Bobby O’Malley
And The Spirit of the Conch Shell
by
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Bobby could not stop thinking about the strange voice he had heard coming from within the conch shell. The teacher admonished him several times that Monday for not paying attention in class. Then something happened that captured Bobby’s attention and made him temporarily forget about the conch shell horn. A secretary from the front office led a blonde girl into Mrs. Jenkins’ third grade classroom and announced, “This is a new student…she’s from Germany.” The woman then handed the girl’s registration paper to Mrs. Jenkins before abruptly turning and leaving the room. “Students, I want you all to welcome…” Mrs. Jenkins paused to study the spelling of the name on the registration form, R-o-s-w-i-t-h-a. Struggling with the unfamiliar name, she stumbled on each syllable as she pronounced, “Ros-with-ah.” “What’s with ya?” mockingly asked one of the boys as he chuckled and turned to the boy seated next to him. “Nothing, what’s with you?” answered the other boy, unable to control his laughter. “You are being very rude,” admonished the teacher, as most of the students joined in the laughter. Wishing she had done it beforehand, Mrs. Jenkins leaned down to the nervous girl and asked, “How do you pronounce your name, Dear.” The humiliated girl stood silent, biting her lip and trembling to hold back tears. Mrs. Jenkins asked again in the sweetest, most calming voice she could conjure up, “What’s your name, Sweetheart?” Finally Roswitha softly responded with the German pronunciation of her name, Rose-VEET-ah. “Is it alright with you if we call you Rose?” Mrs. Jenkins politely asked.
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About the Book
In the book Little Bobby O’Malley, the reader learned
of how Bobby saved the life of a young Seminole Indian
boy named Tenatke-Yaha (Thunder Wolf ), and how that
boy, whom Bobby would later call Thunder, became his
best friend.
Bobby saved Thunder from a panther, so the people of his
village gave Bobby the name of Hakla-Kowechobe, which
means (The Boy Who) Talks to the Panther.
A year after meeting Bobby, Thunder’s tribe decided to move
deep into the Everglades to escape the rapidly growing world
of the white man.
This book begins with Bobby’s search for new adventures,
and introduces a girl who becomes his new best friend.
When his new friend comes into danger, Bobby and his dog,
Bandit, must risk their lives in a trek to seek help from the
spirit of the conch shell.
About the Author
John Jacobs grew up in Southeast Florida from the age of
seven. After graduating from high school, he served in the
US Army; earned a degree from Florida State University,
and taught high school American History and Government
before retiring in 2011.