“Right … hello,” Dad said to Tim, the cameraman and the pilot.
“Hello!” They all waved back.
“So, when we said, stay out of mischief…” Mum started, trying to find the words, “this is what you thought we meant?”
“Hey, is that my old leather jacket?” Dad said eyeing up Bob’s clothes.
“Yes … if it helps, he thought it was cool and he liked your music collection too.” Molly sighed.
“Bob, well, he was one of the good guys,” Tim said. “A real hero who gave his life so that we humans might live.”
“No!” Molly snapped.
“What?” Dad asked.
“Bob’s not dying … not on my watch! Quick! Get me to the garage!” Molly yelled.
Sensing the urgency in Molly’s voice, everyone immediately helped. Together, they picked up Bob and dragged the lifeless hunk of metal to the garage, rushing him through the doors and laying him out. The cameraman looked at Tim and, seeing his signal, began filming the whole thing.
“I need a spanner, some engine oil and a car battery!” Molly yelled.
“I’m here for a world exclusive as brave Molly, with her family’s support, tries to save brave Bob, who bravely saved the world,” Tim said to camera. “There is only one word for this … courageous!”
Mum passed Molly the spanner and she cranked open Bob’s chest.
“I’m afraid it’s too late for him.” Mrs Jones suddenly appeared, even though she’d blatantly been hovering near the garage for a while. “I told my Maximilian – you know, the one who’s big in the news business – about that thing and now the whole world has seen how dangerous it is. Even if you fix it, you’ll never be able to keep it,” she sneered.
Molly stopped working on Bob and turned to face Mrs Jones. “And now the world will know that a nosy parker from next door tried to stop me saving a robot who sacrificed himself to save us!”
“Oh yeah?” Mrs Jones laughed. “How?”
“Hi there,” Tim said, waving to the camera. “Mrs Jones, how does it feel to threaten a girl and her robot live on TV, even though they have just saved the world?”
“Well, I–I…” Mrs Jones wavered. “Someone owes me a breadmaker!” she shouted, then made a hasty retreat.
“Come on, Bob!” Molly cried, reaching for the engine oil and waving it under his nose.
“It’s like being on one of those medical drama shows!” Dad said, feeling rather excited.
There was a twitch of life as Bob’s eyes blinked on briefly.
“Car battery!” Molly cried out. Dad slid it over from the side of the garage. Molly grabbed two jump leads and, on the count of three, let Bob have the full beans. There was a fizz and a small bang and … nothing. Molly tried again.
“ONE, TWO, THREE … CLEAR!”
Molly tried once more and, after a second of silence, a creak and then the sound of some electrical whirring, Bob sat upright.
“Dancing Queen … young and lean … ONLY SEVEN TEENS,” Bob muttered.
“That’s ABBA! He’s going to be all right!” Mum wept.
“And he has such great taste in music … if I do say so myself.” Dad beamed.
“Where am I?” Bob asked. “Am I … ALIVE?”
“Bob, you are the most alive thing I’ve ever met.” Molly smiled.
“This is amazing stuff. We humans have been saved by a little girl and her robot, Bob,” said Tim, wiping a tear from his eye. “No more will this reporter try to make up fake news just because his boss tells him to. From now on, I’ll be covering real stories, like kittens wearing hats or otters holding hands. Until then, back to the studio.”
“Well, what a strange day it’s been,” Mum said as she sipped her tea half an hour later. By now, the TV was showing the next breaking story; Tim’s report on fake news had caused quite a kerfuffle and a huge crowd had gathered outside the offices calling for Maximilian to resign.
“It has.” Molly smiled as she looked up from her geography homework. She may have accidentally started a mega-robot invasion, but she had also fixed everything, with a little help from her friends. Molly looked over at Bob, who was sitting on the comfy armchair, watching the snooker, a cup of warm engine oil in his hand and a blanket over his legs. The day had ended a lot happier than it looked like it would just a few hours ago.
“Why is there a load of custard in the bath?” Dad asked, coming into the living room.
“Long story.” Molly grinned.
“That’s MY fault, DAD,” Bob said, getting to his feet. “I will CLEAR it up.”
“Honestly, Bob, you need a rest,” Molly insisted.
“No … even cleaning up custard WOULD be more fun than snooker.”
“Haha!” Molly laughed.
“I will SEE you shortly in a bit,” Bob said, marching off upstairs. He reached the landing and opened the bathroom door. “Wow, look at all this mess … I LOVE custard, but it is a very DESTRUCTIVE substance.”
Bob was about to enter the bathroom when something caught his attention. “WAIT, what is this?” he said, noticing the open wardrobe in Mum and Dad’s room. “LOOK at all those bright clothes … PERFECT for DISCO! IF only there was a way to have FUN and get the cleaning done. I wish I had some help. I wish…” Bob looked at himself in the wardrobe mirror. “I have a great IDEA! I’ll just nip to THE garage…”
Get Bob back!
Pick the right route for Bob to get back home.
Bob 1 and Bob 2
Can you spot three differences between the Bobs on these pages?
Draw your own Bob!
1. Draw a square to make the body.
2. Add the head, two arms and two legs.
3. Add a jacket.
4. Draw on eyes, a nose, a mouth and some jazzy buttons.
Tom McLaughlin
My name’s Tom, I’m the fella who wrote and illustrated the book (illustrated is just a posh way of saying I drew the pictures). I’m here to tell you a little bit about myself. I used to be a cartoonist for a newspaper, it was my job to draw cartoons of prime ministers and presidents. After that I started writing and illustrating my own books. I like football, fizzy sour sweets, laughing lots, sausages, staring out of the window and writing books. I have a silly children, three wives and a lovely dog … no hang on, I mean I have a silly dog, three children and a lovely wife.
Find out more at www.tommclaughlin.co.uk www.walker.co.uk
Other titles by Tom McLaughlin:
The Day that Aliens nearly Ate our Brains
The Day I Became the Most Wanted Boy in the World
The Day I Found a Wormhole at the Bottom of the Garden
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or, if real, used fictitiously. All statements, activities, stunts, descriptions, information and material of any other kind contained herein are included for entertainment purposes only and should not be relied on for accuracy or replicated as they may result in injury.
First published in Great Britain 2020 by Walker Books Ltd
87 Vauxhall Walk, London SE11 5HJ
Text and illustrations © 2020 Tom McLaughlin
Cover design © 2020 Walker Books Ltd
The right of Tom McLaughlin to be identified as author/illustrator of this work has been asserted by him in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, transmitted or stored in an information retrieval system in any form or by any means, graphic, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, taping and recording, without prior written permission from the publisher.
British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data: a catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
ISBN 978-1-4063-9697-3 (ePub)
www.walker.co.uk
Activities are for informational and/or entertainment purposes only.
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Tom McLaughlin, The Day I Started a Mega Robot Invasion
The Day I Started a Mega Robot Invasion Page 5
