Don't Tell Nonni About the Train: A True-ish Short Story of Train-Hopping Twins, Snack Heists, and Hard Times (Paperback) (ISBN-13: 9798286761166)

Don't Tell Nonni About the Train

A True-ish Short Story of Train-Hopping Twins, Snack Heists, and Hard Times

Two kids. One runaway train. Zero adult supervision.

This comedic adventure novella reads like Stand By Me meets The Sandlot meets Adventure Time, but with twins, trauma, and one dangerously flopping nudist. Written for middle grade/YA crossover readers, it balances absurdity with heart, and dark humor with defiant resilience.

When Liza and Marie escape a hot car and an even hotter mess of a guardian, they launch themselves into the wildest ride of their lives: a runaway train, outlaw codes, dead jellyfish, deadlier waves, nudist food carts, sinister fog, and a surprisingly meaningful bond with a bunch of rats.

It's fast. It's feral. It's slightly unhinged.

And somehow still about sisterhood, survival, and the deep, aching hunger for freedom (and cheese).

This short story is inspired by true events, real-life twin sisters, and a very real Nonni (may she rest in... reticence). This story doesn't just go off the rails. It builds its own.

Warning: Contains mild profanity, major chaos, intoxicated driving, questionable parenting, rogue behavior, accidental wisdom, and enough emotional whiplash to make your heart do donuts. Also: seaweed mustaches, rat royalty, public nudity, emotional damage, and snack-based larceny.

Read at your own risk. But hey! There's cheese. Probably stolen.

*Look Inside*

...They turned and ran for the tracks, leaping across just as the engine roared past, slicing the nudist from view like a blessed magic trick.

The train slowed. Like it expected them. "Is this... the same train?" Marie whispered. Liza hurled their stolen snacks through the open door of a boxcar, caught a ladder that almost seemed to reach for her, and turned to her twin. "If it is, we can't miss it!" Marie launched herself forward, just barely grabbing her hand. They climbed in together- breathless, barefoot, wild-eyed.

And then they laughed. Laughed until they cried. They'd survived the riptide. The nudists. The hunger. The fog. And now... a rat kingdom?

But when they finally looked around- No people. No conductor. No end to the cars. Just crates. Dust. Fog thicker than reason. The train was moving. But to where?

And why were they the only ones on it?...

Author: Marie Cano,Elizabeth Cano
ISBN-13: 9798286761166
Publisher: Independently Published
Language: English
Published: 06/13/2025
Pages: 68
Format: Paperback
Weight: 0.18lbs
Size: 8.00h x 5.25w x 0.16d