The X'ed-Out X-Ray Page 4

  Penelope gave him a kiss. Then she kissed Dink, Josh, and Ruth Rose.

  I hope you enjoyed reading The X’ed-Out X-Ray. It was a lot of fun to write. Many of you ask if my stories are taken from real life. Yes, parts of these stories do come from things that happened to me or to people I know. Here’s one example:

  When I was Dink’s age, I once climbed up on a neighbor’s garage to watch his dad do some repair work. When my mom called me for lunch, I made the mistake of jumping down to the ground! I landed on my right arm instead of my feet, and my arm broke. I was in a cast for several weeks! This gave me the idea to have Dink hurt his arm, and the rest of the story came along after that.

  I think most writers get ideas from real-life situations. But we also make up a lot-that’s why these books are called fiction. I am also asked if I know real kids named Dink, Josh, and Ruth Rose. Nope. I made them up, but I have to admit that when I created Dink I was thinking about myself at his age. In fact, when I was in college, my nickname was Dink!

  I can’t believe that I have almost reached the end of this series. What a thrill! I hope you will read and enjoy my new series, CAPITAL MYSTERIES. You can read about the two main characters—KC and Marshall—on my Web site, www.ronroy.com.

  Bye for now, and keep on reading!

  Sincerely,

  P.S. Here’s a great picture of sister and brother A to Z fans Leslie and John Flynn.

  Collect clues with Dink, Josh, and Ruth Rose

  in their next exciting adventure,

  THE YELLOW YACHT

  Suddenly a shrieking whistle drowned out all the other sounds. It was coming from the bank building. As Dink, Josh, and Ruth Rose watched, the bank door opened and a man burst outside. When he noticed Sammi and the kids, he rushed over.

  “Sammi, you must get your father!” the man said. “Immediately!”

  “Mr. Silk, what’s wrong?” Sammi asked.

  “The vault has been robbed!” he said. “The king’s gold is gone!”

  Text copyright © 2005 by Ron Roy

  Illustrations copyright © 2005 by John Steven Gurney

  All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright

  Conventions. Published in the United States by Random House

  Children’s Books, a division of Random House, Inc., New York, and

  simultaneously in Canada by Random House of Canada Limited, Toronto.

  www.randomhouse.com/kids

  www.ronroy.com

  Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

  Roy, Ron.

  The x’ed-out x-ray / by Ron Roy; illustrated by John Steven Gurney. — 1st ed.

  p. cm. — (A to Z mysteries) “A Stepping Stone Book.”

  SUMMARY: Ruth Rose, Josh, and Dink attend a concert during which someone steals the star’s diamond pendant, and they are soon on the trail of the thief.

  eISBN: 978-0-307-54972-3

  [1. Robbers and outlaws—Fiction. 2. Musicians—Fiction. 3. Concerts—Fiction.

  4. Mystery and detective stories.] I. Gurney, John, ill. II. Title.

  III. Series: Roy, Ron, 1940-. A to Z mysteries.

  PZ7.R8139Xed 2005 [Fic]—dc22 2003026515

  RANDOM HOUSE and colophon and A TO Z MYSTERIES are registered trademarks and A STEPPING STONE BOOK and colophon and the A to Z Mysteries colophon are trademarks of Random House, Inc.

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