Max and the Man in the Moon

There once was a boy named Max. He was smaller than other boys his age.

Some boys at school made fun of him. They called him things like “runt” and “small fry.”

Sometimes they even tripped and pushed him.

One student was nice to him. Her name was Sarah.

She would step in front of Max to protect him. The mean boys would not hit a girl.

But Max did not want to be protected by a girl. He wanted to be able to stand up for himself.

Every night, he lay in bed wishing he were bigger and stronger.