Once upon a time, in a magical kingdom filled with all sorts of interesting places, there was a mischievous little monkey named Max. Max loved to cause trouble and play practical jokes on all of his friends.

One day, Max heard about a big shopping mall that had just opened up in the kingdom and decided to go check it out. But as soon as he got there, he spotted a perfect opportunity for a joke. He snuck into the mall's jail and made a loud, fake announcement over the loudspeaker: "Attention shoppers! The mall is now closed due to a major emergency. Please make your way to the nearest exit!"

Everyone in the mall was so frightened that they started running and screaming, and Max couldn't stop laughing at the chaos he had caused. But little did he know that the mall security guards were hot on his tail! They chased Max out of the mall and all the way to a nearby lodge.

Max thought he was safe, but he was wrong. The lodge was actually a hostel, and the hostel keeper was a mean old grump who didn't like monkeys. The hostel keeper locked Max up in a tiny room and told him he was going to have to stay there until he learned to behave himself.

Max was so bored in his little room that he decided to escape and see what other adventures he could find. He sneaked out of the hostel and into the kingdom's library, where he stumbled upon a secret laboratory hidden behind a bookshelf.

The laboratory was filled with all sorts of interesting gadgets and gizmos, and Max couldn't resist playing with them. But one of his experiments went wrong and he accidentally turned himself into a giant. Now he was too big to fit through the door!

Max was stuck in the laboratory until a group of travelers came along and offered to help. They were on their way to the kingdom's grand hotel for a big celebration and invited Max to come along.

Max was thrilled and decided to join them. But when they got to the hotel, they discovered that the hotel was actually a lighthouse and that it was perched on the edge of a dangerous cliff. The lighthouse keeper warned them that they had to be careful or they would fall into the sea.

Max was so worried that he wouldn't be able to make it to the celebration that he started to shrink back down to his normal size. The lighthouse keeper was so amazed by Max's magical abilities that he offered to let Max stay at the lighthouse and help him keep watch over the kingdom.

And that's exactly what Max did. He became the lighthouse keeper's right-hand monkey and spent his days helping to guide ships safely to shore. And every now and then, he would sneak away to play a joke on one of his friends and bring a little bit of mischief and laughter to the kingdom.

The end.

Reflections

1. What kind of monkey is Max?
2. Where does Max first cause trouble in the story?
3. What happens to Max when he enters the hostel?
4. How does Max end up in the laboratory?
5. What does Max turn into in the laboratory?
6. Where does Max end up after the lighthouse keeper sees him shrink back to normal size?
7. What does Max do for a living at the end of the story?
8. What kind of lessons did Max learn throughout his adventures?
9. Can you think of another practical joke that Max might play in the future?
10. Would you like to go on an adventure like Max's? Why or why not?