Thea Stilton and the Mystery on the Orient Express (Thea Stilton Graphic Novels Book 13) Read online

  I’m Geronimo Stilton’s sister.

  As I’m sure you know from my brother’s

  bestselling novels, I’m a special correspondent

  for

  The Rodent’s Gazette

  , Mouse Island’s most famouse

  newspaper. Unlike my ’fraidy mouse brother, I absolutely

  adore traveling, having adventures, and meeting rodents

  from all around the world!

  The adventure I want to tell you about begins

  at Mouseford Academy, the school I went to when I was

  a

  young mouseling. I had such a great experience there

  as

  a student that I came back to teach a journalism class.

  Hello, I’m Thea!

  When I returned as a grown mouse, I met five really

  special students: Colette, Nicky, Pamela, Paulina, and

  Violet. You could hardly imagine five more different

  mouselings, but they became great friends right away.

  And they liked me so much that they decided to name

  their group after me: the Thea Sisters! I was so touched

  by that, I decided to write about their adventures. So turn

  the page to read a fabumouse adventure about the

  THEA SISTERS!

  A

  Nicky

  Name: Nicky

  Nickname: Nic

  Home: Australia

  Secret ambition: Wants to be an ecologist.

  Loves: Open spaces and nature.

  Strengths: She is always in a good mood, as long as

  she’s outdoors!

  Weaknesses: She can’t sit still!

  Secret: Nicky is claustrophobic

  — she

  can’t stand being in small, tight places.

  colette

  Name: Colette

  Nickname: It’s Colette,

  please. (She can’t stand nicknames.)

  Home: France

  Secret ambition: Colette is very particular about

  her appearance. She wants to be a fashion writer.

  Loves: The color pink.

  Strengths: She’s energetic and full of great ideas.

  Weaknesses: She’s always late!

  Secret: To relax, there’s nothing

  Colette likes more than a

  manicure and pedicure.

  violet

  Name: Violet

  Nickname: Vi

  Home: China

  Secret ambition: Wants to become a great violinist.

  Loves: Books! She is a real intellectual, just like my

  brother, Geronimo.

  Strengths: She’s detail- oriented and always open to

  new things.

  Weaknesses: She is a bit sensitive and can’t stand

  being teased. And if she doesn’t get enough sleep,

  she can be a real grouch!

  Secret: She likes to unwind by listening

  to classical music and drinking green tea.

  paulina

  Name: Paulina

  Nickname: Polly

  Home: Peru

  Secret ambition: Wants to be a scientist.

  Loves: Traveling and meeting people from all over

  the world. She is also very close to her sister, Maria.

  Strengths: Loves helping other rodents.

  Weaknesses: She’s shy and can be a bit clumsy.

  Secret: She is a computer genius!

  Name: Pamela

  Nickname: Pam

  Home: Tanzania

  Secret ambition: Wants to become a sports

  journalist or a car mechanic.

  Loves: Pizza, pizza, and more pizza! She’d eat

  pizza for breakfast if she could.

  Strengths: She is a peacemaker. She

  can’t stand arguments.

  Weaknesses: She is very impulsive.

  Secret: Give her a screwdriver and

  any mechanical problem

  will be solved!

  pamela

  AND THE MYSTERY ON

  THE ORIENT EXPRESS

  All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright

  Conventions. No part of this publication may be reproduced, transmitted,

  downloaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced

  into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by

  any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereafter

  invented, without the express written permission of the publisher. For

  information regarding permission, please contact Atlantyca S.p.A.,

  Via Leopardi 8, 20123 Milan, Italy; e-mail [email protected],

  www.atlantyca.com.

  eISBN 978-0-545-41471-5

  Copyright © 2010 by Edizioni Piemme S.p.A., Corso Como 15, 20154

  Milan, Italy.

  International Rights © Atlantyca S.p.A.

  English translation © 2012 by Atlantyca S.p.A.

  GERONIMO STILTON names, characters, and related indicia are

  copyright, trademark, and exclusive license of Atlantyca S.p.A. All rights

  reserved. The moral right of the author has been asserted.

  Based on an original idea by Elisabetta Dami.

  www.geronimostilton.com

  Published by Scholastic Inc., 557 Broadway, New York, NY 10012.

  SCHOLASTIC and associated logos are trademarks and/or registered

  trademarks of Scholastic Inc.

  Stilton is the name of a famous English cheese. It is a registered trademark

  of the Stilton Cheese Makers’ Association. For more information, go to

  Www.stiltoncheese.com.

  Text by Thea Stilton

  Original title Mistero sull’Orient Express

  Cover by Arianna Rea (pencils), Yoko Ippolitoni (inks), and Ketty

  Formaggio (color)

  Illustrations by Sabrina Ariganello, Jacopo Brandi, Elisa Falcone, Michela

  Frare, Sonia Matrone, Federico Nardo, Roberta Pierpaoli, Arianna Rea,

  Arianna Robustelli, Maurizio Roggerone, and Roberta Tedeschi

  Color by Cinzia Antonielli, Alessandra Bracaglia, Edwin Nori, and Elena

  Sanjust

  Graphics by Paola Cantoni and Yuko Egusa

  Special thanks to Beth Dunfey

  Translated by Emily Clement

  Interior design by Kay Petronio

  First printing, November 2012

  ALL BECAUSE

  OF A STORM!

  The sun was setting over the Bosporus,

  streaking the sky with golden light. I was on

  the terrace of my hotel in Istanbul, Turkey.

  What a fascinating place! It was

  hard to believe that only a week earlier I had

  been in the middle of a snowstorm.

  Yes, dear reader, I’d gotten stuck on a

  2

  mountaintop during a

  challenging

  climb up Alaska’s Mount McKinley.

  Oh, pardon me. I almost forgot to introduce

  myself. My name is Thea Stilton, and I am a

  special correspondent for The Rodent’s

  Gazette, the biggest newspaper on Mouse

  ANKARA

  Mediterranean Sea

  Black Sea

  Bulgaria

  Greece

  Syria

  Iraq

  Iran

  Arm
enia

  Georgia

  ISTANBUL

  TURKEY

  ISTANBUL AND THE TOPKAPI PALACE MUSEUM

  Istanbul is the largest city in the Republic of Turkey, and it’s a very

  important historical, cultural, and commercial center. The Topkapi

  Palace Museum is located there. For about four centuries, the palace

  served as the primary residence of the Turkish sultans. In 1924, it was

  turned into a museum that houses ancient armor, classical antiquities,

  and other artifacts.

  All Because of a Storm!

  3

  Island. My brother, Geronimo, is the

  publisher.

  Now, where was I? Oh, yes — a week

  before, I was snug as a bug in a rug

  in my comfortable,

  stormproof

  tent.

  I had a warm sleeping bag and plenty of

  cheese. But I was certain I would never arrive

  in Paris in time to catch my train!

  You see, I had received a special invitation

  to travel on the most famouse train in the

  world, the Orient Express. The Paris

  police had found the legendary Veil of

  Light, an ancient wedding gown that had

  been stolen from the Topkapi Palace Museum

  in Istanbul nearly a century earlier.

  Now, finally, the Veil of Light was headed

  back to Turkey on the Orient Express. But

  that storm made it impossible for me to get

  to France to join the gown’s journey!

  London

  Calais

  Munich

  Vienna

  Bucharest

  Varna

  Sofia

  Venice

  Innsbruck

  Zurich

  Lausanne

  Milan

  Istanbul

  Athens

  Belgrade

  Budapest

  Paris

  Strasbourg

  The Orient Express

  The Orient Express is the most famous passenger train in the world.

  For decades, it was a symbol of luxury throughout Europe. The train was

  furnished with gorgeous Oriental carpets, mahogany paneling, and velvet

  draperies, and its café car was known for its fi ne dining. The train’s route

  connected Paris and Istanbul, making a journey of 1,700 miles across the

  Balkan Mountains.

  The Orient Express made its fi rst trip in 1883, and it remained active until

  1977, although there were interruptions due to the two World Wars. The

  most brilliant period in its history came between 1920 and 1930, when the

  train hosted royalty, artists, celebrities, and even international spies.

  Orient Express (1883–1914, 1919–1939, 1945–1962, with a maritime

  connection across the Black Sea until 1889)

  Simplon-Orient Express (1919–1939, 1945–1962), later the Direct-Orient

  Express (until 1977)

  Arlberg-Orient Express (1930 –1939, 1945–1962)

  Simplon

  Initially, the train was known as the Express d’Orient,

  and it didn’t go all the way to Istanbul; instead, passengers

  traveled to Varna and then took a ferry to Istanbul. By

  1889, passengers could make the entire journey by

  rail. Over the years, the railroad company added new

  destinations and new tracks.

  The Orient Express’s prestige has lasted through time.

  Although the original route was discontinued in the 1970s,

  today there is a train known as the Venice Simplon-

  Orient-Express that connects London and Venice.

  The Orient Express became well known thanks to novels

  by Agatha Christie and Graham Greene, who created

  homages to this special train.

  That’s when I had a brilliant idea. I needed

  someone to take my place on the train, and

  who better than the Thea Sisters? The Thea

  Sisters are Colette, Nicky, Pamela,

  Paulina, and Violet — five intelligent

  mouselets I taught a while back in an

  adventure journalism class at my old school,

  Mouseford Academy.

  I picked up my satellite telephone

  and placed a call to Mouseford’s

  headmaster, Octavius de Mousus. It didn’t

  take me long to persuade him.

  “This is an educational opportunity the

  mouselets

  simply can’t miss!” I told him.

  “There will be lots of celebrities

  to interview. And the Thea

  Sisters’ articles about the

  trip will be published in The

  Rodent’s Gazette!”

  7

  The news that the Thea Sisters would be

  taking an exclusive trip on the Orient Express

  threw Mouseford Academy into an uproar.

  Faster than you can squeak “pepperoni pizza

  with Parmesan on top,” the mouselets were

  the center of attention. Their fellow students

  followed them around campus, bombarding

  them with questions.

  Even Madame Ratyshnikov, the strict

  instructor of a

  new

  dance class,

  congratulated them on this marvemouse

  opportunity. She was thrilled that her

  students would be traveling on the same

  train as the great ballerina Zelda Mitoff!

  As for Colette, Pamela,

  Nick

  y

  ,

  Violet

  ,

  THE ROARING

  TWENTIES

  and

  PAULINA

  , they were excited and a little

  anxious. You see, they had very little time to

  prepare for their trip.

  “We’ll get to see Jack Nickmouse in the

  fur!” Nicky said.

  “Who?” Paulina asked.

  “The legendary golf champion,” Nicky

  said. Her EYES sparkled with excitement.

  “And I might even squeak to him!”

  Meanwhile, Violet, Pam, and Colette were

  collecting requests from friends who wanted

  an autograph from Raty Perry, the world’s

  hottest

  pop star

  .

  “The invitation says we’re supposed to be

  in costume for the whole trip,” said Paulina

  with

  concern

  . “We need to dress in

  the style of the 1920s. But there’s no time to

  shop for the right clothes! We have to leave

  tomorrow.”

  Colette smiled. “Snout up, Paulina! I’ve

  got it all sewn up. Remember my friend

  Julie*? I called her last night, and she said

  she’d bring us an entire trunk of vintage

  clothing. She’s going to transform us into

  five

  beauties

  from the Roaring Twenties!”

  As soon as the mouselets heard Julie’s

  name, they relaxed. Colette’s pal was an up-

  and-coming clothing designer in Paris. She’d

  * We met Julie in the book Thea Stilton and the Mystery

  in Paris.

  10

  definitely prevent them from committing any

  crimes of fashion in front of all those

  celebrities!

  “The Roaring Twenties?” Pam said,

  giggling. “Do we have to dress like lions,

  tigers, and bears? RRRRAAAAWR!”

  Violet laughed. “No, Pam! They’re called

>   the

  Roaring Twenties

  because back in the 1920s, World War One

  had just ended, and everyone was full of

  energy and enthusiasm . . . just like

  you!”

  “Oooh, I’m so excited I could jump out of

  my fur!” Colette chirped. She began

  TWIRLING

  around the room.

  Pam raised a paw so her friends could

  slap her palm: “Give me five, sisters! This

  trip on the Orient Express is going to be

  absolutely fabumouse!”

  > The years between 1920 and 1930 are known as a

  period of great vitality and renewal. The world was

  recovering from the fi rst World War, and fashion

  reflected the spirit of the decade. They were called

  “roaring” for the trust in progress and the determination

  with which people looked toward the future.

  Clothing in this era was meant to be comfortable

  and give a sense of lightness and freedom. Thanks to

  new industrial processes, fashion became accessible

  to all, and new synthetic fabrics, like rayon, came to

  the forefront: They were soft, light, shiny, and even

  economical! Dresses with dropped

  waists, soft fabrics, and knee-length

  skirts (considered short at the time!)

  were the main elements of women’s

  fashion in the 1920s. Women’s

  makeup included lots of mascara and

  flaming-red lipstick. But the real sign

  of a woman in the Roaring Twenties

  was her haircut: The famous bob

  style was truly a revolution of the era,

  because up to this point only men

  had worn their hair cut short!

  t

  h

  e

  r

  o

  r

  i

  n

  g

  t

  w

  e

  n

  t

  i

  e

  s

  13

  A TRIP

  THROUGH TIME

  The next day, the Thea Sisters caught the

  ferry

  to New Mouse City. Then they

  hopped on a direct flight to Paris.

  The plane ride went by in a blur. Soon

  the mouselets found themselves at the Gare

  de l’Est, the oldest train