story by Karen Poth

… For the LORD will be at your side

and will keep your foot from being snared.

—Proverbs 3:26

Contents

Cover

Title Page

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

Junior’s dad was reading the newspaper.

“Junior,” he said, “here’s a story about

the Bumblyburg Battle of the Bands!”

“You and your friends should enter,”

Dad said.

“No, Dad,” Junior said. “I don’t want to play

my tuba. Everyone will laugh at me.”

Junior’s mom convinced him to try.

“You just have to practice,” Mom said.

“You’ll see. A little hard work will pay off!”

Junior tried. But he got frustrated.

“It’s too hard,” Junior said.

“I’m not going to do it.”

The next day,

Jimmy and Jerry saw the

Battle of the Bands poster.

They found Junior at The Hop.

Jimmy and Jerry asked Junior to help

get a band together.

“No,” Junior said.

“I’m not going to do it.

It’s just too hard.”

Jimmy and Jerry were sad.

But they decided to do it

even if Junior wouldn’t help.

All the next week,

Junior saw his friends practicing

with their bands.

On Monday, he saw Jenny Gourd’s band,

The Bubblegum Pop Rockers.

They practiced at the playground.

On Tuesday, Junior saw

Larry and the Peas.

Their band was called Heavy Metal.

Larry was the drummer.

He looked so cool!

On Wednesday, Junior heard

Pa Grape’s band, The Space Cadets.

They sounded pretty good.

But they looked a little funny.

Junior started to feel left out.

Then Junior saw Ma Mushroom.

“Are you playing in the battle?” Ma asked.

“No,” Junior said. “I’m not good enough.”

Ma Mushroom smiled.

“Good,” she said. “Then we’ll win for sure!

It sounds like you already beat yourself!”

“What do you mean?” Junior asked.

“Well, if you don’t try,

then you’ve already lost,” Ma said.

Junior felt terrible.

Ma Mushroom was right.

He had not even tried.

When Junior got home

he practiced his tuba.

And he practiced some more …

“Junior,” his mom said, “you are really

sounding great! Maybe next year you’ll enter the battle of the bands!”

“No, Mom,” Junior said.

“I don’t think I’m good enough.”

“Why don’t you pray about it?” Mom said.

That night, Junior asked God

to give him courage to play

in front of others some day!

Finally, it was Saturday,

the day of the big battle.

The whole town was there.

Everyone played very well.

In the end only two bands were left—

Jimmy and Jerry’s Blues Band

and Ma Mushroom’s Swingers!

“We have a tie!” the judge said.

“You will each play one more song.

Give it ALL you’ve got!”

Jimmy ran out in the audience.

He found Junior.

“Junior, we need you,” Jimmy said.

Junior jumped up with a smile.

He went to the stage.

He played his best.

It was just what the Blues Band needed.

Jimmy and Jerry’s Blues Band won!

And so did Junior!

“Thank you for your help, God!”

Junior prayed.

ZONDERKIDZ

Junior Battles to Be His Best

Copyright © 2011 Big Idea Entertainment, LLC. VEGGIETALES®, character names, likenesses and other indicia are trademarks of and copyrighted by Big Idea Entertainment, LLC. All rights reserved. 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 © JUNE 2011 ISBN: 978-0-310-72736-1

Requests for information should be addressed to:

Zonderkidz, Grand Rapids, Michigan 49530

ISBN 978-0-310-72732-3

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

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 Page

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

Begin Reading

Copyright

About the Publisher

Share Your Thoughts