Gnomeo and Juliet by Disney Book Group

laughed and tossed Gnomeo back and forth between them like a football. They ran toward the middle of the park.
    Now what? Gnomeo wondered.

    Back in the Red Garden, two gnomes were trying to wrestle Juliet onto her pedestal.
    â€œYou’ve left me no choice,” Lord Redbrick told Juliet. “I lost your mother, and I am not going to lose you.”
    With a nod from Lord Redbrick, the goons secured Juliet to her pedestal with heavy-duty superglue.
    Stuck in place, Juliet felt her eyes fill with tears. If only her father would listen to her, she could explain. Didn’t he know what it was like to be in love? She gazed over the fence toward the greenhouse. She could just see the stem of another orchid starting to grow through the roof.
    She wept for all the things that might have been.

    Juliet wasn’t the only one upset by the day’s events.
    In the Blue garden, Lady Bluebury wiped a tear from her eye. She thought of Gnomeo and the terrible fact that she would never see him again. But she sobbed all over again when she saw the bunnies holding up a wreath that spelled out gnomeo.
    Featherstone was gloomy and alone again. Seeing two young people in love being torn apart reminded him of his own loss. If only there were something he could do.

    While each side mourned its loss, Benny was scheming. He would show those Reds once and for all. He huddled with the stone bunnies to give them the details. Pointing to Miss Montague’s house, he made some sketches in the dirt with a stick. He had a plan.
    Shroom tried to get Benny’s attention to let him know that Gnomeo was alive but needed their help. But Benny was too busy plotting to destroy the Red garden to notice Shroom.
    The small stone mushroom darted across the alley in search of Featherstone. Someone had to help him find Gnomeo before it was too late!

    Benny and the stone bunnies crept under Miss Montague’s window. They peered inside to make sure the laptop computer was still on her desk.
    Benny weaved his way back through the garden and jumped into a drainage pipe. He walked through the pipe, which ended inside Miss Montague’s washing machine. From there, he made his way to the laptop.
    The Kitten Clipper order flashed on the screen. Benny tapped some keys with his foot and danced across the touch pad to cancel the purchase. Next he found the high-powered lawn-crushing machine called the Terrafirminator. Benny danced on the keys and ordered it with one-hour rush delivery!
    The bunnies tapped on the window. Miss Montague had returned home unexpectedly. Thinking quickly, Benny disguised himself as a doll on her shelf.
    As soon as Miss Montague had left the room, Benny slipped out. Phase one of his mission was now complete.

B ack in the park, the teenagers had left Gnomeo on top of a statue of William Shakespeare.
    This is my weirdest destination yet, Gnomeo thought as he looked down at the statue of the famous writer. But he made the most of it by telling William Shakespeare (Bill for short) his story. He spared no detail, from his first meeting with Juliet to the final duel with Tybalt.
    Bill listened carefully, taking it all in. “Extraordinary, your story,” he said, thinking of a famous play he had once written. “It does put me in mind of another.”
    â€œIt does?” Gnomeo asked. How on earth could there be another story like mine?
    â€œOh, indeed,” replied Bill. “Yes, there are remarkable similarities.”
    Gnomeo was hopeful. Maybe this other story could shed some light on his current situation. “What happens? Do they get back together?” he asked.
    Bill thought for a moment. “Not exactly,” he said, finally deciding that he should tell the little gnome the grim truth. “The girl feigns her death. The boy finds her and thinks she is dead. Takes his own life. She wakes. Finds him dead. Takes her life. Both dead. The end.”
    Bill became so excited as he retold the story that