 10 – 9 – 8 – 7 – 6 – 5 – 4 – 3 – 2 – 1

Astronaut: Blast off!

Astronaut (FX): ssspkoooom!

(Art Pages 16-17) Sweet giant goddess grandma (a big old cosy pillow) smiles as she puts a finger to her lips to hush us. All over her lap, SIX little pillows snooze, LOVE.

6 Six Seis Liu Sei Six Roku Shisha 6

All Grandmas are to dream on…

Grandma(FX): Shhh…

(Art Pages 18-19) In the background, a version of pages 16-17 with a giant hole torn in the bottom right area: Sweet giant goddess grandma and SIX little ones snooze, LOVE.

6 Six Seis Liu Sei Six Roku Shisha 6

All Grandmas are to dream on…

Grandma(FX): Shhh…

In the foreground, Kiki’s back, having already run through the hole, eager to get Grandma’s attention. Blubba follows, ruminating, absorbed in “deep thoughts.”

Kiki: Grandma! I’m happy you’re here!

Blubba: Yes! See? Now you’re getting it.

Kiki(to Grandma): I’m getting my donut!

(Art Pages 20-21) It’s time to take a little trip with the Monster Kids on the Ghoul Bus. It’s just after dark, and we’re seated at the back of a school bus with SEVEN Monster Kids, all LOVING ECTO-GREEN BUBBLE GUM:

• Daughter of Dracula struggles to help WolfBoy untangle sticky strings of gum out of his hair – what a mess

• Frankenstein, Jr and Little Igora (the daughter of Igor) are engaged in a melodramatic competition to see who can blow the biggest bubble

• Ghost Bro tries to chew gum that Gill Sister has offered him, but he is too immaterial to touch it, let alone chew it, it’s perfectly unchewed within his transparent body, sad

• Baby Godzilla, occupying the entire last row of seats, chews in BLISS.

7 Seven Siete Qi Sette Sept Siti Shiv’a 7

All Monsters LOVE Bubble Gum

Well… wouldn’t Chew?

(Art Pages 22-23) EIGHT unicorns bang on a diversity of drums!

8 Eight Ocho Ba Otto Huit Hati Shmonah 8

All Drums Must Be Heard!

I said,

ALL DR-

FX: DROKKT!

FX: KWONK!

FX:THUMK!

FX(Baby Drum): tok!

FX: DOOONTT!

FX: RAKKIDAKRAKKIDA!

FX: PTTOINK!

FX: THRUPPPADOOOSHKANNNG!

(Art Pages 24-25) NINE Baby Mice in superstomping DrMarten Boots LOVE celebrating the wonderful world of stomping mud puddles! Muddy water flies!

9 Nine Nueve Jiu Nove Neuf Kyuu Tish’a 9

All Puddles are for Stomping!

So let’s go galomping!

FX: Galomp! Galomp! Galomp!

(Art Pages 26-27) In the background, NINE Baby Mice in superstomping DrMarten Boots… but this is not a slightly altered background, as on the other repeated images; for the first time in our story, the background action CHANGES at the page turn when Blubba and Kiki interrupt it, reacting to the foreground creatures. The Baby Mice have ceased stomping. They simply stare at Kiki downstage in the foreground, below.

9 Nine Nueve Jiu Nove Neuf Kyuu Tish’a 9

All Puddles are for Stomping!

So let’s go galomping!

In the foreground, Kiki stomps the mud puddle in a screaming tantrum. Muddy water

flies!

Kiki: Hey! Hold it! Stop reading!

Kiki: Puppies and Puddles, Counting, that’s fun!

Kiki: BUT WHAT’S THIS STORY ABOUT?

Kiki: AND WHERE’S MY DONUT?!

FX: Galomp! Galomp! Galomp! Galomp! Galomp!

(Art Pages 28-29) CLOSE ON Blubba, guiding Kiki; eyes closed.

Blubba: Kiki, you know what the book is about.

Blubba: You’re making the story happen, just by thinking.

Blubba: Close your eyes. What happens next?

(Art Pages 30-31) Blubba and Kiki, as seen from a low angle, revealing what’s above their heads; they look up at TEN vibrantly hued autumn leaves flutter down from tree branches against the sky. Yes, one is enjoying this quite a lot.

10 Ten Diez Shi Dieci Dix Zyuu Assara 10

Live what you love.

That’s what living’s about.

Don’t live like a mumble…

Leaf: WHEEEEEE!

Text words here can also be given to the narrator figure and Blubba as speech balloons; by this point, they are collaborating on the narrative.

(Art Page 32) ELEVEN - Box labelled “One Dozen Donuts 12” sits on the ground, near a few fallen leaves. There are only 11 donuts in the box. See the sticky gap. Above, Kiki, triumphant, raises ONE STICKY DONUT WITH A BIG BITE OUT OF IT HIGH!

11 Eleven Once Shi-yi Undici Onze Zyuu-iti Achad asar 11

Live like a shout!

Kiki: LIVE LIKE A DONUT!

# # #

“If you follow your bliss, you put yourself on a kind of track that has been there all the while, waiting for you, and the life that you ought to be living is the one you are living. Wherever you are — if you are following your bliss, you are enjoying that refreshment, that life within you, all the time.” – Joseph Campbell