- Before the book even begins, we get a short comic strip, involving some of our characters in the book.
- Mrs. Tickham is reading poetry one afternoon when her husband comes in and gives her a birthday gift.
- It's a vacuum cleaner. But it's not just any vacuum cleaner; it's the Ulysses 2000X. She's not amused, but he tells her she can use it anywhere and should give it a shot.
- It starts sucking up everything in sight, including a book. Then Mr. Tickham opens the door for her to take it outside, since it works on multiple surfaces.