Jinny & Cooper Page 6

  I took him out of the cardboard box and placed him gently on my chest. Tears rolled down my cheeks, wetting his tangled, knotty fur.

  I had dreamed about my perfect guinea pig for so long. I had imagined brushing its soft golden fur and listening to its sweet squeaks. Instead, I got Cooper. He was scruffy, demanding and mischievous and he didn’t act at all like a guinea pig.

  But I suddenly realised I had ended up with something better than my dream pet. Cooper was my friend.

  ‘I’m going to miss you so much, Cooper,’ I sniffed. ‘You’re better than any guinea pig I could have dreamed of. No one will ever replace you.’

  Tyrone also cried as he stroked Cooper’s back. ‘Goodbye, Cooper,’ he said.

  Suddenly there was a small movement on my chest. Cooper’s body twitched and then twitched a second time. He slowly sat up and looked at me with heavy eyes.

  ‘Wow! I sure am hungry,’ he said through yawns.

  Tyrone cheered as I scooped Cooper up and kissed him with delight.

  ‘All right, all right,’ Cooper said, wriggling away and laughing. ‘I’m happy to see you too.’

  He sniffed the air and his eyes lit up.

  ‘Is that sausages I smell?’ he asked. ‘I just love sausages! Did I ever tell you that sausages are my sixth favourite food?’

  How much do you remember from My Teacher’s Big Bad Secret? Test your knowledge below.

  What is Cooper’s first favourite food? Pizza

  Biscuits

  Vegemite Sandwiches

  Sausages

  What does Cooper try to drop on Miss Bunney’s head? Book

  Piano

  Cake

  Potato

  What are witches afraid of? Salt

  Potatoes

  Guinea Pigs

  Biscuits

  What food does Cooper not eat? Cake

  Gherkins

  Jam Sandwiches

  Carrots

  What did Cooper tell Tyrone would happen if he picked at his bellybutton? His finger would get stuck

  His eyes would pop out of his head

  His legs would fall off

  His fingers would turn blue

  Answer: 1B, 2A, 3B, 4d, 5C

  Tania Ingram lives in the Adelaide Hills with her husband and daughter, two guinea pigs, a goldfish called Bionic Mouth and three elderly chickens. Tania worked as a child psychologist for a while before becoming a full-time writer. When no one is looking she likes to dance around the house in her pyjamas and sing into her hairbrush.

  For more information on Tania’s books visit TaniaIngram.com

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  First published by Penguin Australia Pty Ltd, 2016

  Text copyright © Tania Ingram, 2016

  Cover and internal illustrations copyright © Tony Flowers, 2016

  The moral right of the author has been asserted.

  All rights reserved. Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise), without the prior written permission of both the copyright owner and the above publisher of this book.

  Cover and text design by Bruno Herfst © Penguin Australia Pty Ltd

  puffin.com.au

  ISBN: 978-1-76014-095-3

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