Hello! whispered a praying mantis, scraping its huge front legs together.The little cricket wanted to answer, so he rubbed his wings together.But nothing happened. Not a sound.One day, a little cricket is born and meets a big cricket who chirps his welcome. But the little cricket cannot make a sound. The cricket meets many insects, but it isn't until he meets a beautiful female cricket that he can finally chirp "hello!"Step 3 Readers feature engaging characters in easy-to-follow plots about popular topics, for children who are ready to read on their own.