1、LEVELED BOOK XSaved by the StarsrWritten by Lori PolydorosIllustrated by David CSaved by the StarsA Great Gallardo Book Writtenby Lori Polydoros Illustrated by David CTable of ContentsLost4Horsing Around8A Slippery Setback13Sightless16Look to the S

2、ky18Glossary243Saved by the Stars Level XLost“Go left!” Trevon shouted .“No, go right!” Leo yelled.Miguel Ventura pedaled hard, glancing downat a map drawn on the palm of his hand . Hed been sweating, and as the sun set, Miguel could barely make out the lines and street names . “Wed better pull over

3、 .”The three boys hopped their bikes up a curband skidded into a driveway .4“I think this line isSan Martin Avenue .” Miguel pointed to a crease on his palm .“No, dude, thats your lifeline,” said Leo. “And its looking pretty short unless you find the baseball field .”“The Black Cobrasfinally challen

4、ged us to a game,” said Trevon as he smacked his ball into his glove, “and thanks to you, theyll think we chickened out .”“I thought itI mean, it should be right here .”“You got us lost,” Leo said .Miguel swallowed and glanced down at hissweaty hand .The moisture had erased almost all the ink-drawn

5、lines .The sky grew dim and Miguel glanced up, scanning for stars Sailors from long ago used them to navigate .But the heavens, a mucky gray, had not darkened enough to show even the first star . Oh, how he longed to make a wish .5Saved by the Stars Level X“Lets go .” Miguel pumped his pedals downan

6、other street, but what he thought was a shortcut quickly led to a dead end . The boys swerved down a side alley . Something creaked behind them . Miguels heart raced . Trevon and Leo breathed hard as they sped away.Bang! Crash! Trashcans fell . Rats skittered down the gutter .6The boys slid out to a

7、 stop under a darkenedstreetlamp, crashing into one another like dominoes.“Wheres the field?” Trevon yelled, unwrappinghimself from Leo, who looked just as angry as Trevon .Miguel stood up, sweat pouring from under hisbike helmet . ”It should be right here .”“You need a GPS, man,” Leo said .The sun

8、had completely vanished along withMiguels hope of finding the field . The pressure jumbled Miguels brain . Street names . Intersections . Buildings . They all ran together like one big mass of information . The map was useless . The game was totally lost . And so were they.“Cmon, Leo,” Trevon said .

9、 “Were out of here .”7Saved by the Stars Level XHorsing Around“Great sense of direction,” Leo said the next day at school . Both he and Trevon blamed Miguel for not finding the field . To make things worse, one of the boys from the Black Cobras left a rubber chicken in Trevons backpack . Miguel felt

10、 horrible for letting his friends down, but he didnt know what to do to make it up to them .After school, Miguel found himself all alone,so he sulked up to the loft in the back of his familys sandwich shop . It was here that he had found his great-grandpa Gallardos magic books . These books made the

11、 best medicine . By some magic, he could escape into one of the stories, which always helped him forget his problems.8A new book, Black Beauty, lay atop the chest .Miguel studied the small golden star inlaid on the books cover. Hed read the story about the life and treatment of this amazing horse to

12、 his sister Teresa last year. Teresa loved horses . On page 107, Miguel began to read, “Wake up, Beauty! You will have to run as fast as you can!” This must have been the part where Black Beauty had to race all night to the doctor . The horse didnt get lost, Miguel thought to himself .The words danc

13、ed around on the page .“happening had Before mywhat he the on.”the I was saddle knew back.9Saved by the Stars Level XPressure spread across my ribs . Then all wentdark . I awoke to the smell of hay in a stable and found myself standing in a stallon four legs!My long black tail swished behind me .Met

14、al horseshoes were tacked to each one of my hooves I have hooves! A metal bar ran across my teeth .Every time I bit down, it felt cold and hard, and almost made me gag . Before I could think about being a horse, two men came up from behind me.A younger man in riding gear hopped on myback .“Ride as f

15、ast as you can, John,” said a guywearing a black tuxedo .“Our mistresss lifedepends upon it ”10He gave John a note . “Give this to Dr . Whiteand be sure to rest the horse . Return as soon asyou can!”With that, John dug his heels into my sidesand off I ran, down the path and into the hills .“Do your

16、best . We must save our mistresss life!”As Black Beauty, it was up to me to save thelife of my owners wife! A rush of adrenaline surged through me . But as I ran ahead, my legs almost froze. What if I couldnt make it like Black Beauty had in the original story? It would be my fault if the mistress d

17、ied . The weight of that idea was heavier than the rider on my back, but I galloped as hard as I could, knowing the owner had never let Beauty down .The sun faded as we followed trails thatwound through thick pine forest . But I barely noticed my surroundings as John skillfully steered me with the r

18、eins .My eyelids drooped . My legs ached . We hadbeen riding all night, and I wasnt sure I could go any farther . Luckily for me, it wasnt long before we reached Dr . Whites house . John poundedat the door, but the doctor did not come out .I whinnied as loud as I could, but there was no Dr . White t

19、o be found.11Saved by the Stars Level XFinally, after much hollering and banging,a man in his nightshirt threw open the window . John explained our situation .“My horse is sick,” said the doctor, adjustinghis glasses . “I must ride back on yours .”My heart dropped . I looked at John . Hegrimaced, kn

20、owing full well how exhaustedI was .“My horse needs rest,” John said, placinga hand on my shoulder . “I dont know whether Black Beauty will make it .”“Its the only way to save the mistress,” thedoctor said as he picked up his black case .John was like Beautys owner in that he wouldnever have allowed

21、 the doctor to ride me back without rest if not for such dire circumstances.After a long drink, my muscles tightened asthe old man climbed upon me . He didnt feel as sure of himself on my back as John had . I whinnied and neighedswished my head and tail . Then I stomped my feet .“Settle down, Beauty

22、,” John said, “this is lifeor death . Your mistress needs you now morethan ever .”12A Slippery Setback“Hee-yah!” The doctor snapped the reins together as I traversed a field. He tapped my sides with his heels, and I ran forward through the trails and into a meadow . I passed into the pine forest and

23、 the doctor dug his heels into my sides further . As I galloped, a pain shot up my rear leg, as if the tendons were about to snap like rubber bands . My heart thumped, and I breathed out hard through my nostrils . The chill transformed my breath into steam, and I shuddered .“This way!” the doctor sh

24、outed, pulling me tothe right .I ran ahead, every step sending a burst of painthroughout my body . Even this slight manequaled the weight of fifty sandbags.13Saved by the Stars Level XWe passed what felt like a thousand trees .A weird, white froth foamed from my mouth . I felt the doctors hands loos

25、en on my reins.He must have been getting tired, too . Once out of the forest, we approached a ridge . A fierce wind howled against my face as if I were moving forward against a wall . As we neared a steeply sloping, rocky trail, the doctor stopped me . “Steady,” he whispered as he gently nudged me i

26、nto the descent.I tried to place my hooves down solidly, buteach step was a chore . My legs tingled with numbness . Left. Right . LeftMy right hind legslipped on a piece of shale, and down I went .14My fall stretched out for what felt likeminutes . Gravity tore the doctor to the ground . My body see

27、med to drop, inch by inch, until my side slammed against rocks at the hills bottom .I lay there, my neck and shoulders wet withsweat, wrenching in pain . Somewhere behind me I heard the doctor moan . All I could think about was the mistress and how she would not makeit . And it would be my fault . S

28、oon cold blackness overtook my body, but the white-hot pain remained .15Saved by the Stars Level XSightlessCrickets chirped in my ears, and strangely enough I heard each of them sing in a different key, like a chorus . My eyelids fluttered, welcoming in the darkness of night . For the first time I r

29、ealized that as a horse my night vision had improved .I turned my head at movement in the trees;but the pain stopped me . Every square inch of my body hurt . Gently pushing from my side, I sat upright and stretched my neck . I flexed my legs . The muscles were stiff like drying cement, but they move

30、d and were not broken.“Beauty?” a hoarse voice muttered frombehind me .The doctor! He was alive! His voice shook myjumbled thoughts back to reality .I scrambled to my feet, wobbly at first, butstable . After I gained my balance, I searched the trees for the doctor. He lay spread across a bed of pine

31、 needles, his hands still clutching the black bag . I nudged him with my muzzle . He didnt move. I licked him on the face and he stirred.16“Ah, you are a beauty .” The doctor arose slowlyand came to a stance . He squinted, then dropped to the ground, feeling around for something . “I lost my glasses

32、 in the fall; I cant see a thing!”His glasses! I swiveled my head around andtried to paw the ground, but it was useless without fingers .“I got em!” the doctor shouted. But before hecould slip his glasses on, his face dropped . And I knew exactly why . The lenses had fallen out in the crash .He glan

33、ced around, then walked over andstroked my neck . “Its up to you now, Beauty . Get us home . Take us to the mistress .” Doctor White placed his feet in the stirrups and climbed onto my back .17Saved by the Stars Level XLook to the SkyFear spread across me like an icy blanket . Lost. We were lost. An

34、d now I would let the doctor and my mistress down just like I had Trevon and Leo . A long neigh reverberated from my throat and ended as I blew a big burst of air out my nostrils . I had the urge to rear up and run away.“Whoa, Beauty,” the doctor said . “You cando this .”His words calmed me, seeping

35、 down into mybody like medicine .18I took one step forward . Then another . Thedoctor squeezed my sides just enough to get me into a full gallop. The pine needles brushed against my face . Think . I told myself . Stay calm, and think! But a fork in the road brought me to an abrupt halt .Which way, d

36、octor? I tried to shout, but all that came out were grunts . I swung my head back and forth, but both paths looked the same. I had no idea where to go; I couldnt remember the way John and I had come. I pawed the ground with my hooves .“Use your senses, Beauty,” Dr . White said . “Youknow the way hom

37、e .”19Saved by the Stars Level XI felt totally senseless . My body went limp .I hung my head, and thats when I rememberedthe golden star that Id found with the book .Then I caught sight of a glittering reflection ina nearby stream . The water rippled and twinkled, ever so slightly, as it reflected t

38、he stars above.20Ideas in my brain ignited like sparks in drybrush . The stream ended in a lake at the manor. Of course! I needed to follow the water.“Were going home!” I yelled, which came outin long, happy neighs . I shook my head and leapt around in circles .“Whoa, Beauty!” the doctor yelled, lau

39、ghingand clinging to the reins .I stood in front of the fork in the road andI turned to the right . With the sparklingwater shining proudly next to me, off I ran . Through the darkness . Into the hills . To the manor. To my mistress.“Hee-yah!” the doctor yelled .21Saved by the Stars Level XAnd with

40、that,I found myself back in the loft.My heart stillracing, I stood up and leapt in circles again . “Neeeeiighhh!”I yelled, climbing down the stairs and into the shop.There, I foundTrevon and Leo staring at me .“What are youso happy about?”Leo asked .“Oh, nothing,”Miguel said . “Why are you guys here

41、?”“The Black Cobras gave us another chance,”Trevon said .“Six-thirty tonight,” Leo said . “And we got themap, see?” He fumbled through his backpack and pulled out a yellow sheet of paper .22“Thats not a map, thats your math homework,”Miguel said, laughing .“What?” They searched the pack .“I must hav

42、e turned in the map instead of myhomework!” Leo stomped his foot .Miguel laughed again .“What are you laughing at?” Trevon asked .“Nothing .”“Were going to miss the game, again!” Leo said .“No, dont worry, guys .” Miguel grabbed hisglove and walked toward the door . “Youve gotme!”23Saved by the Stars Level XGlossarya hormone released by the adrenal glands that elevates heart and respiration rates (p . 11)a state of being steady (p . 16)a wrinkle or line formed where skin or fabric folds (p . 5)the end of a street, path, or road beyond wh