First published in Great Britain by HarperCollins Children’s Books in 2012
Published in this ebook edition in 2019
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Text © David Walliams 2012
Illustrations © Tony Ross 2012
Cover lettering of author’s name © Quentin Blake 2010
David Walliams and Tony Ross 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: 9780007453542
Ebook Edition © 2019 ISBN: 9780007453559
Version: 2019-09-16
For Frankie, the boy with the beautiful smile.
Contents
Meet the characters in this story
1. Prawn-Cocktail-Crisp Breath
2. A Very Special Little Girl
3. Nuffink
4. Dirty Business
5. Droppings
6. Rat-a-tat-tat
7. Animal Smuggling
8. Bread Sandwich
9. One Shoe
10. The Ogre
11. The Black Death
12. Instant Suspension
13. Burt’s Burgers
14. A Bogie on the Ceiling
15. Ten-Tonne Truck
16. The Blackberry Bush
17. “I Smell a Rat!”
18. “Pulverisation”
19. The Great Escape
20. Tug of War
21. Sizzling Bottom
22. Free Spit
23. The Pulverisation Machine!
24. Childburger
25. Roadkill
26. The Executioner & Axe
27. A Hole in the Fence
28. Rat Poison
29. Pink Furry Slippers
30. Room-mates
31. Rich and Famous Rat
32. Actually Too Much Fudge
Epilogue
Footnotes
Books by David Walliams:
About the Publisher
Thank-yous:
I would like to thank the following people, in order of importance:
Ann-Janine Murtagh, my boss at HarperCollins. I love you, I adore you. Thank you so much for believing in me, but most of all, thank you for being you.
Nick Lake, my editor. You know I think you are the absolute best in the business, but also thank you so much for helping me NOT ONLY grow as a writer, but also as a man.
Paul Stevens, my literary agent. I wouldn’t pay you 10% plus VAT for making a few phone calls if I didn’t feel completely blessed to be represented by you.
Tony Ross. You are the most talented illustrator in the price range we had available. Thank you.
James Stevens and Elorine Grant, the designers. Thanks.
Lily Morgan, the copy editor. Cheers.
Sam White, the publicity manager. Geraldine Stroud, the publicity director. Ta.
Meet the characters in this story:
The hamster was dead.
On his back.
Legs in the air.
Dead.
With tears running down her cheeks, Zoe opened the cage. Her hands were shaking and her heart was breaking. As she laid Gingernut’s little furry body down on the worn carpet, she thought she would never smile again.
“Sheila!” called Zoe, as loudly as she could. Despite her father’s repeated pleas, Zoe refused to call her stepmother ‘Mum’. She never had, and she vowed to herself that she never would. No one could replace Zoe’s mum – not that her stepmother