About the Author

Hello! My name is Samantha Kennell and I love hedgehogs! I have had several pet hedgehogs over the years. I'm studying elementary education at the University of Florida. I'm aspiring to become an upper elementary grade teacher (3-5th grade). I'm also an aspiring author! I hope you enjoy my ebook!

Narrative Fiction

Hidden on the side of a hill in a sunny spring field stood a tiny wooden door. To any onlookers, it was as unsuspecting as the nearby flowers but if you waited for just after sunset, you could see a pair of creatures emerge from the shadows. These creatures were in fact two hedgehogs, Ruby and Moose. Ruby and Moose were brother and sister and have lived in the field their entire lives. In fact, their family has lived in the same field for as far back as they knew. 

      Ruby and Moose aren’t the only hedgehogs living in the field. This hill in question is home to hundreds of doors and thousands of hedgehogs! The Sunnyside Hill has been known to belong to these tiny hedgehog creatures since the beginning of time. These tender and nurturing souls lived in peace. Nothing had ever bothered the hedgehogs or threatened their land. That is until the rise of the shadows. 

      Hedgehogs are fun loving creatures that enjoy coming out at dark to be under the stars and explore the surrounding hills and fields. They loved playing their hand strung instruments and making music. Sunnyside Hill was always a buzz with lively talk and friendship. It was the ideal home for any hedgehog and because of that many hedgehogs traveled far and wide to come visit or settle down there.

      It first appeared just after dark one chilly spring night. The hedgehogs had just come out of their homes to unite under the moonlight when suddenly a shadow passed in front of the moon. Moose was one of the first to see the large shadow flying about in the night. A sense of panic erupted inside Moose. He immediately went to find his older sister, Ruby. Moose found his sister frolicking among the flowers with her friends Mila and Flora. They were completely oblivious to any strange shadow in the sky and waved it off saying it must have been a low laying cloud. When Moose kept insisting what he saw was real, Mila and Flora began to tease him. Ruby saw how scared and upset Moose was about this strange shadow and decided she best take him back to their hole for the night and help him calm down.

Upon arriving back in the safety of their hole, Moose quickly forgot all about the funny flying shadow. Instead his attention was attracted to a nice snack of strawberries Ruby had just picked a couple nights before. All little Moose could think about the rest of the night was how he wished him and Ruby could go find some more juicy berries.   

      The following night Moose went out into the dark as fearless as ever to meet his friend Hank in hopes of hunting down some more strawberries for them to snack on. They wandered around the hill with no luck so they decided to venture further into the fields, away from where the rest of the hedgehogs were spending their nights. As they got further away it became darker and quieter, but that didn’t bother Moose and Hank. As nocturnal creatures, they were used to it now.

       Moose could smell the fresh strawberries. He could tell they were almost to a patch. Just a little further now. Him and Hank began to run and skip, giggling and playing when they caught sight of the first berry but they stopped dead in their tracks when they realized there was a large shadowy shape standing nearby. 

Frozen with fear, Moose and Hank stared at the strange shape, which was now accompanied by 2 more strange shadows. When a fourth shadow swooped in from the sky and landed on the ground Moose and Hank took off at a sprint back to the safety of their hill.   

When they arrived back they were in such a panic no one could understand what was wrong. They were trying their best to describe this big flying shadows when up above the moonlight was interrupted by another flying shadow! The little hedgehogs of Sunnyside Hill ran in fear back inside their homes as a whole flock of these shadows descended upon them. 

      All of Sunnyside Hill was in a frenzy. Never had they seen these large shadowy creatures flying about in the night. The friendly spring music ceased and all of the hedgehogs began running to the hill to find safety within. Moose joined the crowd and continued at full speed to his own little hole. 

      Moose burst into his hole and shut the small wooden door behind him. It only took him a moment to realize that his big sister Ruby was not inside with him. Where could his sister be? She was always the brave one. What was Moose going to do here without her when these scary shadows were causing havoc in the field? 

      That was it! Moose couldn’t wait any longer. He had to be brave for his sister Ruby. Just like she always has been for him. He took a deep breath and pushed back the wooden door, rendering himself helpless to the outside world. He could see the shadows swooping down everywhere but ran out into the night anyways.

      He began to run screaming Ruby’s name into the night. Where could his sister be? Did these terrible shadows take her with them? No, Moose couldn’t let himself panic. He had to stay focused if he was going to rescue his sister. He shouted her name a little louder and ran a little faster, more determined than ever.

      When Moose finally looked up he realized the shadows were getting closer and it felt like there were even more. He shouldn’t have let himself peak up. He was frozen with fear again. Fear of the flying shadows and fear of sister’s fate kept him glued to that spot. When a familiar voice said his name from behind though he jumped with shock and turned around to see Ruby!

He had never been so happy in all of his little hedgehog life. He hugged his big sister around the waist and wouldn’t stop squeezing. After a hug like that it took Ruby a second to catch her breathe and explain what was happening to Moose.    

It turned out the flying shadows were really just owls that had recently moved to the woods nearby. Moose was confused. What was an owl? He had never seen one before. 

      As if on cue, 2 owls came flying down and swiftly landed on the grass next to Moose and Ruby. The owls felt sorry that they had scared Moose and actually seemed really nice. It turns out they had been looking for strawberries that night too. Maybe Moose and these owls could be friends after all. Moose was already thinking about what a great advantage having a flying berry hunting buddy would be.

      In the days and weeks to come, the hedgehogs of Sunnyside Hill began to forge friendships with these news owls. They were no longer afraid of the large shadows passing in front of the moon at night. In fact, the hedgehogs invited their fellow nocturnal friends to join them in their nightly festivities. Together, the owls and the hedgehogs danced the night away long into the summer of that year. When winter rolled in and it became too cold for the hedgehogs to leave their comfy holes, the owls went out at night hunting for berries to bring to their new friends. 

      What started out as a horrific misunderstanding turned into a lifetime of friendship, companionship, and teamwork. To this very day, the owls and hedgehogs of Sunnyside Hill still coexist. Laughing, dancing, and enjoying life together in the beautiful fields and woods.

Non-Fiction

Hedgehogs are peculiar creatures. Many people look at them and their spines with fearful glances and don’t feel comfortable approaching them. The myths surrounding hedgehogs paint them to be menacing and cruel animals but these rumors are easily debunked! 

      Hedgehogs have a very unique coat of over 500 stiff sharp spines. If attacked or threated, they will curl up into a prickly and unappetizing ball that wards off most predators. Although these spines are sharp and ferocious, when a hedgehog is calm and comfortable their spines will lay flat and you can see their furry underbelly and legs.

      Don’t let their coats of armor deter you; hedgehogs are useful predators in your garden and make the friendliest pets! These little balls of spines have even been coined the nickname “teachers pet” because of their ideal minimal maintenance lifestyles and friendly behaviors. Because they are nocturnal, hedgehogs don’t make any noise during the day. However they are easily woken and often delight in being handled by their humans at all hours.