Across The Mistercald

When a young girl, a deputized question mark, a well-read tackling dummy, and a buffalo unicorn join forces, adventure is sure to follow.

On the eve of a much-anticipated trip, 8-year-old Meri catches a stomach bug, and her parents make the heart-wrenching decision to leave her behind. The next day, fully recovered yet fighting the heavy sting of disappointment, she sets out on a walk from her aunt’s house that will take her farther than she ever dreamed.

Taking a shortcut through a nearby practice field, she encounters a tackling dummy—also left behind, who has his own set of worries to contend with. After years of punishing tackles, he’s in dire need of new canvas! Without it, he may not survive much longer.

The two stroll along, commiserating, until they notice a leaf, shiny and rectangular, that turns out to be no ordinary leaf at all. They reach for it at the same time, bump heads, accidentally tear the leaf in half, and are immediately transported to a different land. An entirely different set of lands.

With a bouncing question mark and a buffalo unicorn as their guides, Meri and Tackling Dummy set out to find another ticket leaf to take them home. Crossing many magical lands, such as The Land of Upside-down Learning, The Land of Geological Speed, and The Land of Claustrophobic Air, they encounter an unforgettably diverse cast of characters, but also grave danger. There is trouble brewing in almost every land, and the stakes could not be higher:

A mischievous waterspout keeps dropping citizens in faraway lands, the Strawberry Patch is running out of sunlight, there are holes in the Yellow Trampoline, and worst of all, someone has been luring unsuspecting passersby into the Land of Firecracker Hail!

With the help of their two guides, the inhabitants of the Lands, and their own indomitable spirits, Meri and Tackling Dummy face all of their challenges head on, never once allowing each other, or themselves, to give up.