Car journey
“Are we nearly there yet?” asked Bella, banging her feet against the back of Mum’s seat.
Joe, who was sitting next to her, groaned. “That’s the tenth time she’s asked that. And there’s still miles to go.”
The Hobson family were off to Scotland to visit Nana and Gramps. It was school holidays, and they were going to spend a whole week there.
They had crammed all their suitcases into the car and said goodbye to their friends and to Granny, who was going to look after their pets while they were away.
Now, Bella and Joe were sitting in the back seat. But Bella was bored.
“Why don’t you have a nap, Bella?” suggested Dad.
“I’m not sleepy!”
“Why not watch another film on your tablet?”
“Don’t want to.”
“Let’s play I Spy,” said Mum. “You start, Joe.”
Bella always enjoyed playing this game. Joe had to choose something that he could see, and everyone else had to guess what it was.
Joe looked around and saw some cows grazing in a field.
“I spy with my little eye, something beginning with C.”
“Car,” guessed Mum.
“No.”
“Camper van,” guessed Dad.
“No.”
“Cloud?” guessed Bella.
“No.”
“What is it then?”
“Cow,” said Joe.
“But I can’t see any cows,” said Bella, looking around.
“Well, no,” Joe admitted. “We’ve gone past now. But there was a field of cows before.”
Bella wasn’t pleased. So Joe let her have a turn. The trouble was, they soon ran out of things to “I spy”. There wasn’t much to see, apart from fields and hedges, the road in front of them, and the traffic going past.
So it was a great relief when Dad suddenly said, “I spy coffee,” and Mum turned the car off the motorway and into a motorway service station.
Having a snack cheered everybody up. Then they put more petrol in the car. “It won’t be long now,” said Mum as they set off. But as Dad drove towards the motorway, they got a terrible shock.
There were cars as far as the eye could see, and none of them was moving. It was a giant traffic jam.
“There must be roadworks,” said Mum.
“It’s going to take hours,” said Joe.
Dad turned the car around. “We won’t go on the motorway. We’ll take the small roads instead.”
“But we don’t know the way,” Mum said.
“We’ll use our phones. They will show us the way!”
They drove into the hills. There were no more cars. There was no traffic at all. The trouble was, soon there was no phone reception either!
“I knew this was a bad idea,” said Mum.
“Nonsense,” said Dad. “I know where we’re going!”
Bella fell asleep. The roads grew narrower and turned into country lanes. Eventually, they arrived at a crossroads.
“Now what?” said Mum. “Left or right or straight ahead?”
“Hmm,” said Dad.
“We’re lost,” said Mum. “Admit it! There’s nobody to ask, either.”
Mum and Dad started squabbling. Joe sat and wondered what they should do. He had no idea which way led to Scotland. The only good thing was that Bella was still asleep, so at least he didn’t have to listen to her complaining, and asking how long it would be.
Suddenly, Bella woke up.
“Are we nearly there yet?”
“No,” said Joe. “We don’t know which way to go.”
Bella pointed out the window. “That way!” she said firmly.
Dad started the car and drove the way that Bella had pointed.
“But she’s just guessing!” Joe said.
“She sounds very sure,” said Dad. “After all, we have to go somewhere!”
They hadn’t travelled far when Mum gave a cry. “Look! A signpost! Bella was right!”
Joe had to laugh. It might have been a lucky guess, but still, if it weren’t for Bella, they would still be arguing at the crossroads.
“Are we nearly there yet?” Bella asked.
“Yes,” said Joe, “this time we really are!”
Exam time
It was exam time at Joe’s school.
Every day, their teacher gave them loads of homework and told them they should be working hard so as to do well in their tests.
Joe didn’t take any notice. He reckoned he would rather be playing football.
He didn’t care if he came bottom in the exams.
His mum and dad told him that he should be working harder but the weather was sunny and Joe had better things to do.
“Shall we go to the park?” he said to his friend Finn one afternoon. “We could take a football and have a kick around.”
Finn shook his head.
“I need to revise,” he said. “I’m going home to do some maths.”
Joe was amazed. “You’d rather do maths than football?”
“Maths is important. Besides, my mum says she’ll buy me a mountain bike if I do well.”
“That’s crazy,” said Joe.
Finn shrugged. “Wait until I beat you in the test and you watch me riding past on my mountain bike!”
“You won’t beat me,” said Joe.
“Oh yes I will.”
“Oh no you won’t! Just you wait and see!”
For the first time ever, Joe wanted to do well. He couldn’t bear it if Finn came top and he did badly. So when he got home, he opened his maths book.
There was so much to do.
Suddenly, he felt like he’d forgotten everything he’d learnt that year! He couldn’t think where to start.
He was still sitting there when Bella came in chasing Caspar the kitten.
“You don’t look happy,” she said. “Your mouth is all sad.”
“You wouldn’t be happy either if you had to learn all this maths,” said Joe.
“I would just use my magic pencil. It always gets the right answer.”
“That’s silly! There’s no such thing as a magic pencil.”
“Yes, there is. Look, I’ll show you.”
Bella ran out of the room and came back carrying a shiny, silver pencil with a fluffy unicorn stuck to one end. “What a silly thing,” thought Joe.
But Bella was beaming and he didn’t want to hurt her feelings. So he picked up the pencil and looked at the maths question. To his surprise, he saw the answer straight away.
After that, Joe worked hard every evening.
On the day of the maths test, Bella said, “You can use my magic pencil if you like.”
“No way. I don’t need your pencil,” said Joe rudely. He was thinking about how much his friends would laugh if he came to school with a fluffy unicorn pencil.
Bella was cross. “All right then, I’m not lending it to you!”
“Fine by me!”
When Joe arrived at school, everyone was talking about how much work they’d done. Finn kept grinning at him. The look that said, “I’m coming top, just you wait and see!”
Joe began to panic. He sat down at his desk, opened the test paper – and felt like he couldn’t do a single question.
There was a knock at the door.
“What is it, Bella?” asked Joe’s teacher. “We’re busy now.”
“Just something Joe forgot,” said Bella. Before anyone could stop her she skipped over and put her magic pencil on Joe’s desk. She grinned at
Joe as she left.
Joe picked up the pencil. He looked at the fluffy unicorn and could feel himself calming down.
He knew it wasn’t really magic, but somehow he could do all the maths questions after all.
When the results came out, Joe had done even better than Finn.
“Well done!” said Mum. “I knew you could do well if you tried. We could go to a movie to celebrate, and you can choose which one.”
“I think Bella should choose,” Joe said. “I’d never have done it without her magic pencil!”
Shopping trip
The Hobson family had been meaning to buy some new furniture for ages, but somehow they never got round to it. There were always so many other things to do. Then one day there was a big shout from Joe’s room.
The rest of the family ran to see what was the matter.
Joe’s desk had collapsed. There were bits of wood and pens and papers all over the floor. And in the middle was – Joe!
“I was just doing my homework,” he said, “and then – bang! The desk broke. Everything fell over. I was so surprised that I fell over too!”
Bella giggled. “You do look funny!”
“That decides it,” said Mum. “We need to buy some new furniture before anything else breaks. Bella needs a new bed. And Joe definitely needs a desk, so that he can do his homework.”
So that weekend, the family got up early, and set off for the big furniture store outside town.
It was huge.
The family had a trolley which they wheeled around the displays. There was so much furniture, some of it was arranged like in a real house.
“I want this!” yelled Bella, running over to a big sofa. She climbed onto it and started jumping up and down. “Look, it’s bouncy like a trampoline!”
“Bella, get down,” said Dad. “You’ll break something!”
Bella ran to a chair that spun on its stand.
“This is fun!” she yelled, spinning in circles.
“Careful Bella,” cried Mum.
“Look, I’m playing houses,” said Bella, crawling under a table. Bella loved playing houses.
“That’s enough.”
Mum took tight hold of Bella’s hand. Bella didn’t like it but she had to stay close.
The family chose a new bed for Bella. They chose a bedside table and cupboard too. Then they went to look at desks for Joe.
Bella was bored now, and tired. She didn’t say much, while the rest of the family discussed which desk to get. Joe had found one he liked but
Mum and Dad couldn’t agree.
“It’s too big,” said Mum. “There’s not enough space in his room.”
“It’s too small,” said Dad. “There’s not enough space for his homework.”
“I think it’s just right!” said Joe.
“Let’s get a cup of tea while we try and decide,” said Mum. “There’s a cafe in the store.” Dad thought this was a good idea. He needed a sit down, he said, and Joe really wanted a milkshake.
“What do you think, Bella?” asked Mum. Then she looked round. “Where is she? I bet she’s jumping on the sofa!”
But there was no sign of Bella on the sofa.
Then Joe wondered if she could be spinning on the chair. Sure enough, the chair was spinning round! But when he looked more closely he saw it was a different child, not Bella.
Mum and Dad were really worried now.
“Where can she have gone?” asked Mum. “I told her to stay right next to us.”
“She’s never done anything like this before,” said Dad.
Joe felt worried too. What could have happened to Bella?
Suddenly, Joe spotted something. “I think she did stay right next to us!” He pointed at the floor and they all saw Bella’s foot. It was poking out
from underneath the desk Joe wanted.
They crouched down and peered underneath. Curled up like a cat, was Bella, fast asleep!
When Joe nudged her, she woke up and came crawling out.
“What were you doing?” Joe asked.
Bella yawned. “I was seeing if your new desk was big enough to play houses,” said Bella. “And it is!”
Mum and Dad told Bella she must never do anything like that again. Though, as Bella pointed out, she hadn’t meant to fall asleep!
Mum and Dad weren’t too annoyed. After all, it had been an accident.
They bought the desk, and then they let Joe and Bella choose milkshakes in the cafe. Joe had banana flavour and Bella chose strawberry. Yum yum!
Rainy day
One weekend, Mum had to work a shift at the hospital, and Dad had loads of marking to do, which meant that neither of them had time to look after Joe and Bella.
But Joe and Bella didn’t mind. They were going to spend the weekend with Gran, and Gran had promised to take them to the beach!
There was just one problem. When they woke up on Saturday morning, and looked out of the window, the rain was sheeting down!
Bella pressed her nose against the glass and said hopefully, “We can still go, can’t we?”
But when Gran arrived to collect them, it was still pouring, and Gran said they would just have to spend the day at her house instead.
It rained and rained. They watched a movie on TV, and when they stopped it was still raining.
They played cards with Gran, and when they stopped it was still raining. They did some homework, ready for Monday, and when they stopped – it was still raining!
They tried taking Gran’s dog, Selby, for a walk, but when they opened the door, Selby took one look, whined, and ran back inside again!
Eventually, Gran went off to do some housework. Joe decided to do more homework. He had tests coming up at school and Mum and Dad were always on at him to work harder. But Bella was too little to worry about tests.
“I’m bored,” she said. “I hate this weather!”
“There’s nothing we can do about it,” said Joe. “You’ll just have to make the best of it.”
Bella stomped off. Joe wasn’t paying much attention to her, he was too busy with his maths.
After a while, though, he noticed a banging and thumping from the kitchen. What was Bella up to?
He got up and looked round the door. Bella was mixing something in a huge mixing bowl.
“What’s that?” Joe asked.
“It’s a lovely cake,” said Bella happily. “But you can’t have any.”
“That’s a relief,” said Joe. “Because it looks terrible. And it smells worse!”
The cake mixture had all kinds of lumps in it and the smell was like no cake that Joe had ever smelled before!
“It’s not for humans,” said Bella. “It’s for dogs. I’ve made it specially for Selby, because he couldn’t go for his walk.”
“What’s it got in it?” Joe asked.
“Dog food,” said Bella. “Silly! And it’s got cornflakes, because Selby loves cornflakes. And yogurt, because Selby loves yogurt. And toast and
biscuits and tinned rice pudding. ”
Joe was feeling queasy just thinking about it.
“Well, I hope Selby likes it,” he said.
But Selby didn’t like it.
When Bella put it down on the floor for him to eat (raw, because she said it would taste better that way), Selby took one sniff and then ran out of the room!
Bella burst into tears.
Gran came running into the kitchen. “Oh dear, what is the matter, Bella?” she asked.
“It’s raining,” Bella howled. “It’s never going to stop! We can’t go to the beach! And now Selby doesn’t like my cake!”
Joe didn’t say anything, but he knew how Bella felt. It was turning into a horrible day.
“Now then,” said Gran. “Things aren’t that bad. Why don’t we do something to cheer ourselves up?”
“Like what?” sniffed Bella.
“How about we make a cake as a surprise for your parents? A cake for humans, not for dogs? After all, they’ve been working hard all day.”
“Can we eat some too?” asked Bella.
“Of course you can,” said Gran.
“And can it be chocolate sponge?” asked Joe.
“With chocolate fudge icing?” asked Bella. “And sprinkles?”
“It certainly can,” said Gran.
They had a lovely time making the cake. And when they had finished decorating it, they suddenly realised that it wasn’t raining any more. They had been so busy they hadn’t even noticed.
“Quick, let’s get out while the sun’s shining!” said Gran.
They took Selby down to the park, and when they got back, Mum and Dad had arrived. Everybody was just ready for a slice of cake!
School trip
One day Joe’s teacher had some news.
“We’re going on a school trip,” she told the class. “As we’ve been learning about different animals, we are going to visit a wildlife park.”
Everyone was excited.
“Bears!” yelled Finn at playtime. “Rhinos!”
“Leopards!” shouted Joe. “Lions!”
That evening, Joe showed his parents the letter about the school trip.
“Wonderful,” said Mum. “We must make sure you have everything you need.”
“Will there really be lions?” asked Bella, her eyes big with excitement.
“Yes, and leopards too.”
“Ooh,” said Bella, and her eyes grew even bigger.
On the morning of the trip, Joe had everything ready.
He had a backpack with his sandwiches and water bottle. He had a warm scarf in case it was cold, and sunscreen in case it was hot. He had a camera to take pictures of the animals.
“Quick,” he said at breakfast. “I can’t be late. Or they might leave without me.”
“Don’t worry,” said Bella. “I’m ready. Look, I’m taking some extra snacks in case the animals are hungry.”
Everyone looked at Bella. She had a packed lunch, a water bottle, a scarf and sunscreen. She thought she was going to the wildlife park too!
“But Bella,” said Dad, “Joe is going, not you.”
“It’s a school trip!” shouted Bella. “I’m part of the school!”
“But the trip is only for the big ones,” said Mum.
“I want to see the animals!” howled Bella.
Joe said nothing. Why did his sister always make a fuss, he wondered. Why did she always try to butt in?
His parents were trying to calm Bella.
“We’ll take you to the wildlife park at the weekend.”
“Want Joe to come!” Bella wailed.
Joe lost his temper. “It’s time you learned you can’t have everything your way,” he told his sister. “I’m going on this trip, not you. If you go at
the weekend – fine – but I’m not coming with you!”
Nothing they said would make him change his mind.
When they got to the school, the coach was waiting. Joe sat next to Finn.
“I can’t wait to see the rhinos,” said Finn.
“I like lions best,” said Joe.
The coach set off. It had only gone a little way down the motorway when it began to make a strange noise. It was banging and rattling. There was smoke coming from the back. The coach driver pulled to the side of the motorway. With a thud, the coach stopped!
“We’ve broken down,” said Finn.
The driver phoned the breakdown service. At first it was exciting, but after a while everyone began to get bored.
“This is no fun,” grumbled Finn.
Finally, the breakdown truck arrived. But it couldn’t fix the coach. They waited and waited. At last, a new coach came. Everyone had to climb off the first coach and onto the second one.
They were all bored and hungry by now.
When they got to the wildlife park, it was very busy. There were lots of school groups already there. They had to wait in line at the gate. When they finally got in, it was lunchtime. Their teachers made them sit and eat their sandwiches before they could see the animals.
“At this rate, we won’t see anything,” said Joe.
“I’m afraid we haven’t very long,” said the teacher. “You must all be back at the coach in an hour.”
Finn wanted to see the rhinos, and Joe wanted to see the lions. Finally Joe won, and they rushed to the Big Cat Enclosure.
Joe had a horrible shock. There was a barrier with a sign. It said “Due to Cleaning, the Big Cat Enclosure is Closed Today.”
“Oh well,” said Finn. “We’ve got time to look at the rhinos if we run.”
Joe was very quiet all the way back to school.
“How was the wildlife park?” asked Dad at tea. “Did you see lots of animals?”
“Well…” said Joe.
“I’m going this weekend,” said Bella.
“You know what,” Joe said, “I think I’ll come too.”
“Hooray!” Bella yelled.
Camping
The Hobson family were going camping. It was Bella’s first camping trip, and though she was excited, she was nervous too.
“What if the tent falls over and squashes us?” she asked Joe.
“It too light to squash us,” said Joe.
“Well, what if the wind blows it away?”
“The wind isn’t strong enough.”
“Well, what if a wolf comes into the tent and eats us?”
This made Joe laugh. Bella had read too many fairy stories with big, bad wolves in them.
“There aren’t any wolves in Yorkshire,” he said. “There aren’t any wolves in the whole of Britain. Except in zoos, of course.”
“Well, what if one escaped from a zoo?” asked Bella.
Joe said that zoos were far too careful to let their animals escape. And Bella soon forgot about wolves as they started planning for the camping trip.
“Let’s get ready, kids!” said Dad, on Saturday morning. “As soon as we’re packed up, then we’re off!”
They all helped load up the car.
First, they put in the tent – it was a big one for the whole family.
Then the sleeping bags and blankets. It’s cold at night, when you’re sleeping in a tent.
Then they packed the cooking equipment, and lots of food to cook.
When everything was packed, the car was full to bursting. The Hobson family just managed to squeeze in.
Soon they were leaving the city behind them.
“Look at the hills!” said Dad. “Look at the heather on the moors!”
They drove up a winding road with no houses until they reached the turning for the campsite. It belonged to a farm and was in a big field.
There were views out over the moors, and lots of space for people to pitch their tent.
“Right,” said Dad. “First things first! Let’s get the tent up. Here’s a good spot, next to this hedge.”
Once the tent was up, it was time to eat. Then Joe and Bella went to explore. There were trees to climb and a stream for paddling.
Bella started collecting tadpoles in a jar with another girl, and Joe played on a rope swing with some of the older kids. The day flew by.
“Tomorrow,” said Dad, “we’ll go for a long hike over the moors.”
“I can’t wait,” said Joe.
It was getting dark. The family ate sausages and beans, then roasted marshmallows on sticks over a camp fire. They drank hot chocolate too.
In the darkness, strange rustling noises came from the hedge next to their tent.
“What’s that noise?” asked Bella. She looked nervous, and moved closer to Mum.
“Don’t worry, it’s not a wolf,” said Joe teasingly.
“How do you know?”
“I expect it’s just a rabbit, Bella,” said Dad. “Or maybe it’s just the wind, rustling the leaves.”
Bella didn’t say anything more. Of course she was only little, thought Joe. You couldn’t really blame her for having silly worries about wolves!
“Time for bed,” said Mum.
They were all tired after a day outdoors. They put out the fire, closed the tent flap and crawled into their sleeping bags. Soon Bella, Mum and
Dad were asleep.
Joe was too excited to sleep. So he lay awake thinking about the day, and wondering what would happen tomorrow.
Suddenly, he heard something from outside the tent. A rustling noise.
“Probably just a rabbit,” he thought.
Then he heard more rustling. It sounded like something walking around outside – something bigger than a rabbit.
What if, thought Joe, Bella was right? What if a wolf did escape from a zoo? This campsite was just the kind of place it might like.
Joe lay there, shivering, as the rustling continued. At last, he could bear it no longer. He got up and stuck his head out of the tent.
A cow gazed at him over the hedge. She had soft, brown eyes, and was chewing peacefully on some leaves. “Moo!” she said.
Joe chuckled to himself as he crawled back into his sleeping bag. “To think I was afraid of a cow!”
No Pets Here
Joe and Bella had always wanted a pet. But their parents always said no.
“We’re too busy,” they said. “Pets make too much mess. We’ve enough to do, without a pet as well!”
Then one day, Bella came home from school very excited. “My friend Izzy has got a hamster,” she told the rest of the family over tea. “She’s asked me to go round and play tomorrow so I can meet her. I wish I could have a hamster!”
“Well you can’t,” said Mum, passing round spaghetti. “No pets here!”
“I’d like a puppy,” said Joe.
“You know we can’t have a puppy,” said Mum. “We’re all too busy to take it for walks.”
“Then how about a kitten?” Joe asked.
“No kittens, either,” said Dad. “In fact, no pets at all!”
The next day, Bella was going to Izzy’s house. Joe decided to invite his friend Finn round to play in the garden. He told Finn, “We’ll be able to play football for once without Bella getting in the way.”
But when the boys got home, Joe had a shock. Bella and Izzy were there too!
“What are they doing here?” he complained to Mum.
“Izzy’s mum had an appointment, so she dropped Izzy off here instead,” Mum explained.
“But Finn and I want the garden to ourselves.”
“Don’t worry about that,” said Mum. “Bella’s busy.”
Joe understood when he saw that Izzy had brought something with her: her hamster!
“She’s called Harriet,” Bella told Joe. “Isn’t she lovely?”
Harriet was small and round with beady eyes, golden fur and long whiskers. She sat in Bella’s hand and snuffled at Joe. Then Bella fed her a lettuce leaf. Nibble, nibble, nibble, went Harriet, and the leaf disappeared in no time.
“She’s cute,” Joe had to admit.
“Look, she’s got a ball,” Bella said. Izzy showed them a big, see-through ball made of purple plastic. She put Harriet inside. Harriet began to run, and the ball moved across the floor.
“You see,” Izzy explained, “this way, Harriet can run wherever she wants.”
“Just make sure she doesn’t escape,” said Mum. “If she did, we’d never catch her. Be careful when you put her back in her cage.”
Joe and Finn went into the garden to play football. They were practising penalties, when they heard a shout. It was Bella – and it was loud!
The two boys ran for the house.
“What’s the matter?” asked Joe.
“Harriet’s gone,” Bella wailed.
“What do you mean – gone?”
“We were lifting her out of her ball,” said Bella. “And – we dropped her.”
Bella and Izzy began to cry.
“Come on,” said Joe. “We’ve got to look for her.” They all got down on their hands and knees. Mum came in and helped too.
But Harriet must have been scared of all the noise.
“Don’t worry,” said Mum. “She’ll come out when she’s hungry.”
She didn’t.
When Dad came home, they all searched again, but they couldn’t find her.
“I’m afraid she’s gone under the floorboards,” said Dad. “We’ll never find her now.”
For a whole week, there was no sign of Harriet. Then, one night, Joe woke up. “I wonder,” he thought, “if I went downstairs now and was very quiet…”
He crept downstairs. And there, sitting in the middle of the kitchen floor, calmly nibbling on a breadcrumb – was Harriet!
Bella was very happy. And when she told Izzy the news, she was even happier, because Izzy didn’t want Harriet back.
Izzy had a new hamster. She said that Bella could keep Harriet!
“Please can I?” Bella asked her parents.
“I suppose so,” said Mum.
“But what about me?” demanded Joe. “Why should Bella have a pet and not me?”
“I suppose that’s true,” said Dad.
And that’s how Joe got a kitten. He called him Caspar.
Sick Day
One morning Joe woke up with a sore elbow.
He prodded it carefully with one finger. Ow! That really hurt!
Joe climbed out of bed and put on his dressing gown, very, very carefully, so as not to joggle his bad elbow. Then he went downstairs.
Mum was in the kitchen, searching for cereal in the cupboard.
“We’re out of cornflakes again,” she said, not looking round.
“Mum,” Joe began, “I think there’s something wrong with my -”
But at that moment, Bella came into the kitchen. She was clutching her tummy.
“Mum,” she cried, “I’m very, very ill! Very ill indeed! My tummy hurts really, really bad! I am far too sick to go to school!”
Mum was worried. She felt Bella’s forehead. “You do feel hot. But you were fine yesterday.”
“I’m not fine now,” said Bella. “Please, Mum. Can I go back to bed?”
Bella didn’t even want breakfast. Joe tried to tell Mum about his elbow. But Mum was too worried about Bella.
“Please just get dressed, Joe, or you will be late for school!”
Mum stayed home to look after Bella. Dad gave Joe a lift to school, and Joe tried to explain about his elbow.
“I was playing football yesterday and I banged it and it still hurts,” he said.
“Probably just a bruise,” said Dad. “I hope Bella is better soon. She looked a bit feverish to me.”
It’s always about Bella, thought Joe crossly.
At school, Joe had to be very careful of his elbow. He had to keep it really still. Luckily he could still write with his other hand.
At home, Mum was looking after Bella.
She put her back to bed and tucked the covers round her.
She brought her a glass of water to sip slowly.
She stroked her head and read her a story.
“How do you feel now?” she asked. “Would you like to try a little breakfast?”
“I can’t eat a thing,” said Bella.
Mum was worried. It wasn’t like Bella not to eat anything. She leaned over to pick Bella’s teddy bear off the floor. As she did so, she caught sight of something under the bed.
A huge pile of sweet wrappers! And an empty box!
“Bella!” Mum cried. “Are those the sweets that Aunt Jackie sent you? And that you were supposed to save for your birthday?”
Bella turned very red. “I woke up early and felt hungry,” she said in a small voice.
“But Bella,” said Mum, “no wonder you’ve a bad tummy! You’ve eaten every one!”
An hour later, Mum and Bella were walking into school. Bella’s tummy was better, and Mum wanted to get back to work.
Mrs Smailes, the headteacher, came running to meet them.
“Oh good, you’re here,” she said. “I think you need to go straight to hospital!”
“Hospital!” said Mum. “She’s only eaten too many sweets!”
“I’m not talking about Bella!” said Mrs Smailes. “I’m talking about Joe! Didn’t you notice that he’d broken his elbow?”
“What!” said Mum.
At the hospital, Mum and Joe had to sit in the waiting room, until Joe could have his X-ray.
“Why didn’t you tell me?” Mum said.
“I did try,” said Joe. “But you wouldn’t listen. Then my teacher noticed I couldn’t move my arm.”
At the hospital they were very kind to Joe. They took an X-ray of his arm, and the doctor showed him the picture of the crack in his bone.
A nurse wrapped up Joe’s elbow in a bandage. Then they put his arm in a sling.
Joe was sad that he wouldn’t be able to play football for a few weeks, so Mum bought him a box of sweets from the hospital shop to cheer him up.
“I hope Bella doesn’t steal any,” said Joe, opening the box.
“I don’t think she will,” said Mum, smiling. “I think she’s had enough sweets to last her a long time!”
Football Match
Joe loved football. He played it with his friends at school, in the park with his dad on weekends, and sometimes he even played it with his little sister, Bella, in their back garden. She usually missed the ball when she tried to kick it. But it was better than nothing.
“I wish I could be on the school team,” Joe told his friend, Finn. But maybe because he was small for his age, he never got chosen.
Then one day at break time, when Joe was playing football with his friends, Mr Burton, the football coach, came over.
“How would you like to play for the school team this weekend?” asked Mr Burton.
Joe felt like he was going to burst.
“I’d love it!” he said.
Joe felt so excited that he couldn’t wait to tell Mum and Dad. But there was a problem.
“I’m so pleased for you,” said Mum. “But – oh dear – I’m not sure you can play this weekend. You see, Dad and I are away, and you and Bella are going to stay with Gran.”
Gran lived close by. She often looked after Joe and Bella when Mum and Dad were busy.
“But I’ve got to,” Joe said. “It’s my big chance!”
Gran had made plans to take them for a long walk with her dog, Selby, on Saturday morning. But when she heard, she said she would take Joe to the football match instead. “Of course, I’ll have to bring Bella and Selby too.”
Joe wasn’t sure about this. Bella could be such a nuisance. You never could be sure what she might do!
On Saturday morning Joe found it hard to eat breakfast, he was so nervous. He gave some of his toast to Selby when Gran wasn’t looking.
The football pitch was in the park. There were lots of kids getting ready, and lots of parents standing at the side to watch. Some of them had dogs. The dogs barked at Selby and Selby barked back.
Gran and Bella waved at Joe as he ran onto the field. “Good luck!” they shouted.
Joe was pleased to see that Gran was keeping tight hold of Selby and Bella. Selby was pulling hard on her lead, and Bella was jumping up and down. Poor Gran looked close to being pulled in two!
The whistle blew and the match began. Joe ran up the field with the ball. He was about to pass it when a big boy from the other team crashed into him. He was almost twice as big as Joe. All the breath was knocked out of Joe, and the ball went off the pitch.
Joe hoped the referee would show the boy a yellow card. But the referee didn’t seem to have noticed. Maybe there had been too many players in the way. After that, whenever the referee wasn’t looking in their direction, the big boy would give Joe a shove. It made it really difficult for Joe to play well.
The next time the ball came towards them, the big boy stuck out his foot and tripped Joe up.
“Hey!” yelled Finn, as Joe lay on the ground. “Did you see that?”
But the referee said that it had been an accident.
Selby and Bella had seen.
Selby tugged on her lead and barked at the referee.
“Please control that dog,” the referee told Gran. “Or I will ask you to leave!”
Gran was trying so hard to hold Selby that she let go of Bella’s hand. Bella ran onto the pitch and up to the boy who had tripped Joe.
“Don’t you dare trip up my brother!” she told him. “I saw you push him too!
Joe was really embarrassed. But, to his surprise, most of the parents and players were on Bella’s side. Some of them began to cheer.
“She’s quite right,” they said. “That big boy’s a bully! It’s disgraceful!”
Gran grabbed hold of Bella. For the rest of the match the bigger boy didn’t dare touch Joe. And after fifteen minutes – Joe scored a goal!
“Can I always come and watch you play football?” asked Bella at the end of the game. And Joe said she could.
Back to school
The summer was over and it was time to go back to school.
“There’s so much to organise,” groaned Mum. “I can’t believe the holidays are over!”
“I don’t know why you’re complaining,” said Joe, who was ten. “You don’t even go to school!”
“But we have to get you two out of bed each morning,” said Dad. “And out the door, with your homework and clean uniform and a good breakfast inside you, before we go to work.”
Joe was looking forward to school. He wanted to see his friends again. The only thing was this year his little sister, Bella, who was four, was going to school too. Joe wasn’t sure about that.
“I hope Bella won’t be a nuisance,” he said to Mum.
“Oh, she’ll soon make friends,” said Mum. “You’ll hardly notice she’s there.”
Joe wasn’t sure about that!
Bella was very excited. She kept showing everyone her new pencil case and bag and water bottle and Joe felt he’d seen them a hundred times!
Finally, the morning came. The alarm went off and Joe and Bella tumbled out of bed and into their new uniform. Mum shovelled cereal into bowls, and everyone gulped it down.
Then Dad yelled, “I’m late!” and ran to get the bus, and Mum looked at her watch.
“Come on, kids! Let’s be quick! I’ve got work too!”
When they arrived at the playground there were children and parents everywhere. Joe waved at one of his friends.
“Hey, Finn! How are you?”
Bella had been looking forward to school. But now, with big kids running everywhere, and all the noise, she wasn’t sure. She took tight hold of Mum’s skirt.
“Mum!” she whispered.
Mum was talking to another parent and didn’t notice. But Joe did.
“What’s up, Bella?”
Bella’s bottom lip was wobbling. “I don’t want to go to school after all. I want to go home!”
Joe thought quickly. “If you go home, Bella, then nobody will see your new pencil case.”
“That’s true,” Bella admitted.
“Also, Mum has given you a box of raisins for your snack.”
Bella loved raisins.
“All right,” she said. “I’ll stay!”
Mum took Bella to her new classroom. Joe was so busy that he did not have time to think about Bella until the headteacher, Mrs Smailes, put her head round the classroom door.
“Could you come with me a moment, Joe,” she said.
Joe was a bit worried – what could she want?
“We’re having a problem with Bella,” Mrs Smailes explained. “She doesn’t like her new teacher and now she says she won’t stay!”
In her classroom, Bella was hiding under a table in the dressing up area. She had her head buried under the costumes, and she was howling!
Joe crawled under the table.
“What’s the matter, Bella?” he asked.
“I don’t like her!” said Bella, pointing at her teacher. “She’s a wolf!”
“What?” said Joe.
“It’s just my name,” said the teacher impatiently. “I’m Mrs Wolfe.”
“She’s not really a wolf,” said Joe to Bella. “She hasn’t got a tail.”
“How do you know?”
Joe groaned. He’d known Bella would cause problems at school!
“And she’s got big teeth,” said Bella.
Then Joe had an idea. “Even if she is a wolf,” he said, “then maybe she’s a good wolf. Lots of wolves are. It’s only in fairytales that they are wicked.”
Bella wiped her eyes and looked at Mrs Wolfe.
“She does have nice eyes.”
“Thank you,” said Mrs Wolfe, smiling. “Why don’t you come out and listen to a story?”
Bella loved stories. She crawled out and gave her hand to Mrs Wolfe.
“I don’t think she is a wolf after all,” she whispered to Joe. “Otherwise she’d have claws!”
Joe went back to his classroom grinning. It was going to be interesting, having his little sister in school!
The Robot
Cara met the robot at the airport.
She was with her parents. They had been on holiday. Now they were flying back home, to London.
Cara was looking out of the window when she met it. She loved airport windows. There was so much to see. Planes moving, cargo being loaded… everyone was so busy.
Then, out of the corner of her eye, she saw something moving. When she turned, she saw a robot.
Its base looked like a vacuum cleaner: grey plastic, oval shaped, with two black wheels. There was a green light on the top, to show it was working.
Coming out of the top were two flat metal poles. At the top of these poles there was a screen – like a tablet but bigger.
The robot was moving all by itself. It wasn’t like a remote-controlled car or a drone. Nobody was controlling it. Cara was amazed.
The robot glided towards her. Its wheels made no sound on the carpet. She couldn’t hear any motor. It was totally silent.
Cara found that spooky. She wanted a machine to sound like a machine. This one didn’t.
The robot kept coming. It was fast, and its green light was flashing. Would it run her over? Should she move out of the way? But the robot sensed she was there. It stopped, right in front of her. It was taller than she was.
Cara tapped the screen. Nothing happened. She tapped it again. Suddenly it lit up, and the robot began to spell out a message.
Hello.
How may I help you?
Cara stared at it.
The screen flashed. The robot was asking the question again.
Hello.
How may I help you?
‘Are you talking to me? said Cara.
Yes.
‘But I didn’t call you.’
I saw you.
‘OK.’ Cara didn’t know what else to say.
How may I help you?
‘I don’t think I need any help.’ she said. ‘I was just looking out of the window. I am quite happy. I am with my mum and dad. We are flying to London. Our plane leaves in… an hour? I don’t really know.’
1 hour 47 minutes
15:23 Zee Airways to London Heathrow
Gate number: 14
Gate opens in 55 minutes
Cara read all this information. ‘Wow. You really know things.’
I am happy to help you.
‘Can you do anything else?’ asked Cara. ‘Or do you just know the times and places of things?’
I can do many tasks. Ask me.
‘OK… Where are the toilets?’
Follow me.
The robot turned and started to glide away.
‘No! I don’t want to go there!’ said Cara, with a giggle. ‘I was just asking.’
What do you want?
‘Right now? To get on the plane. I’m tired of waiting.’
Gate opens in 51 minutes.
Cara sighed. ‘That is a long time. Can you make the plane leave sooner?’
No.
Sorry.
‘It’s OK. You can’t do everything.’
I can take you shopping.
‘I have no money. Well, I do, but not much. $3.50.’
Do you like ice cream?
‘I love ice cream!’
Mario’s Ice Cream Parlour
One scoop $2.25
Two scoops $3
‘Oh, you are wonderful! I can afford that! Do they have peanut butter flavour?
Fifteen flavours.
Yes.
‘Then let’s go!’
Follow me.
Cara followed the robot. It glided past the gates, where people were waiting to get on their planes. Then it turned right, and led her back into the shopping area.
Soon Cara saw a sign, with twinkly lights all around it.
Nell’s Books
Nell was sitting in the library with her friends. It was lunchtime. Nell was reading. She was always reading! She had found a book about cats and was happy.
But she was the only one with a book. Her friends had gadgets in their hands. Sunita had a phone; Saffron had a tablet.
‘Why don’t you look at books?’ she said. ‘We are in a library!’
‘Books are old-fashioned,’ said Sunita. ‘I don’t know why you like them!’
‘I love everything about them,’ said Nell. ‘I love the feel of the paper… the shiny cover… the pictures. I love the smell of a new book! I like turning the pages to see what comes next. Look at this – it’s gorgeous.’ She held up the cat book to show them. ‘The photos are lovely.’
‘But they never change,’ said Saffron. ‘If you open that book tomorrow, all the photos will be the same as today. That’s boring! I like things to be different.’
Sunita nodded. ‘Me too.’
‘Look at this,’ said Saffron. She moved closer to Nell to show something on her tablet. ‘You like cats, right?’
Nell nodded. ‘And I love kittens.’
‘OK, kittens.’ Saffron tapped at her screen. ‘So look – kittens. Hundreds of them. Thousands of them! More than you could ever look at.’
‘I know,’ said Nell, ‘and they are very pretty. But I still like my book more!’
She laughed, and hugged it to her like a teddy bear.
‘That book is just cats,’ said Saffron. ‘Look, I can change this. You like dogs? Here are dogs! You want rabbits? Here they are! What pet do you want? Ponies, guinea pigs, parrots, unicorns…’
‘Unicorns? Real unicorns?’
‘Yes, real unicorns. Look! You can buy them online. They sing and dance too.’
Nell grinned. ‘Can they make ice cream?’
‘Sure!’ said Saffron. ‘They can do anything. They only cost a million dollars.’
‘Then buy me one.’
‘I will – for your 20th birthday!’ said Saffron, and the girls all laughed.
Later that night, Nell was alone in her bedroom. She thought about what her friends had said.
‘I know books stay the same,’ she said. ‘That is why I like them!’
She opened her favourite book. It was about pets. Nell had no pets of her own, though she dearly wanted one. The photos in the book were beautiful. She especially liked one of a cat with golden eyes and very long fur. The fur was smoky grey.
‘Books are better than gadgets,’ she told herself, ‘though nothing is better than the real thing.’ She sighed deeply and ran her finger across the photo of the cat.
A magical thing happened. She could feel the fur! It was soft and silky under her fingers. Then she heard a purring sound, and the smoky cat blinked its golden eyes.
‘No!’ she squealed, as she pulled her hand away. ‘This is unreal!’
But it was very much real – because the smoky cat suddenly stepped right out of the book and sat on Nell’s knees.
It was tiny, the same size it had been in the photo. But not for long. It began to grow, bigger and bigger. Soon it was the size of a proper cat.
‘Miaow.’
‘Oh…! You are just lovely,’ said Nell. She picked the cat up and cuddled him close. The cat purred, really loud now. ‘What shall I call you? Something magical… Arabia! That’s it! Perfect.’
Then the cat wriggled free and did a curious thing. He turned the page of the book with his paw, then tapped on a photo of a white cat.
The white cat stepped out of the book, just as he had, and grew up to real size.
‘Oh!’ said Nell. ‘Can I bring anything out?’
She turned the pages of the book and stopped at one of her favourite photos: six Dalmation puppies. She tapped the photo – and out they came! Soon they were full size and on her bedroom floor. One began eating her sandal. One chewed her school bag. Two went under the bed. Two played chase, round and round the room.
Nell clapped her hands in delight. This was so much fun! She tapped photo after photo. Four grey rabbits… a red parrot… twelve guinea pigs… ten kittens… a tortoise… a family of mice… a baby alpaca… All came to life. Soon the room was like a zoo! But there was no fighting. The baby mice climbed all over Arabia the cat and he simply purred.
Then Nell heard something. Footsteps, coming up the stairs, and a voice: ‘Are you ready to go to sleep, Nell?’
‘Mum!’
‘Back in the book!’ said Nell, and clapped her hands. ‘Quick!’
The pets turned to smoke and whizzed back into the book.
‘Well,’ giggled Nell. ‘I was right. Books are definitely better than gadgets!’
Little Monsters
Once upon a time in England there was a scarecrow. He stood in a field and looked like a man. But he wasn’t a real man. The scarecrow was made of straw.
The scarecrow’s head was an old football. His face was painted on: two eyes, a nose and a smiling mouth. He didn’t have hair, but he did have a hat. It was brown and made of felt. A farmer used to wear it, long ago.
His clothes had come from the farmer too: a long brown coat with lots of pockets, an old pair of jeans with holes in the legs, a worn-out leather belt with a rusty buckle, a red scarf with white stripes.
The scarecrow didn’t have shoes, because he didn’t have feet. A wooden pole kept him standing in the ground. He never moved.
The scarecrow liked being in the field. He saw the Sun come up every morning. He watched the clouds drift across the sky. At night, he gazed at the Moon and counted the stars.
He enjoyed his job. He scared away the crows – the big, clever black birds that made trouble on the farm. They stole the seeds when they were sown. They pecked at the vegetables when the leaves began to grow. The scarecrow knew without him, nothing would grow at all.
But this year, the scarecrow had a problem.
The farmer had stuffed him full of new straw. Clean, yellow straw. It made a good body. The scarecrow was very happy. His coat fitted him much better now, and he felt smart.
The problem was the crows. It was springtime, so they were building nests. They were looking for things to use – and they had spotted the new straw. It was perfect.
Three crows sat on a fence and looked at the scarecrow.
‘Caw, look at him!’ said one. ‘He has fresh straw in all his pockets. My little ones would love to sleep on that. I’m going to get some. ’
The crow flew across the field and landed on the scarecrow. He pushed his sharp black beak into the straw and pulled some out. Then he flew off, back to his nest.
‘Look at that,’ said the next crow. ‘It was easy! I am going to steal some too.’
The second crow flew to the scarecrow. He took some straw. Then the third crow flew over and stole some more.
All day long, the crows flew from their nests to the scarecrow. They stole more and more straw, but the scarecrow couldn’t stop them. He couldn’t run after them. He couldn’t wave his arms. Shouting made no difference. They simply laughed and took more straw.
By the end of the day, he was looking thin.
‘Oh no,’ he said. ‘What am I going to do? If they take more tomorrow, there will be nothing left of me!’
‘I can help,’ said a tiny voice.
The scarecrow looked down. There was a mouse sitting on his belt buckle. ‘I can scare the crows away,’ said the mouse.
The scarecrow smiled. ‘That is very kind of you, but I don’t think they would be scared. You are very small.’
‘That is true,’ said the mouse. ‘But I have lots of friends – and I have an idea!’ He climbed up to the scarecrow’s ear and whispered something.
The scarecrow smiled again. ‘My little friend,’ he said. ‘I think that might work!’
The next day came. The three crows flew down to the fence.
‘Hahaha!’ said the first crow. ‘The straw man is still there. I am going to take more of his stuffing!’
He flew to the scarecrow. But just as he landed: ‘YAAAAAAR!’
Twenty mice jumped out of the scarecrow’s clothes and roared at him. They waved their arms, pulled faces, did everything they could to appear big and scary.
The crow flew back to his friends in horror.
‘MONSTER!’ he wailed. ‘A monster attacked me! It was horrible. It had twenty heads. I’m not going back there – ever!’
He flew away and he didn’t come back.
‘What a baby,’ said the second crow. ‘I’m not scared. I’m going in.’
He flew to the scarecrow and YAAAAAAR!
The crow sped back to the fence. ‘It’s true!’ he cried. ‘There really is a monster hiding inside that straw man. I saw it!’
He flew away and didn’t come back.
The third crow watched him go. ‘Ha,’ he said. ‘I’m not going there! I have enough straw in my nest.’
He flew away.
‘YEEES!’ cried the scarecrow. ‘You’ve done it! They’ve gone!’
The mice came out of their hiding holes. They cheered and danced and hugged each other.
‘I wish I could give you all something,’ said the scarecrow. ‘A gift, to say thank you.’
‘You can give us something,’ said the mouse. ‘A home! Your pockets are very warm and comfortable. We would love to stay.’
‘Then you shall stay,’ smiled the scarecrow. ‘My little monsters!’
Best Job in the World
‘But what is it?’ said Elli. ‘What does it do?’
She put the headset on again. ‘I can’t see anything.’
‘I haven’t turned it on yet!’ laughed her father. ‘Wait!’
Elli’s father was an inventor. He worked for a big company and was always making new gadgets. Sometimes he brought them home so Elli could try them.
‘Can you see anything now?’
‘Yes!’ said Elli. ‘A screen with words. A list.’
‘Exactly,’ said her father, sounding pleased. ‘It is a Life List. This is a LifeList Viewer. The list shows different jobs, see? Doctor, teacher, builder… So you choose one – like doctor – then you can see what it is like to be a doctor for a day.’
‘Cool!’ said Elli. ‘How does it work?’
‘Easy,’ said her father. ‘A doctor wore a head camera for 24 hours. It filmed everything they did, so you can see and hear it too. It’s fun! And it will help people to choose jobs.’
‘I like that idea,’ said Elli. ‘I don’t know what I want to be when I grow up.’
‘This will really help,’ said her father. ‘OK. It works like this…’
Elli learned how to choose and change jobs. Then she went to her bedroom and lay on the bed. She put on the headset. It was enormous! Like a crash helmet. She went down the list. Who did she want to be?
Actress
Dentist
Taxi driver
No, no, no…
Airline pilot
Factory worker
Nurse
No, no, no…
Model
Firefighter?
Firefighter. That sounded exciting! She would ride in a fast fire engine. Wear a helmet and boots and thick, thick clothes. Hold a hose. Shoot water at a burning building. Climb a ladder. Save someone. She would be a hero!
She moved her eyes and chose ‘firefighter’. The movie began.
It was quite dark, but Elli saw a big garage with equipment. She turned her head – a fire engine! Right there! She started to walk forward – what?!! She wasn’t walking – she was still lying on her bed. It was the firefighter who was walking forward. Of course! The camera was on top of his head.
‘This is weird!’ giggled Elli. ‘It’s like being inside his body!’
The firefighter walked past the fire engine and went into a room. It was full of equipment. The firefighter sat down and picked up something made of metal. Elli didn’t know what it was. Then he took up a rag and a tin of polish, and began to clean the metal object.
Elli watched. Time went by. Ten minutes. Twenty minutes. The firefighter finished polishing the metal object, then picked up another one and began to polish that. More time went by. The firefighter started whistling. He was happy.
But Elli was bored. ‘Where is the fire?’ she said. ‘The excitement? The race through the streets on a fire engine?’
She blinked her eyes to get rid of the movie. The LifeList screen came back on.
Footballer
Painter
Baker
No…
TV presenter
Archaeologist
Trawler worker
Trawler worker! Now that sounded exciting. Going out to sea every day… yes! Elli liked boats.
She chose ‘trawler worker’. The movie began.
Instantly she was on a trawler: a huge fishing boat with an enormous crane at one end to haul in the fishing net. She was not alone. Other people were there, wrapped up in waterproof coats, hats and boots. It looked very cold. She could hear the wind, roaring and racing. The sky was dark and stormy. Everyone was busy, doing things.
Elli turned her head. The sea was deep blue, almost black. The waves were rolling, fast and high. It was just a movie, but she could almost feel the wind, biting hard and cold.
She turned her gaze back. The trawler worker was walking forward, but the boat was moving under her feet. Elli started to feel sick. The rolling never stopped.
The trawler worker began to work. She was fixing some piece of machinery. But soon it began to rain. Hard, grey rain that blew everywhere. The trawler worker pulled her hood up – part of the screen was cut off. But she kept working.
‘Go inside!’ said Elli. ‘It’s raining!’
But the trawler worker stayed where she was. The rain grew harder. Elli heard it drumming on the deck. The waves grew bigger and the boat was rocking from side to side.
‘Just stop!’ she said. But she didn’t. Elli began to feel sicker and sicker.
She stopped the movie.
‘That was not nice,’ she said. ‘I’m not going to be a trawler worker!’
She looked at the LifeList again.
Architect
Jeweller
‘Ah! Now this looks interesting!’
The new movie began. Elli saw a room in a house. It looked warm and cosy. A real fire was burning in the fireplace. A cat was asleep on the sofa. The room was full of books on the floor and on bookshelves. There was a desk with a computer, lots of sheets of paper with writing on, a mug of hot chocolate and a plate of biscuits.
The person bit into a biscuit then began to type. Elli saw the words come up on the computer screen.
Once there was a land where every wish came true…
Elli pulled up the bed blanket and snuggled down. ‘This is the best job in the world,’ she said, happily. ‘I am going to be an author.’
Abdu and the traffic jam
‘Oh no… Look at this! It’s going to take forever to get home now!’
Abdu’s mum pressed the brakes on the car. It slowed down till it was hardly moving. Then it came to a stop, at the very end of the traffic jam.
‘I hate this motorway,’ she said.
Abdu looked at the road ahead. Hundreds of cars were crawling along the motorway, bumper to bumper. His mum was right. It would take hours to get home.
‘Maybe there has been an accident?’ he said.
‘Maybe. Or maybe there are just too many cars on the road these days!’ She turned the radio on. ‘It’s a bad end to a good weekend.’
‘A great weekend,’ said Abdu. They had been to stay with family, up in Manchester. Now he was tired. He wanted to go to bed – he had school tomorrow. But he couldn’t go to bed until he had done his homework.
Mrs Hussain, his teacher, wanted everyone in the class to write a story.
‘Write a true story,’ she said, ‘about something that has happened to you.’
Abdu had groaned. ‘Nothing exciting ever happens to me,’ he said.
And now it was Sunday night, Mrs Hussain wanted the story tomorrow, and still Abdu had no idea what to write.
Mum kept moving the car forward, bit by bit. The motorway was packed. There were three lanes full of cars, lorries and vans. Mum was in the middle lane. The left lane had the lorries. One was much taller than all the others. The back part of it was a metal container, painted dark green. There was no writing on it.
Abdu rolled down his window. The evening was warm; he was feeling hot. He leaned out and looked at the cars ahead. Their brake lights flashed red, on and off, on and off.
Suddenly there was an almighty thumping sound, deep and metallic, like someone had hit an enormous drum.
‘What was that?’ said Abdu. ‘Was it thunder?’
‘I didn’t hear anything,’ said Mum. She moved the car forward a bit more. Now the tall green lorry was closer.
‘That!’ he cried. ‘Did you hear it then?’
‘No,’ said Mum.
‘Turn down the radio. You’ll hear it then.’
She turned it down.
‘There! It was really loud that time. You must have heard it.’
‘No, love. I think you’re dreaming!’ Mum turned the radio up again.
The tall green lorry came closer. It was no more than 50 metres away now, on Abdu’s left.
This time the lorry moved. Abdu saw it clearly. The whole of the container shook. There was something inside it. There had to be! There was something inside, banging against the wall and making the drumming sound.
Abdu saw the metal move. The side of the lorry had a dent now, like something had punched it from inside. What on earth…?
The back of the lorry rocked from side to side.
‘What is in that lorry?’ he cried. ‘Mum! Have you seen it?’
‘Seen what, love?’
‘That green lorry, there. It keeps rocking from side to side.’
Mum turned round in her seat and looked at him. ‘Are you OK?’
‘Yeah. I just don’t understand why you can’t hear the noise or see the rocking.’
Mum shook her head, turned back and moved the car again.
Abdu looked into the other cars. No one else seemed interested in the green lorry. Was he the only one who could see this?
Then there came a new sound. A terrible sound of ripping metal – and five enormous claws ripped through the side of the green lorry.
It came again, but this time it was the roof of the lorry. Abdu saw a foot kick its way out. A gigantic armoured foot, like a dinosaur foot.
The whole of the roof was kicked off and a tyrannosaurus rex stood up in the back of the lorry. A tyrannosaurus rex. Abdu knew his dinosaurs. He had watched Jurassic Park fifteen times.
The t-rex climbed out of the smashed lorry and jumped down onto the motorway. Then it leapt over the fence beside it and marched away across the fields.
Abdu looked again at the cars all around him. No one had seen it! Unbelievable.
Mum moved the car forward. Now they were creeping past the green lorry. Abdu stared at the metal, ripped where the claws had sliced through.
The lorry driver didn’t look worried. He was eating an apple.
Abdu leaned out of his window.
‘Mister! Mister! You’ve lost your dinosaur! I saw it escape. It ripped the roof off and ran away across the fields!’
The lorry driver looked at him in horror.
‘No!’ he wailed. ‘Really? Then I am in trouble. That is the second t-rex I have lost this week!’
Abdu fell back in his seat. What a crazy thing! But he hadn’t imagined it. It really had happened.
And it would make a great story!
He pulled his homework book out of his bag, found a pen and began…
The Perfect Thing
Amy was very excited. She was going to a big birthday party on Saturday night. There would be music, dancing, food and lots of new people to meet.
Amy knew she would have a great time, but what was she going to wear?
All her friends at school were talking about it. Imogen and Chloe had new dresses. Sally had expensive new jeans. Kerry had amazing new shoes.
‘Mum,’ said Amy. ‘Please can I have some money, to buy something new?’
‘No,’ said her mother. ‘You have plenty of nice things. What about your blue T-shirt? The one with a butterfly on it? That’s lovely.’
‘Everyone else has something new,’ said Amy, unhappily. ‘I don’t want to be the only one in old clothes.’
‘It is not old!’ laughed her mother, ‘and it’s lovely. I don’t have the money to buy you something new. You will have to ask your gran.’
This was a good idea. Amy’s gran loved clothes and loved shopping! So Amy phoned her, and on Saturday they went to the shopping mall together.
‘Now,’ said Gran,’ we are here. So, what do you want?’
‘Something really nice,’ said Amy.
Gran laughed. ‘ We need to know more than that, my love! What are we looking for? A dress? A top? New jeans?’
‘I don’t know,’ said Amy. ‘I will know when I see it.’
Gran sighed. ‘We could have a very long day ahead of us! You must have some idea. What colour do you fancy? Red? Yellow?’
‘I don’t like yellow,’ said Amy, though she didn’t sound sure.
‘Blue?’
‘I like blue.’
Gran smiled. ‘Great! So we start by looking for blue things.’
They went into the first store and began to look at the clothes. Gran pulled out dresses, tops, jeans… all in blue. ‘Do you like this, love? Or this?’
Amy chose six things and went to the fitting room to try them on. When she came out, gran was waiting. ‘What did you think?’ she said. ‘Anything nice?’
Amy shook her head. ‘No. The dress was quite nice, but it wasn’t really special. I want something special, gran.’
‘I know you do, my love. It’s a special party! Don’t worry – this is just the first shop. There are plenty of others. Come on!’
Amy and her gran went into every shop on Floor 1. Amy found nothing. So they took the escalator up to Floor 2 and began again.
In every shop, Amy tried on clothes. Gran was very patient. She never got cross.
‘Take your time, love,’ she said. ‘I want you to be happy.’
They changed the colour from blue to red. Still they found nothing.
They took the escalator to Floor 3 and had lunch.
Gran squeezed Amy’s hand. ‘You will find something,’ she said. There are five floors in this mall. We will keep going until we find your special thing.’
Amy ate her burger and said nothing. She was getting very tired. But gran was amazing! She kept looking never stopped smiling.
They searched in all the shops on Floor 3 then went up to Floor 4. But there, something snapped inside Amy. Her heart suddenly felt very heavy. Tears came to her eyes, and she began to cry.
‘Oh love – what on earth is the matter?’
‘I’m never going to find it, gran,’ said Amy. ‘I want so much to find something special, but nothing is right and I’m so tired. I just want to go home, but I can’t go home with nothing.’
Gran passed her a tissue. ‘Don’t upset yourself. We have tried, haven’t we? That’s the important thing. And we’ve had a nice day. That is important too. And let me tell you a secret. I know the perfect thing for you to wear. Something that will make you feel wonderful. Something that will make everyone want to be your friend.’
‘Really?’ said Amy. ‘What is it? Do we still have time to get it?’
‘You already have it.’ Gran whispered something in Amy’s ear.
Amy’s eyes went big. ‘Yes,’ she said. ‘Yes! Oh gran – you are so clever!’ She kissed gran on her cheek. ‘Let’s go home.’
That night, Amy’s mum couldn’t wait to see the special outfit they had bought. But when Amy came down from her bedroom, she was wearing her old jeans and the blue butterfly T-shirt.
‘You are going in that?’ said Mum. ‘But you spent the whole day shopping! You said you had found the perfect thing to wear!’
‘I did find it,’ said Amy. ‘I am wearing it, Mum. A smile!’ She smiled her best, biggest smile.
Her mum smiled too. ‘You are right, Amy. You don’t need fancy clothes or money. A smile is all you need.’
‘Yes,’ said Amy. ‘It’s The Perfect Thing.’
Joe Goes Fishing
Joe sat on his bed and looked at his birthday presents. They were great! Smart new trainers from his mum. A fishing rod from his dad. And best of all, his grandpa had given him a watch. A proper, grown-up watch with a black leather strap and a silver face.
‘You’re a young man now,’ his grandpa said, as Joe opened the box. ‘Twelve years old. Happy birthday!’
Joe said nothing. He just gazed at the watch. It was so beautiful. Lying there, in its dark blue velvet box, it looked like a moon.
‘Look after it, Joe,’ said his mother. ‘It was expensive.’
Joe nodded. ‘I will, Mum. I promise. Thank you, Grandpa.’
That was last night – Saturday. Now it was Sunday, and Joe was going fishing.
‘Are you wearing them to go fishing?’
Joe’s mum pointed at his new trainers. ‘It’s been raining all night, Joe. The river bank will be muddy. Wear your old boots.’
‘No, it’s my birthday weekend,’ said Joe. ‘I want to wear my new things. It will be okay. The rain has stopped now.’
He quickly pulled on his jacket and left the house. ‘Bye!’
Joe was going on his own. His family lived in a quiet village. The river was just two minutes away from the house. He would be quite safe.
Joe went down the lane and through a gate. He walked along a thin path to the riverbank. He knew a perfect place to fish. It was flat, like a little beach. He could stand really close to the water.
Soon he was there.
The beach was empty. The only thing there was a huge white swan. It was out of the water.
‘HSSS!’
The swan hissed at Joe. Its long neck came towards him like an angry snake. ‘HSSSSS!’
‘Shush!’ said Joe. ‘I’m not going to hurt you. I only want to fish.’
The swan stamped its feet angrily, and then walked into the water and sailed away.
Joe was glad to see it go. Swans could be dangerous. They were very strong and their beaks were sharp. He didn’t want to share the beach with one.
Joe began to fish. He hooked a worm onto the end of his fishing line and cast it out. It landed in the water, in exactly the right place. Joe grinned. What a wonderful fishing rod!
An hour went by. Joe ate his sandwiches. He whistled. He fished. He was happy. But the sky was getting dark. The clouds were thick and grey. Rain! It began to fall. It was hard and heavy.
‘Go away!’ said Joe. ‘It’s my birthday weekend. I want to fish!’
The rain didn’t go away. It rained even harder.
Another hour went by. The rain didn’t stop. Joe was wet through, but he wouldn’t go home. It was his special day, and he was going to stay.
He put a fresh worm on his fishing line and cast it out. But his hands were wet and the fishing rod was slippy. The rod flew out of his hands and landed with a splash in the river.
‘NO! My new rod!’
He had to get it. It wasn’t far away. He could easily reach it if he went to the water’s edge.
Joe ran forward. But the beach had turned muddy. Very muddy! His smart new trainers were ruined in an instant. Then one of them came off completely. It was stuck in the mud behind him.
No! Joe tried to turn around to pick it up but he lost his balance.
‘Whoa!’ He fell slap on his back in the mud – and his smart new watch flew off his wrist and landed in the river.
‘NO!’ Joe scrambled to his feet. ‘My watch! MY WATCH!’
He stared down into the water but he couldn’t see it. And then he saw his fishing rod had gone! The river had carried it away.
Joe couldn’t believe his bad luck. His watch was gone. His fishing rod was gone. His trainers were brown with mud.
‘This could not be any worse!’ he wailed.
Then he saw the swan.
It was coming back, still angry. Joe moved to safety, still holding his trainer in his hand.
The swan began to feed. It dipped its head under the water and pulled at the weed. Its head came out again.
Then it saw something in the water. Something shiny. Something silver. A fish?
The swan dipped its head under the water, grabbed the silver thing in its beak and brought it out of the water.
Huh? It wasn’t a fish! The swan threw it away angrily.
And Joe saw his beautiful watch land safely on the riverbank. He ran to it and picked it up. It was still working. YES! Joe did a happy dance, right there on the beach.
‘Hey buddy! Have you lost this?
On the river, there was a man in a canoe – and he was holding Joe’s fishing rod!
‘I found it five minutes ago,’ said the man. ‘I’m guessing it’s yours?’ He pulled in to the riverbank and handed it to Joe. ‘It’s a beautiful rod.’
‘It’s new,’ said Joe. ‘Thank you so much. I thought it was gone for good.’
The man smiled and paddled away.
‘Time to go home,’ said Joe. ‘I am worn out. What a birthday this has been!’
Milly and the Rainbow
Milly sat under the apple tree and watched the rain clouds sweep over the hills. What a wet day!
She ate an apple and waited for the rain to stop. Soon it did. The sky turned blue again, and the Sun shone, warm and golden.
Then she saw the rainbow. It began as an explosion of light, high in the clouds. The sky filled with dazzling colours: blue, orange, green and purple. Then both ends of the rainbow began to fall to Earth…
The rainbow landed in the garden.
‘Wow!’ Milly went closer and touched the rainbow. She felt nothing, just air. But the colours moved beneath her fingers.
When she looked up, the rainbow seemed to be stretching on and on into space.
‘What would happen if I stepped inside it?’ she wondered. There was only one way to find out…
She stepped inside.
It was beautiful! And very quiet. Milly couldn’t hear anything.
She looked up. The rainbow seemed to go on forever…
WHOOSH! Milly was sucked up by the rainbow. It was a tunnel of light. She whizzed along like a button up a vacuum cleaner. Wind whistled past her ears. She tumbled over and over but didn’t hurt herself: she was carried on a soft cushion of air. Up and up and up she went, so fast.
But rainbows go up… and rainbows come down. Soon she was falling down the far side of the rainbow. She could see green below. Green grass, rushing up to meet her, faster and faster…
BUMP! She landed hard, but nothing was broken.
Milly stood up. She was on the other side of the valley, standing on a steep green hill. She could see her house, far away. It was like a tiny white box with a rainbow in the garden. Everything was calm and peaceful and very lovely…
WHOOSH! Suddenly she was shooting back through the rainbow, faster than a firework. Red, blue, yellow … stripes of light, flashing by.
Up, up, up she went and down, down, down… BUMP. She landed back in her own garden.
‘Oww…!’ Milly groaned. ‘I am going to be so bruised tomorrow.’
Then she had a thought…
‘GOLD! There is always gold at the end of a rainbow!’
She dropped to her knees and started to dig. The earth flew out behind her, covering the grass with stones and soil.
‘Come on, come on! It must be here somewhere…’
She went deeper and deeper. Then she saw something shiny, under her fingertips. She pulled it out.
‘Gold…’
Milly stared at it, breathless with excitement. It was a golden coin, bigger than usual money and much heavier. She rubbed it clean. There were words written on it:
Make a wish before the rainbow fades.
‘Oh wow!’ she said. ‘This is amazing! A wish!’
Her head began to fill with ideas, everything she could wish for. But then she saw something. The rainbow was starting to fade. It was going thin at the edges.
‘No! I haven’t made up my mind! Please – wait!’
But the rainbow didn’t wait. It was fading. Going away, and taking her wish with it.
‘No! I’ll make my wish soon. Just a moment, please!’
But still the rainbow was fading. The golden coin was getting hot in her hand.
‘Ohh….! Choose… choose… Yes. YES! I have it!’
Milly closed her eyes and made her wish and VOOMF! The rainbow disappeared, and so did the golden coin.
Milly hardly dared to move. Had her wish come true?
Maybe.
She looked up. The sky was peacock blue. The Sun was golden, warm on her face. Such a beautiful day. Such a beautiful world.
‘Even if the wish doesn’t come true, I am a very lucky girl,’ she said. And she smiled.