Sandy Heitmeier Thompson
Maya suggests to her friends that they go camping at the state park while school is out for fall break. Brett, Blake, and Gavin are excited at the prospect of fishing, hiking, kayaking, swimming, and telling scary stories at the campfire at night. With permission from their parents, the kids set out to the state park with Maya’s parents the next morning. After setting up their campsite, the kids go for a hike in the woods, where they meet a sassy and confident woodpecker named Big Red. Later that night, as the campers sit around their bonfire, Big Red pulls off a prank that surprises and scares the kids, much to his delight. The next day, the woodpecker continues his good-natured pranks to aggravate the kids as they go about their planned activities. The woodpecker kind of grows on the kids and shows them his good side when he explains to them some pluses and minuses of the internet. Although he is confident and self-assured, the woodpecker will need some help from his new friends to escape an embarrassing situation.
