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Famous Short Stories
Edgar Allan PoeCollection
The Gold Bug
retold byRichard Ganci
Don Johnston IncorporatedVolo, Illinois
About the Narrator
Ed Smaron was born in Chicago.
He has acted in plays in the theater, and
he has performed in TV commercials.
You can also hear Ed’s voice in many
video games including Resident Evil and
Dead to Rights. Ed also played a leading
role in the film Borderland. Ed plays
music, too. He has gone on tour as the
music director for a famous comedy
group from Chicago called Second City.
2
Edited by:Jerry Stemach, MS, CCC-SLP
Gail Portnuff Venable, MS, CCC-SLP
Dorothy Tyack, MA
Consultant:Ted S. Hasselbring, PhD
Graphics and Illustrations:Photographs and illustrations are all created professionally and modified to provide the best possible support for the intended reader.
Narration:Professional actors and actresses read the text to build excitement and to model research-based elements of fluency: intonation, stress, prosody, phrase groupings and rate. The rate has been set to maximize comprehension for the reader.
Published by:
Don Johnston Incorporated 26799 West Commerce DriveVolo, IL 60073
800.999.4660 USA Canada800.889.5242 Technical Supportwww.donjohnston.com
Copyright © 1999-2010 Start-to-Finish L.L.C. and Don Johnston Incorporated. All rights reserved. Start-to-Finish and the Don Johnston logo are registered trademarks. Printed in the U.S.A. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means electronic, mechanical photocopying, recording, or otherwise.
International Standard Book NumberISBN: 978-1-893376-34-2
Contents
Part 1 Wolf . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Part 2 The Gold Bug . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
Part 3 The Map . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
Part 4 The Treasure Hunt . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
About the Start-to-Finish® AuthorAbout the Original AuthorAbout the Narrator
3
About the Original Author
Edgar Allan Poe was born in Boston
in 1809. His parents both died when he
was a small child. After that, he lived
with a rich family, but he always had a
troubled and sad life. He was kicked out
of college twice and his wife died when
she was 24 years old. Poe also drank
too much alcohol and probably used a
drug called opium. One day, when he
was only 40 years old, he was found
lying in a gutter in the city of Baltimore.
He died the next day.
People did not think Poe was special
when he was alive, but today, people see
him as a great writer with a brilliant
imagination. He is known as the inventor
of the detective story and as a master of
horror tales and poetry.
4
Part 1
Wolf
7
About the Start-to-Finish Author
Richard Ganci has lived his entire life
in San Francisco bay area. He is an
artist and a writer. As an artist he paints
in an abstract style. He is well known
for a series of paintings he completed
using brown paper bags for his canvas.
As a writer he has published poetry,
stories for children and stories for young
adults. One story, Fish, was made into a
short movie.
Richard loves to read and to grow
his vocabulary. Whenever he reads, he
keeps a dictionary close at hand.
“You can thank the gold bug for this!”
he yelled.
So that’s the story of the gold bug.
It took us two trips in the boat to get
all of the treasure home. And if you
want to know how much treasure we
found, I’m sorry but I can’t tell you.
I can’t tell you because we’re still
counting it all!
The End
Part 4 The Treasure Hunt 53
11 of 11
One day I was hiking alone on
Sullivan’s Island. Sullivan’s Island is
near the coast of South Carolina. I had
just stopped for a rest when I heard
someone shouting, “Wolf! Wolf!
Wolf!” I could hear an animal crashing
through the bushes nearby. I quickly
looked for a tree to climb but there
were no trees. And then a huge, gray
animal landed on my chest. I fell to the
ground. I thought that I was going to
be killed. Then I heard two men
laughing. I was scared and angry at
the same time.
8 The Gold Bug
1 of 7
How could they laugh when I was
going to die?
Well, I didn’t die because the huge,
gray animal wasn’t a wolf at all. It was
just a big dog. The dog started to lick
my face. The two men were looking
down at me and they were still
laughing. One of the men called to the
dog. “Get over here, Wolf.” Then the
man said to me, “I’m sorry about my
dog. That’s the way he says ‘hello.’
His name is Wolf. I hope he didn’t
scare you too much.”
Part 1 Wolf 9
2 of 7
52 The Gold Bug
Now he was standing on a wooden
chest that was three feet wide and
three feet long. “Captain Kidd’s
treasure chest!” screamed Legrand.
We opened the huge chest. It was
full of jewels and gold coins from
Spain and France and Germany. And
there were gold rings and gold watches
and gold bowls, too. We thought that it
must be worth more than a million
dollars. The three of us were suddenly
very rich.
Legrand started laughing and
shouting.
Part 4 The Treasure Hunt 51
10 of 11
I got up and brushed off my clothes.
“Well,” I said, “I was a little scared.”
The two men smiled and invited me
to their hut.
But wait a minute! Let me start this
story at the beginning.
I live in Charleston, South Carolina.
In my free time, I like to hunt and fish
and hike. Hiking is my favorite thing
to do. The land and the water around
Charleston are beautiful for hiking.
One morning, I crossed over to
Sullivan’s Island.
10 The Gold Bug
3 of 7
This island is three miles long but it’s
not very wide. Someone had told me
that no one lived on Sullivan’s Island.
So I was surprised to see the two men
and their hut. And I was really
surprised to see that dog!
One of the men was named William
Legrand. The other man’s name was
Jupiter. Jupiter worked for Legrand.
Jupiter did all the cooking and the
cleaning.
William Legrand had once been a
very rich man, but now he was poor.
He said that he wanted to be rich again.
Part 1 Wolf 11
4 of 7
“Get out of there!” The dog jumped
out of the hole, but kept on barking.
We all held up our lanterns and looked
down. We saw human skeletons in the
hole. Jupiter let out a little cry.
“Who were these people?” I asked.
“They were the pirates who buried
Captain Kidd’s treasure,” said Legrand.
“Captain Kidd killed them so that no
one else would know about the
treasure chest.”
Legrand jumped into the hole and
pushed the bones off to the side.
50 The Gold Bug
9 of 11
Little by little the gold bug came
down out of the tree. When it hit the
ground, Legrand called up to Jupiter.
“You can let go of the string now and
come down from the tree,” he said.
“We need to start digging.”
We picked up the shovels, and the
three of us began to dig. After about
an hour, the shovels hit something that
was made out of wood. Wolf barked
and jumped down into the hole.
He started to dig at the ground with his
feet.
“Wolf!” shouted Legrand.
Part 4 The Treasure Hunt 49
8 of 11
12 The Gold Bug
But he didn’t know how he could get
any money. He worried about it, and
this worry made him very unhappy.
It was good that he had a kind man like
Jupiter to take care of him.
Legrand was an artist and a
scientist. He loved to study bugs and
insects. He showed me his collection
of rare insects. I went to see him often
and we talked about many things. In a
few short weeks, William Legrand and
I got to be close friends.
One cold evening, I crossed over to
Sullivan’s Island and walked to the hut.
Part 1 Wolf 13
5 of 7
He said to me, “We dig at the spot
where the gold bug hits the ground.
That’s where Captain Kidd’s treasure
chest is buried.”
“So tell me,” I said. “What does the
gold bug have to do with it?”
“The gold bug has nothing to do
with it at all,” Legrand answered.
“We had to tie something to the end of
the string, but it didn’t have to be the
gold bug. We could have used a nail,
or a rock. I just thought that the gold
bug would be lucky.”
48 The Gold Bug
7 of 11
Jupiter called down to us, “Why do
I have to do this?”
Legrand called up, “Do you want to
be a rich man?”
Jupiter called down, “OK, OK.
I’m doing it. I’m putting the dead bug
through the dead man’s eye-hole. But
it’s not a very good way to get rich.”
I didn’t say anything. I didn’t know
what to say. I just looked at Legrand.
I must have had a funny look on my
face because Legrand laughed.
Part 4 The Treasure Hunt 47
6 of 11
I knocked on the door but no one was
at home. I opened the door and went
in. There was a fire going in the
fireplace. It was cold outside, and I
was happy to sit by the fire.
After a while, Legrand and Jupiter
came back to the hut.
“Well, well, well. Look who’s here!”
Legrand shouted as he shook my hand.
Then he said to Jupiter, “Make one of
your great chicken dinners for the
three of us.”
Legrand sat down in a chair next to
me.
14 The Gold Bug
6 of 7
Part 1 Wolf 1546 The Gold Bug
Just then, he yelled out. “Oh my
Lord! There’s a skull up here! I’m up
here in a tree with a dead man’s head!”
Legrand laughed. He called up to
Jupiter, “Don’t you worry about the
skull of that dead man. He’s been
dead for over 100 years. Now, listen,
Jupiter. Put the gold bug through the
eye-hole of that skull. The left eye-hole,
not the right eye-hole. Then lower the
bug on the string all the way down
here and don’t let go of your end of the
string.”
Part 4 The Treasure Hunt 45
5 of 11
He stretched out his legs and held his
hands out toward the fire. He said,
“We were out hunting for bugs. I have
found some good bugs over the years.
But the bug that I found yesterday is
the best. Let me show it to you.”
Jupiter was over by the stove but
he could hear us talking. Jupiter said
to Legrand, “You can just forget about
that bug. That bug is bad luck.”
16 The Gold Bug
7 of 7
Part 2
The Gold Bug
17
Jupiter took the string, but he was
careful not to touch the bug. Then he
started to climb the tree. There was
just enough moonlight to see Jupiter
climb from branch to branch.
When Jupiter got up to the seventh
branch, he called down. “OK, I’m here.
What now?”
Legrand called up, “Now crawl out
on the branch. And, Jupiter, don’t be
afraid, no matter what you see.”
Jupiter called down, “What am I
going to see?”
44 The Gold Bug
4 of 11
Can you climb up to the seventh
branch?”
“Sure,” Jupiter said. “But why did
we bring shovels if we were only going
to climb trees?”
Legrand laughed again. “You just
climb. And take this with you.”
Legrand handed Jupiter a long string.
The gold bug was tied to one end of
the string.
“That bug sure does give me the
creeps,” said Jupiter.
Legrand just laughed.
Part 4 The Treasure Hunt 43
3 of 11
Legrand laughed when Jupiter said
that the bug was bad luck. He spoke
softly so that Jupiter could not hear.
He said to me, “I call it the gold bug!”
“Let’s have a look at it,” I said to
Legrand.
Legrand opened a small box.
He took out the gold bug and handed
it to me. The bug felt very heavy.
“Are you sure it’s dead?” I asked.
“It’s dead,” said Legrand. “But
before it died, it bit me.”
18 The Gold Bug
1 of 9
Just then, Jupiter came into the
room. He said, “Yes, sir. That bug bit
Legrand. It sure did. And Legrand has
not been the same ever since.”
Legrand laughed. “That’s a silly
thing to say, Jupiter,” he said.
I asked Jupiter, “What do you mean
Legrand has not been the same?”
Jupiter said, “Ever since that bug
bit him, all he thinks about is gold.
All he talks about is gold. He thinks
that he is going to find some gold.
He thinks that he will be a rich man
again.”
Part 2 The Gold Bug 19
2 of 9
As we walked, Legrand said, “Jupiter,
can you still climb a tree?”
“I am still the best tree climber
there is,” Jupiter said.
Legrand stopped walking. He took
out his map and looked at it by the
light of his lantern. He pointed to a
tall, old tree. He asked Jupiter, “Can
you climb that tree?”
“How high up in that tree do I have
to go?” asked Jupiter.
Legrand looked at the map and
said, “The seventh branch.
42 The Gold Bug
2 of 11
Legrand had a boat ready for us.
There were three shovels and three
lanterns in the boat. Wolf barked as
we left Sullivan’s Island. He was happy
that he was going with us. We rowed
the boat for about an hour. Then
Legrand pointed to a small beach and
said, “That’s where we stop. That’s
where we leave the boat.”
We left the boat on the beach and
walked for another hour. I carried one
of the shovels, and Jupiter carried the
other two.
Part 4 The Treasure Hunt 41
1 of 11
“It’s possible,” said Legrand with a
smile.
I looked at the bug in my hand.
It really did look like it was made out
of gold.
Then Legrand handed me
something else. He said, “I found this
near the gold bug.”
At first, I thought it was a piece of
paper. But it didn’t feel like paper, so
I asked him what it was.
Legrand said, “It’s a piece of
parchment.”
20 The Gold Bug
3 of 9
“Parchment?” I asked. “What’s
parchment?”
Legrand told me that parchment is
made from the skin of a sheep or a
goat. “When it’s all dried out, you can
write on it,” he said. “It’s much
stronger than paper so it can last a
very long time.”
I looked down at the parchment.
It was blank on both sides. No one
had written on it.
Just then, Wolf began to bark. Wolf
was outside in the cold and he wanted
to come in.
Part 2 The Gold Bug 21
4 of 9
Part 4
The Treasure Hunt
40
That’s what I was doing last night.
I made a copy of the map, and I
followed the map last night.”
“Do you know where the treasure
is buried?” I asked him.
“Yes,” Legrand said. “At least
I think so.” Then he picked up his
backpack and said, “Let’s go get it!”
Part 3 The Map 39
9 of 9
22 The Gold Bug
Jupiter opened the door, and Wolf ran
into the room. He was happy to see
me. He liked it when I scratched him
behind his ears. Wolf ran over to my
seat near the fire. I was still holding
the piece of parchment in my right
hand, so I scratched Wolf behind his
ears with my left hand.
“Look out,” Legrand said. “Wolf is
pushing you into the fire.”
Legrand was right. I pulled my right
hand away from the fire, and I put the
parchment on the table. Legrand
picked up the parchment.
Part 2 The Gold Bug 23
5 of 9
I remembered the stories about
Captain Kidd. He was the most famous
of all the pirates. He was caught and
hanged in 1701. But before he was
caught and hanged, he buried a huge
treasure chest somewhere. People
looked for the chest, but nobody ever
found it.
Jupiter picked up the map and
looked at it. “This is a confusing
map,” he said. “I don’t know how to
read it.”
“Yes, it is a confusing map,” said
Legrand, “but I can read it.
38 The Gold Bug
8 of 9
“Yes, a goat,” I said.
Legrand looked at us both and
asked, “What is another name for a
goat? What do you call a young
goat?”
“A kid,” I said. “A young goat is
called a kid.”
“That’s right,” Legrand said.
“Have you ever heard the name Captain
Kidd?”
I jumped up from my chair.
“Captain Kidd! The famous pirate!”
Part 3 The Map 37
7 of 9
He looked at it and started to say
something, but then he stopped.
He just stood up quickly, and put the
parchment in a safe place.
After dinner, I saw Legrand put the
parchment close to the fire again. It
looked like he was reading something,
but I knew that the parchment was
blank.
Finally, I said to him, “What are you
doing, Legrand? Why is that silly
parchment so important to you?”
Legrand said, “When the gold bug
bit me, I dropped the bug in the sand.
24 The Gold Bug
6 of 9
I had to get down on my hands and
knees to find it. That’s when I found
the parchment. The gold bug is not
that important. But this piece of
parchment might be very important.”
“Why?” I asked.
“I can’t tell you just yet,” he said.
“Why not?” I asked.
“Because you wouldn’t believe me
if I told you,” Legrand said.
And that was all that he said. It was
late and it was time for me to go home.
Part 2 The Gold Bug 25
7 of 9
“Who drew the map on the
parchment?” I asked. “And why did
that person use secret ink?”
“Look at the very bottom of the
parchment,” said Legrand. “There is a
small drawing below the map. I think
that’s a clue.” Then Legrand asked us,
“What does the drawing look like to
you?”
“An animal?” I said.
“Yes, but what kind of animal?”
Legrand asked.
Jupiter shouted, “A sheep! A goat!”
36 The Gold Bug
6 of 9
Jupiter looked at the parchment and
said, “Oh, no! Now I’m going crazy,
too.”
“It’s like magic,” I said to Legrand.
“It’s a map,” he said. “You can only
see it for a while. Then it fades away.
But when you hold the parchment near
the fire, the map comes back again.”
“How is that possible?” I asked.
Legrand said, “It’s some kind of
secret ink that can only be seen when
it’s near heat.”
Part 3 The Map 35
5 of 9
26 The Gold Bug
A few days later, I woke up and
heard someone pounding on my front
door. I jumped out of bed and opened
the door. It was Jupiter. He was
shouting at me. “I knew it! I knew it!”
he yelled.
“What’s the matter, Jupiter?”
I asked. “Tell me what’s wrong.”
Jupiter spoke fast. “Legrand is
gone. He’s been out all night long.
He still hasn’t come back. Wolf is
gone, too. And so is that gold bug.”
I patted Jupiter on his back.
“Relax, Jupiter,” I said.
Part 2 The Gold Bug 27
8 of 9
34 The Gold Bug
“Now, hold it close to the fire,”
Legrand said. “But don’t let it burn.”
I did what he said to do. Jupiter
looked at us and shook his head.
He said, “Now both of you are crazy.”
Legrand kept looking at the
parchment. He said to me, “Now take
it away from the fire, and look at it.”
I was so surprised that I almost fell
out of my chair. There was something
on the parchment! It looked like some
sort of map. I showed it to Jupiter.
Part 3 The Map 33
4 of 9
“Maybe Legrand couldn’t sleep. Maybe
he just took a long walk.”
“No, sir! No!” said Jupiter. “It’s all
because of the gold bug. The bite from
that bug has made him crazy.”
I went back to the hut with Jupiter.
Legrand was not there. We decided to
wait a little while longer before we
called for help. “If he isn’t back in one
hour, we will call the police,” I said.
28 The Gold Bug
9 of 9
Part 3
The Map
29
He said, “I want to show you both
something. But first we need to build
a fire.”
Jupiter started the fire. I took my
chair over to the fireplace. Legrand
took something out of his backpack.
When the fire was started, Legrand
handed me the piece of parchment.
“Look at it,” he said.
“I’ve already seen it,” I said.
“There’s nothing to look at. It’s blank
on both sides.”
32 The Gold Bug
3 of 9
“That gold bug has made you a crazy
man!”
Legrand sat down next to me.
I said, “Jupiter has good reasons to be
mad. He is supposed to take care of
you. And then you run off like that.”
“Jupiter thinks that I’m crazy,”
Legrand said. “Do you think that I’m
crazy?”
“Well, I’m starting to think so,” I
said.
Legrand looked at Jupiter and me.
Part 3 The Map 31
2 of 9
Jupiter and I had only waited a few
minutes before Legrand and Wolf came
through the door. Legrand was
smiling, but he had a strange look in
his eyes. He took off his backpack and
put it down.
Jupiter was angry. He shouted at
Legrand, “Why did you go off by
yourself? Why didn’t you tell me?
Why didn’t you take me with you?”
“Everything is OK, Jupiter,”
Legrand said.
“Nothing is OK,” Jupiter yelled.
30 The Gold Bug
1 of 9
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