The Fairest

Town in

the West

story by Karen Poth

Then you will understand what is right

and just and fair—every good path.

—Proverbs 2:9

Contents

Cover

Title Pgae

Dear Parent: Your child’s love of reading starts here!

Begin Reading

Copyright

About the Publisher

Share Your Thoughts

Dear Parent:

Your child’s love of reading starts here!

Every child learns to read in a different way and at his or her own speed. You can help your young reader improve and become more confident by encouraging his or her own interests and abilities. You can also guide your child’s spiritual development by reading stories with biblical values and Bible stories, like I Can Read! books published by Zonderkidz. From books your child reads with you to the first books he or she reads alone, there are I Can Read! books for every stage of reading:

SHARED READING

Basic language, word repetition, and whimsical illustrations, ideal for sharing with your emergent reader.

BEGINNING READING

Short sentences, familiar words, and simple concepts for children eager to read on their own.

READING WITH HELP

Engaging stories, longer sentences, and language play for developing readers.

READING ALONE

Complex plots, challenging vocabulary, and high-interest topics for the independent reader.

ADVANCED READING

Short paragraphs, chapters, and exciting themes for the perfect bridge to chapter books.

I Can Read! books have introduced children to the joy of reading since 1957. Featuring award-winning authors and illustrators and a fabulous cast of beloved characters, I Can Read! books set the standard for beginning readers.

A lifetime of discovery begins with the magical words “I Can Read!”

Visit www.icanread.com for information on enriching your child’s reading experience.

Visit www.zonderkidz.com for more Zonderkidz I Can Read! titles.

Begin Reading

Welcome to Dodge Ball City,

the fairest town in the west!

This is Sheriff Bob

and his deputy, Larry.

It is their job to keep the city peaceful

and the Dodge Ball games orderly!

On most days, their job is really fun!

They stop in at the

Rootin’ Tootin’ Pizza Place.

Then they go see their pals

at the Okie Dokie Corral.

At high noon, Bob and Larry have

a burger at Cow Patty’s Cafe.

At two o’clock,

they have target practice

to get ready for the next big game.

They end their day by reading a bedtime

story to the town’s one prisoner.

Bob and Larry love their job!

But one day Bob and Larry’s job

got a lot harder.

The Ratt Scallion Gang

came to town.

Those Ratt Scallions just

didn’t know how to behave!

They said mean things to EVERYONE.

They stole from the people in town.

And worst of all … they cheated!

Soon the whole town was acting this way.

Everyone was cheating.

Everyone was being mean to one another.

Something had to be done!

Dodge Ball City might stop being

the fairest town in the west!

Sheriff Bob got the town together.

He read the rules from the

Cowboy Code of the West.

“Page one,” Bob read.

“A cowboy should always treat others

the way he wants to be treated!”

As Bob read the rules,

everyone started to remember

why their town was so special.

They decided

the rules made

a lot of sense!

“Play fair.

Always take turns.

Play by the rules.

“If you cheat all the time,

nobody will play with you!”

“Use nice words.

“If you say mean words

nobody will want

to talk to you!”

“Help your neighbor.

“If you’re a stinker and don’t

help your neighbor, Sheriff Bob

may put you in jail!”

“So what’s it going to be, boys?”

Sheriff Bob asked the Ratt Scallions.

“Can we buy you a root beer,

Sheriff?” said one of the Ratt

Scallions with a smile.

Bob, Larry, and the Ratt Scallions

went to the Rootin’ Tootin’ Pizza Place.

They had a lot of fun!

Then they all played a game

of horseshoes … by the rules!

Deputy Larry won fair and square!

Appoint judges and officials for each of your tribes in every town the LORD your God is giving you, and they shall judge the people fairly.

—Deuteronomy 16:18

ZONDERKIDZ

The Fairest Town in the West

Copyright © 2011 Big Idea Entertainment, LLC. VEGGIETALES®, character names, likenesses and other indicia are trademarks of and copyrighted by Big Idea Entertainment, LLC.

Illustrations © 2011 by Big Idea Entertainment, Inc.

All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, down-loaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of Zondervan.

EPub Edition © MAY 2011 ISBN: 978-0-310-72733-0

Requests for information should be addressed to:

Zonderkidz, Grand Rapids, Michigan 49530

ISBN 978-0-310-72729-3

All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.™ Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Any Internet addresses (websites, blogs, etc.) and telephone numbers in this book are offered as a resource. They are not intended in any way to be or imply an endorsement by Zondervan, nor does Zondervan vouch for the content of these sites and numbers for the life of this book.

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means—electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, or any other—except for brief quotations in printed reviews, without the prior permission of the publisher.

Zonderkidz is a trademark of Zondervan.

Editor: Mary Hassinger

Art direction: Karen Poth

Cover design: Karen Poth

Interior design: Ron Eddy

11 12 13 14 15 16 /SCC/ 21 20 19 18 17 16 15 14 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

About the Publisher

Founded in 1931, Grand Rapids, Michigan-based Zondervan, a division of HarperCollinsPublishers, is the leading international Christian communications company, producing best-selling Bibles, books, new media products, a growing line of gift products and award-winning children’s products. The world’s largest Bible publisher, Zondervan (www.zondervan.com) holds exclusive publishing rights to the New International Version of the Bible and has distributed more than 150 million copies worldwide. It is also one of the top Christian publishers in the world, selling its award-winning books through Christian retailers, general market bookstores, mass merchandisers, specialty retailers, and the Internet. Zondervan has received a total of 68 Gold Medallion awards for its books, more than any other publisher.

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Table of Contents

Cover

Title Pgae

Dear Parent: Your child’s love of reading starts here!

Begin Reading

Copyright

About the Publisher

Share Your Thoughts