After successfully completing third grade, Ralph spends the summer with his Aunt Georgiana. She made him a banana-spinach-cream cake and arranged for him to spend the summer learning to play the bassoon.

Ralph would much rather explore Aunt Georgiana’s castle-like house, but the bassoon lessons lead to a snake-charming convention and his aunt’s promise to the Navy admiral that Ralph will be able to get rid of the sea monster that is causing problems for the navy.

Ralph’s not so sure that he will be able to charm the sea monster, but he agrees to try. But when the monster eats his bassoon, will Ralph’s secret weapon save the day?

Ralph’s ditzy aunt and his amazing adventures are sure to delight young readers. The illustrations, black-line drawings with black half-tones and full-color washes, are perfect accompaniments for the zany tale. First and second graders, ages six to eight, are the target audience for this book; this silly tale is sure to become a favorite with young readers.

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When eccentric Aunt Georgiana decides that nephew Ralph shows promise as a sea-serpent charmer, Ralph is ready with a secret weapon
1 book

Ralph is going to live with his crazy aunt for the summer which he thought would be pretty fun. When he arrives he learns that she has great plans for him that he doesn’t think are so great. He is signed up or oboe lessons and is absolutely terrible at playing the instrument, but discovers that his awful skill works well for charming snakes. The military calls him in to charm a sea serpent, and Ralph has to use a secret weapon to get rid of the serpent; his aunt’s rancid cake.

Ralph visits his aunt who makes him learn to play the bassoon. He wins the snake charming contests and goes to help the navy defeat the sea serpent. He brings his scret weapon, the cake that made the rat sick that the aunt made. The sea serpent takes the bassoon away. The are forced to use the secret weapon that makes the serpent burp up all the other people he swallowed. The cake saved the day!

Raplh is going to stay with his eccentric Aunt for the summer. As soon as he gets to her house she informs him that he will be busy learning to play the flute this summer, and she gives him a banana spinach cream cake that she claims is her recipe. Ralph is terrible at plalying the flute, but his aunt is convinced that her nephew will play so well that he will charm the snakes. Ralph starts to play a horrible noise, and a monster from the sea comes up to eat him. He immediately throws his secret weapon, the banana spinach cream cake in the monster's mouth and it saves him!