Cliffhanger
Author: Jacqueline Wilson
Publisher: Random House, $14.95
Age group: 7-9 years
'I …don't really like adventures much, Dad,' I said.
Dad when on smiling, but I think he wanted to give my shoulders a shake.
'Well, what do you like, Tim?' asked Dad.
'Watching telly,' I said.
Dad snorted.
'And drawing and reading and doing puzzles,' said Mum.
'And he comes top in all his lessons at school. Apart from games. You know he's hopeless at sport.'
'Only because he doesn't give it a try,' said Dad.
'I was captain of football and cricket when I was a boy.'
Dad had tried to teach me cricket. He had tried. And I had tried. But it hadn't worked.
'Tim can't help being bad at games,' said Mum, pulling me away from Dad.
She gave me a cuddle.
'It's because you've turned him into a right Mummy's boy,' said Dad.
'I think an adventure holiday would do him the world of good.'
He wouldn't listen to me. He booked the adventure holiday.
'You'll love it when you get there,' said Dad. Over and over again.
He bought me new jeans and T-shirts and trainers and a stiff solders jacket to make me look tough.
Mum bought me a special safety helmet to wear all the time to keep me safe.
I didn't feel tough. I didn't feel safe.
Tomorrow: Goodbye to Walter Bear
