Reusable Stickers, Storybook, and 2-Sided Playboard A Panerana. - SSickey Sperybock Barbie ©. and The ree Musketeers Based on the original screenplay by Amy Wolfram Illustrated by Ulkutay Design Group and Allan Choi Special thanks to: Vicki Jaeger, Monica Okazaki, Tanya Mann, Christine Chang, Rob Hudnut, Shelley Dvi-Vardhana, Jennifer Twiner McCarron, Pat Link, Shawn McCorkindale, Walter P. Martishius, Tulin Ulkutay, and Ayse Ulkutay Digest Children's Books: SZ © em 0 emo em 1» em oc em 0 emo emo emo em 0 we o emo emo mo em 0 emo em 0 mo emo mo amo wm o mm 0 aso emo wes os ese we es Pleasantville, New York ¢ Montreal, Québec ¢ Bath, England g\— & | n 1625, people had horses instead of cars, and windmills instead of electricity. Girls, no matter how brave and quick with a sword, did not become Musketeers—protectors of the royal family. But that did not stop Corinne D’Artagnan from dreaming of following in her father’s footsteps! Corinne and her kitten, Miette, practiced their Mus-cat-eer skills every day on the family farm in Gascony, France. Finally, Corinne told her mother, Marie, “I’m seventeen now, and we agreed that when I turned seventeen I could go to Paris to be a Musketeer.” Marie thought of Corinne in a big city all alone and fretted, “Its a great responsibility to protect the royal family. And it can be very dangerous.” But she recognized the determination in her daughter’s eyes, so Marie added, “I suppose you’ll need this letter to Monsieur Tréville.” In Paris, Monsieur Tréville, the Captain of the Musketeers, told Corinne she could not become a Musketeer. D’Artagnan had been a great Musketeer, but there had never been a female Musketeer, no matter who _ her father had been. “Please give me a chance,” Corinne begged. Monsieur Tréville shook his head. “The privilege of protecting the royal family cannot be taken lightly.” Then he added kindly, “If you ever need anything, please come to me.” Miette tried to comfort Corinne — until Brutus, the regent’s mean dog, teased her. Brutus felt as if he owned all of France, because his master, Philippe, was the acting king. On Prince Louis’s eighteenth birthday, his cousin Philippe would have to give up the throne. But until then, Philippe—and Brutus—ruled. So the mean dog barked, “You’re not needed around here.” Corinne’s proud kitty mewed defiantly, “We’re not going anywhere.” And suddenly... ashy ha aR Ree AG Neto ae f ...the chase was on! “Miette, wait!” Corinne called. But the kitten was already racing toward the castle with Brutus on her heels. They splashed past Viveca, a pretty maid out buying fabric for a new cape. “Mangy beasts! Someone arrest them! It’s a crime against fashion!” she cried. “Sorry!” Corinne shouted, still chasing Brutus and Miette. In the rose garden, Corinne crashed into another maid. “That was exceedingly rude!” Aramina exclaimed as she landed in the thorns. Aramina had been enjoying a lovely daydream about a handsome stranger until Corinne had careened around the corner. As the chase went on, Corinne ran into a third maid whose violin went flying! An angry Renée vowed, “Ill get you!” Corinne sighed. “You'll have to get in line!” As Miette and Brutus ran toward the castle, the kitchen door suddenly flew open. Madame de Bossé, the head castle housekeeper, grabbed Corinne. “You'll do,” she declared. “I need a new maid.” When Corinne explained that she had come to Paris to become a Musketeer, Madame de Bossé laughed at her. “There are no female Musketeers,” she said. “Not yet,” Corinne conceded. “But it is my dream.” Madame de Bossé handed Corinne a maid’s uniform and added, “Dreams are for sleeping.” The humble housekeeper dusting nearby had a different opinion of Corinne’s dream. Over the years, Hélene had learned much more than Madame de Bossé about Musketeers. But she wisely kept all of her secrets to herself. aa \ 4a Pe Bpatacias ; ay ; t a em “These are your late and messy co-workers,” Madame de Bossé announced. “Viveca, Aramina, Renée, meet Corinne. If not for the prince’s Masquerade Ball next week, Id fire the lot of you. Now get to work!” Despite the other girls’ fury, Corinne became a royal maid. So instead of protecting the royal family, she was dusting the banister beneath a huge chandelier in the ballroom. Suddenly, Prince Louis ran in, chasing a miniature hot-air balloon. Though kings were not supposed to be inventors, Louis always dreamed of building a flying machine. Philippe tried to discourage him. “Kings don’t have time for dreams,” Philippe scolded. “We need to finish up the plans for the ball.” “Youre still regent until my birthday,” Louis replied, distracted. “You finish the party plans. My flying machine can’t wait.” Then in a tinkling crystal __ CRASH, the chandelier suddenly dropped from the ceiling! Glass smashed on the floor, knocking the prince off his feet. The stunned prince looked up: Huge hunks of ceiling plaster headed straight for him! ; Then a feather duster flew through the air, and a towel swung back and | forth, expertly sweeping away the deadly debris. Louis was too shocked to notice the royal maids. But Hélene saw that these royal maids really knew how to clean up—and wondered if Corinne was the only one who had the dream to be a Musketeer! Hélene grabbed the girls and whispered, “Come with me.” After going through a secret passageway and then through a spooky tunnel, they finally reached the old Musketeers’ Training Room. Héléne made the girls work even harder than Madame de Bossé had. But this work meant becoming Musketeers! While they trained, Corinne wondered about whether the chandelier falling had really been an accident. Perhaps the prince was in danger! Kg EE ; i VOR95 tm KR I, th ¥, ae (VANES 136) "6" ~ pre x vad i SJ : : 2%. As regent and Louis’ cousin Philippe should have been angry that Bertram hadn’t — protected the prince. But the next day, the regent made his motives quite clear. He told the leader of the guard, “Make sure Louis doesn’t make it to his coronation.” While the Prince tested his flying machine, Bertram sneaked up and cut the balloon’s safety ropes. The ropes relaxed and his hot-air balloon took flight! Far below, Bertram muttered, “His first flight will be his last.” Louis was surprised when his balloon took flight. Suddenly the balloon basket tilted, and the prince tumbled out! He wound up dangling helplessly from a rope near the very turret where Corinne was cleaning windows. Louis shouted, “Someone! Help!” Thinking fast, Corinne swung out on the drapes and snatched one of the dangling ropes. “Hold on!” she told the prince as she worked to pull : him and herself up into the basket. As the balloon drifted over the City of Lights, Corinne remarked, “T never thought I’d see Paris from the clouds.” Louis sighed. “Once ’m king, there will be no time for flying.” Corinne shook her head. “Just because your feet are firmly on the ground, doesn’t mean you can’t keep reaching for the sky.” Impressed with her spirit, the prince asked, “What is your dream?” Corinne confessed, “I want to be a Musketeer.” Louis laughed! Corinne exclaimed, “How is it that a prince can envision a man flying through the air, but not a girl Musketeer?” The balloon landed with a bump. When they heard what had happened with the hot-air balloon, Corinne’s friends agreed that the prince was in danger. They vowed, “All for one and one for all” —and they promised to protect Louis’s life. That night, on their way home, the would-be Musketeers came upon the regent’s guards, who didn’t notice them. “These are the perfect _ party favors for the prince’s sword dance,” Bertram remarked to some other guards as he — picked up a jeweled belt. Then he pressed a small button on the belt that revealed a switchblade. “The prince won’t know what hit him,” he said. ; The girls ran quickly to warn Monsieur Tréville, who required proof of the | plot. But since the maids had none, they wound up fired and banished from | the castle! | Knowing that no true Musketeer would ever give up, the girls decidedto — sneak back in as guests at that night’s ball. While Viveca made gowns and | masks, Aramina taught Corinne to dance. Who would ever suspect a graceful dancer of being a Musketeer? ’ The girls glided across the floors in gorgeous glittering gowns. Prince Louis did not recognize Corinne in her shimmering pink gown and mask, but he was drawn to her anyway. When the ceremonial sword dance was announced, Louis approached Corinne to ask, “May I have the honor?” Corinne stammered, “Uh...of course.” Since the switchblade belts had been spotted by the girls, the regent came up with another plan. While everyone swung decorative swords around the prince, Philippe would use a real blade to become King! As fireworks flashed outside, Philippe attacked, but Corinne was ready! When the ambitious regent advanced, Corinne danced between her partner and Philippe’s sword. Then just as she wrestled the weapon from Philippe, the\fireworks faded. “Her sword is real!” Philippe exclaimed. “Someone, stop her!” The guards growled from behind their lion masks as they advanced on Corinne, drawing their swords. Viveca sprayed the air with a glittering glow from her perfume bottle as the girls’ gowns transformed into action outfits. Meanwhile, strong arms pulled the prince away as Philippe and he slipped into the masked mob. Corinne shouted, “The real villain is getting away!” She looked for Louis, but he was no longer in the room! Corinne’s friends quickly joined her against the grim guards. “All for one!” Corinne began. “And one for all!” Viveca, Aramina, and Renée chorused. Then Corinne cried, “En garde!” Philippe’s henchmen led Louis through a maze of secret passages, until he finally faced the man behind the plot. As the prince adjusted to the fact that his own cousin had betrayed him, Philippe sneered. “There’s no escape.” But Louis ran away anyway, up a hidden spiral staircase as Philippe followed. When the staircase ended, Philippe swiped at his cousin with his sword and raged, “I should be king, not you!” Suddenly, Corinne swooped down be tween the prince and Philippe. She exclaimed, “You will never be king!” Then she let her swift sword do the talking. At his coronation, Louis thanked all of his former maids for their “courage and nobility” against “impossible odds.” Then as he tapped his sword on their shoulders, Louis declared, 7 “I hereby anoint you, now and f ta, re forever, as Musketeers!” ea Sai) | ARN a Corinne teased the newly crowned king, “I thought you didn’t believe that girls could be Musketeers.” | King Louis smiled at Corinne, saying, “If a man can fly, surely a girl can | be a Musketeer.” Dreams, they both now knew, were not just for sleeping. Dreams could inspire people to do the impossible. And as the first female Musketeers, Corinne, Viveca, Aramina, and Renée were the ones who inspired girls throughout France to follow their dreams — and to stick with their friends through the impossible. All for one and one for all! i! Me Cnt 96 POBOGD 9g 6 AERO AOs. \ a $7.99 US. Price higher in Canada £4.99 UK. Adapted by Justine Fontes Based on the original screenplay by Amy Wolfram Illustrated by Ulkutay Design Group and Allan Choi Special thanks to Vicki Jaeger, Monica Okazaki, Tanya Mann, Christine Chang, Rob Hudnut, Shelley Dvi-Vardhana, Jennifer Twiner McCarron, Pat Link, Shawn McCorkindale, Walter P. Martishius, Tulin Ulkutay, and Ayse Ulkutay Look for this other Disee BARBIE and associated trademarks and trade dress are owned by, and used under license from, Mattel, Inc. © 2009 Mattel, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Published by Reader’s Digest Children’s Books Reader’s Digest Road, Pleasantville, NY U.S.A.10570-7000 and Reader’s Digest Children’s Publishing Limited, The Ice House, 124-126 Walcot Street, Bath UK BA1 5BG & All rights reserved. Reader's Digest and Reader's Digest Children’s Books , are registered trademarks of The Reader’s Digest Association, Inc. > Manufactured in China. Conforms to ASTM F963 and EN 71 10987654321 LPP/04/09 information, visit our online store at rd.com