Henry Huggins Read Online Free Page A

meat, licked his chops, and then, with his stomach bulging, followed slowly at Henry’s heels the rest of the way home.
    When they reached Henry’s house on Klickitat Street, Henry opened the door and yelled, “Hey, Mom! Come and see what I bought with the silver dollar Grandpa gave me.”
    â€œI’m afraid to look,” answered his mother from the kitchen. “What is it this time?”
    â€œFish.”
    â€œFish?” Mrs. Huggins sounded surprised. “Did you want me to cook it for dinner?”
    Henry carried his package into the kitchen. “No, Mom, you don’t understand. Not dead fish. Live fish swimming around in a bowl of water. They’re called guppies.”
    â€œGuppies?”
    â€œYes. Just two little fish. I’ll keep them on my dresser and they won’t be any trouble at all. They were on sale at the pet shop. They were a bargain. See, Mom?” Henry gently lifted the fishbowl out of the bag.
    Mrs. Huggins put down the potato she was peeling. “Why, Henry, what pretty little fish!”
    â€œI thought you’d like them.” Henry was pleased.
    His mother bent closer to the fishbowl. “But, Henry, what are those little dark things in the water?”
    â€œWhat little dark things?” Henry looked closer.
    â€œWhy, they’re baby fish,” Mrs. Huggins exclaimed. “There must be fifteen or twenty.”
    â€œBaby guppies!” Henry was delighted. “Look, Mom, did you ever see such teeny-weeny little fish? Golly, they’re so little just about all you can see are their eyes and their tails.”
    Mrs. Huggins sighed. “Henry, I’m afraid they won’t be teeny-weeny little fish very long. They’ll grow and then what are you going to do with them?”
    â€œI don’t know. I’ll ask Dad.” Henry was worried. “Maybe he knows about baby guppies.”
    But when Mr. Huggins came home from work, Henry was disappointed to learn that he knew nothing about little guppies. “Why don’t you get a book about guppies from the library?” he suggested.
    Mrs. Huggins said there would be time before dinner, so Henry found his library card and he and Ribsy ran all the way to the library.
    â€œHello, Henry,” said the lady in the boys and girls’ room at the library. “Have you come for another book about gienats and orges?”
    This was a joke between the librarian and Henry. When Henry had first started reading fairy tales by himself he returned a book and asked for another about gienats and orges. He felt a little silly about it now, although he secretly thought gienats and orges sounded better than giants and ogres.
    â€œNo, I want a book about guppies,” Henry answered. “I have some baby guppies and I don’t know how to take care of them.”
    The librarian found a book on hobbies with a chapter on fish, but it did not tell much about guppies. “Just a minute, Henry,” she said. “Maybe there is something in the adult room.” She returned with a thick book about tropical fish. It was full of colored pictures. “I’m sure this will help you,” she said, “but I’m afraid it’s too hard for you to read. I’ll let you take it out on your card if you think your mother and father will help you with it.”
    â€œSure, my dad will help me.”
    The librarian stamped the book on his card and Henry, proud to have a grown-up book stamped on his library card, ran home with it.
    After dinner Mr. Huggins sat down to read the fish book while Henry went to his room to watch his guppies. This time he counted thirty-eight babies. After a while his father came in with the book in his hand. “This is a mighty interesting book, Henry, but you’re going to need some more fishbowls. According to this book you can’t keep so many fish in one bowl.”
    â€œBut, Dad, where will I get more bowls?”
    â€œMaybe we