Kids into books: Three's a Crowd

Author: Penelope Huber

Illustrator: Ana Terry

Publisher: Longacre $14.95

Age Group: 11+ years

Sure enough, I felt my cheeks redden.

'Sorry, Anna.' Mr grant tapped my shoulder with his pipe. 'Did you know I was at school with your mother? But I didn't get a look in because your dad was there too.'

My balding dad and Mr grant in grey shorts chatting up my mum? I snorted.

Mr Grant looked offended. 'You can laugh but we were a couple of real lads. Must have been. Your mother married one of us.

'Now let's find your bags and get going. I'm starving. fish and chips for the trip home. Davey's ordering, we'll meet him there.' Mr grant led the way to a muddy yellow ute and heaved our bags onto the tray beside stuffed sacks and boxes of groceries.

'Mum working?' Polly asked.

'She asked for the day off but they called her in anyway. She said for me to say how sorry, but, etcetera.'

'Yeah, I know. They're absolutely stuck without her and anyway, someone's got to pay the boarding fees.' Polly sighed and climbed up beside me in the truck cab.

Outside the fish and chip shop Polly suddenly leaned out the window and thumped the outside of her door. 'Davey!'

A boy who'd been perched on a post box jumped down and ran over, clutching a newspaper bundle to his bare chest.