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Secret Meeting first published in Great Britain by HarperCollins Children’s Books in 2004 Is Anybody There? first published in Great Britain by HarperCollins Children’s Books in 2004 Sugar and Spice first published in Great Britain by HarperCollins Children’s Books in 2005
First published in this three-in-one edition by HarperCollins Children’s Books 2007
Text © Jean Ure 2004, 2004, 2005
Illustrations © Karen Donnelly 2004, 2004, 2005
The author and illustrator assert the moral right to be identified as the author and illustrator of this work
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
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Source ISBN: 9780007248209
Ebook Edition © 2005 ISBN: 9780007369591 Version: 2016-12-12
For Chris and Joan with love and respect
Table of Contents
For Chris and Joan with love and respect
Contents
My friend Annie is completely bonkers. Loopy, wacko. Seriously doolally, as my nan would say. She does the craziest things! Like in biology, one time, we were supposed to be dissecting plums, and when Miss Andrews said, “Annabel Watson, where is your plum?” Annie said, “Oops, sorry, miss! I ate it.”
“Ate it?” said Miss Andrews. “Ate your plum?”
She couldn’t believe it! I could, ’cos I know Annie. She drank some paint water once, when we were in juniors. She said it looked so pretty, like pink lemonade.
Some people think she does it to show off, but it’s not that at all. She just happens to be a very zany sort of person. I, on the other hand, am desperately sensible and boring. I would never do anything silly, if it weren’t for Annie. She is always getting us into hot water! The only times I ever have my name in the order mark book are when Annie’s told me to do something and I’ve gone and done it, even though I know it means trouble. Like, for instance, hiding ourselves in the stationery cupboard when we should have been outside playing hockey. I knew it would end in disaster. I only did it ’cos I hate hockey – well, and because Annie said it would be fun. What she didn’t realise was that Mrs Gibson, our head teacher, was due to take a special sixth form study group in our classroom. With us still in the cupboard!!!
Mrs Gibson was quite surprised when someone opened the cupboard door and we fell out. We were quite surprised, ourselves.
That was two order marks. One for missing hockey, and one for damaging school property (trampling on the stationery).
Then there was the time she decided – Annie, I mean – that we should