Charlie and the Haunted Tent and Charlie and the Big Snow Page 5
‘My mum,’ said Charlie, ‘groans when I come into a room. And says, “Shoes off, Charlie, before you take another step!” And she goes on and on about interrupting people talking. How can I not interrupt when she talks all the time? I have to yell to make her take any notice of me.’
‘I’ve heard you,’ agreed Henry. ‘If your front door’s open we can hear you right down the road.’
‘And the fuss she makes if I come home in the wrong clothes if I’ve accidentally put on someone else’s after PE! Or about lost socks! My mum’s got a thing about socks. Every time I come home without them she goes mad!’
‘What does it matter about losing socks?’ asked Henry in astonishment. ‘Everyone has socks! I have thousands!’
‘I have three,’ said Charlie.
‘Borrow Max’s.’
‘Oh ha ha ha,’ said Charlie bitterly. ‘As if that could ever happen! None of my family share anything with me.’
‘I share with you,’ said Henry. ‘At least you’ve got me.’
‘S’pose,’ said Charlie ungratefully.
‘And when you’re grown up you can run away from your terrible family!’
‘I could run away now,’ said Charlie. ‘That would show them! Then they’d be sorry!’
‘They might be pleased,’ remarked Henry. ‘Then what?’
Instead of answering that unsympathetic question, Charlie rugby-tackled Henry’s knees.
Text copyright © Hilary McKay
Illustrations copyright © Sam Hearn
Charlie and the Big Snow was first published in Great Britain in 2007 by Scholastic Children’s Books
Charlie and the Haunted Tent was first published in Great Britain in 2008 by Scholastic Children’s Books
This bind-up published in 2014 by Hodder Children’s Books
This ebook edition published in 2014
The rights of Hilary McKay and Sam Hearn to be identified as the Author and Illustrator of the Work respectively have been asserted by them in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988
All rights reserved. Apart from any use permitted under UK copyright law, this publication may only be reproduced, stored or transmitted, in any form, or by any means with prior permission in writing from the publishers or in the case of reprographic production in accordance with the terms of licences issued by the Copyright Licensing Agency and may not be otherwise circulated in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published and without a similar condition being imposed on the subsequent purchaser.
All characters in this publication are fictitious and any resemblance to real persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental.
A Catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
ISBN 978 1 444 91920 2
Hodder Children’s Books
A Division of Hachette Children’s Books
338 Euston Road
London NW1 3BH
An Hachette UK company
www.hachette.co.uk
www.hodderchildrens.co.uk
www.franklinwatts.co.uk
www.orchardbooks.co.uk
www.waylandbooks.co.uk
www.hodderchildrens.co.uk
www.hodderchildrens.co.uk
www.hodderchildrens.co.uk
www.facebook.com/hodderchildrensbooks
www.twitter.com/hodderchildrens