Everand Logo

Welcome to Everand!

  • Discover millions of ebooks, audiobooks, and so much more with a free trial

    Only $11.99/month after trial. Cancel anytime.

    Stars
    Stars
    Stars
    Ebook54 pages43 minutes

    Stars

    By David McRobbie

    ()

    Read preview

    About this ebook

    This is a story about a small crime in a primary school. It’s hardly worth bothering about, but it worries Charlie Thomson. After all, Charlie’s the one who got the blame. So he sets out to do some detective work and find the real culprit, then clear his name.
    The tale has all the elements of a proper detective yarn, a whodunit. It has a crime and suspects with motives, means and opportunities. It also has a detective, who happens to be Charlie Thomson.
    It also has clues for the sharp-eyed reader to spot. And this story, like all good mystery yarns, also has a denouement — the bit at the end where the detective unmasks the real culprit.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherDavid McRobbie
    Release dateJun 10, 2014
    ISBN9781311009562
    Stars
    Author

    David McRobbie

    David McRobbie was born in Glasgow in 1934. After an apprenticeship he joined the Merchant Navy as a marine engineer and sailed the world, or some of it. Eventually he worked his passage to Australia, got married and settled down for a bit only to move to Papua New Guinea where he trained as a teacher.Subsequently he found work as a college lecturer, then a researcher for parliament. Back in Australia in 1974 he joined the Australian Broadcasting Corporation as a producer of radio and television programs for young people.In 1990 he gave up this work to become a full time writer for children and young adults. He has written over thirty paperbacks, mainly novels, but some are collections of short stories, plays and ‘how-to’ books on creative writing.Three of his novels were adapted for television, with David writing all of the sixty-five scripts — the first being The Wayne Manifesto in 1996, followed by Eugénie Sandler, PI then Fergus McPhail. These shows were broadcast throughout the world, including Australia and Britain on BBC and ITV.The BBC adapted another of David’s novels for television — See How They Run, which became the first BBC/ABC co-production.At the age of 79, David is still at work. His most recent paperback novels are Vinnie’s War, (Allen & Unwin) published in 2011, about childhood evacuation in the second world war. This was followed by To Brave The Seas, in 2013, a story about a 14-year-old boy who sails in Atlantic convoys during WW2. Both books are available online.

    Read more from David Mc Robbie

    Related to Stars

    Related ebooks

    Children's Readers For You

    View More
    View More

    Related podcast episodes

    Related articles

    • Article

      Social Promotion

      Mar 19, 2024

      I didn’t understand. If that boy couldn’t read, why was he up there? The girl they originally had hosting the ceremony didn’t show, but why they put that boy there? Just because he volunteer for everything? You can’t read off enthusiasm. It made the

      21 min read

    • Article

      Your Poetry

      May 28, 2021

      Email your poems to: (editorial@choicemag.co.uk) or post to Your Poetry, Choice, 4 Milnyard Square, Orton Southgate, Peterborough PE2 6GX There’s a train that runs on barren track, along the side & at the back,of the caravan. The children laugh & sho

      3 min read

    • Article

      A short BREAK

      Jun 2, 2021

      A short BREAK
      5 min read

    • Article

      The Leather Coat

      Apr 4, 2024

      The Leather Coat
      6 min read

    • Article

      A short BREAK

      Apr 16, 2024

      A short BREAK
      5 min read

    • Article

      Hitting a SOUR NOTE

      Sep 22, 2021

      Hitting a SOUR NOTE
      3 min read

    • Article

      A taste of LA DOLCE VITA

      Mar 5, 2020

      I was surprised when my mum agreed to go on a wine-tasting tour, given that the last time she saw me order a double G&T, she was compelled to remind me of the perils of binge drinking. ‘When in Rome,’ she says, sloshing back a Bardolino. We are actua

      4 min read

    • Article

      Keeping It Real

      Mar 2, 2023

      Keeping It Real
      7 min read

    • Article

      Tomorrows

      Mar 15, 2022

      The night, as most nights, was like a dream. At ten, once I’d fed the dog the last scraps off the stove. Once I’d cursed the cat for scratching up my mama’s antique furniture, then welcomed him back into my arms. Once I’d slicked my hair into a ponyt

      26 min read

    • Article

      White Tears

      Mar 27, 2018

      White Tears
      3 min read

    • Article

      Second CHANCES

      Aug 24, 2022

      Second CHANCES
      6 min read

    • Article

      An Afternoon In Her Shoes

      Jul 26, 2022

      An Afternoon In Her Shoes
      6 min read

    • Article

      The Return Of Mrs Amber

      Jun 16, 2020

      The Return Of Mrs Amber
      6 min read

    • Article

      Chuckles

      Oct 8, 2021

      ■ Question: How do you make an egg roll? Answer: You push it! ■ Question: What do you call a cow with no legs? Answer: Ground beef. ■ Question: What did the digital clock say to the grandfather clock? Answer: Look, Grandpa, no hands! ■ Question: Did

      4 min read

    • Article

      All Of Us Here

      Jun 4, 2020

      All Of Us Here
      6 min read

    • Article

      After “The End”

      Oct 10, 2022

      I walked down the road with a hunched back and a wet cigarette in my mouth—the fire had died a while back. My hands were tucked into the pockets of my jacket, and my hair fell over my face, limiting my sight. But I wasn’t really seeing where I was go

      10 min read

    • Article

      My Lasting Impression?

      Feb 26, 2019

      My Lasting Impression?
      5 min read

    • Article

      Pottering

      Sep 16, 2020

      Pottering
      3 min read

    • Article

      Less Drama, More Honesty

      Jan 1, 2020

      Less Drama, More Honesty
      6 min read

    • Article

      Free as A Bird

      Nov 2, 2023

      Free as A Bird
      2 min read

    • Article

      Just The Way YOU ARE

      Feb 7, 2023

      Just The Way YOU ARE
      9 min read

    • Article

      GHOSTS Got Me A JOB!

      Dec 29, 2021

      GHOSTS Got Me A JOB!
      2 min read

    • Article

      The WITCH GIRL

      Oct 20, 2021

      The WITCH GIRL
      6 min read

    • Article

      Back to SCHOOL

      Jun 9, 2021

      Back to SCHOOL
      3 min read

    • Article

      The Girl On The Platform

      Apr 14, 2020

      The Girl On The Platform
      4 min read

    • Article

      The Witch GIRL

      Oct 24, 2023

      The Witch GIRL
      6 min read

    • Article

      Let Me Do It

      Jun 1, 2023

      Let Me Do It
      6 min read

    • Article

      Love In The LOFT

      May 20, 2020

      “As you might have read in the papers or heard on the television every five minutes, these are unprecedented times. Our lives, we are told, will never be quite the same again. Certainly I’ll never forget the sight of Mr Dear yesterday, skipping in th

      3 min read

    Related categories

    Reviews for Stars

    0 ratings

    0 ratings0 reviews

    What did you think?

    Tap to rate

    Review must be at least 10 words

      Book preview

      Stars - David McRobbie

      Stars

      by

      David McRobbie

      Stars

      David McRobbie

      Copyright 2014 David McRobbie

      Smashwords Edition

      All rights reserved in all media.

      Cover image: Alice-Anne Boylan

      Contents

      Chapter One

      Chapter Two

      Chapter Three

      Chapter Four

      Chapter Five

      Chapter Six

      Chapter Seven

      Chapter Eight

      About the Writer

      More books by David McRobbie

      Chapter One

      It happened like this: Our Year Six teacher, Mr Sandilands, unhooked the art room key from the peg inside the book cupboard. With a little smile on his lips he looked around the classroom and asked, ‘Where’s Sean Dingwall?’

      Rosa Thurwell stood up and answered, ‘Gone to collect another gold star from the principal, sir.’ She spoke proudly, as if it she were getting the gold star, although she already had six of her own.

      ‘Ah, yes, I remember.’ Mr Sandilands nodded approvingly. ‘For winning the State Spelling Challenge. Smart lad, Sean Dingwall. Smart lad. He’ll go far.’ Then our teacher’s expression changed. The sunlight glinted off his steely glasses and his twin eyes swerved around to focus on me. ‘Thomson,’ he went on, ‘I suppose you can manage to open the art room door for Ms Carter. I usually trust Sean with it, but he already has a — a starring role.’ My teacher smiled at his joke.

      No one else did. Except Rosa Thurwell.

      Isobel Simms, who sat in the desk next to mine, rolled her eyes, then put a finger in her mouth and pretended to be sick.

      I took the key from Mr Sandilands and went to the classroom door, but he stopped me even before I got my hand on the knob.

      ‘And Thomson, turn on the fans and open all the windows. Make the art room cool. The rest of the class will be along soon.’

      ‘Yes sir,’ I answered and headed off down the corridor. I noticed he didn’t call me ‘smart lad’. But that’s how it was between Charlie Thomson and Mr Sandilands. Not exactly war. Just a little battle now and then. With my teacher on the winning side for ever and ever.

      Our art lesson was nearly the best time of the week. Not as good as lunch time, morning break or going home time, but good all the same. Ms Carter was our teacher who only came in to teach art. The rest of the time I don’t know what she did and it’s none of my business anyway.

      Click-clock, that was me unlocking the art room door, then as soon as I stepped in, it was horror time!

      The fans on the ceiling were already running at full speed. The control knobs were on position five and there came a thrum-thrum-thrum sound from the whirring blades up on the ceiling. But it wasn’t the noise that worried me. It was the mess the wind had made. Papers were scattered everywhere. It looked like a snowstorm had hit the art room all of a sudden. The fans went on spinning. Thrum-thrum-thrum. My heart went thump-thump-thump. Knees went knock-knock-knock.

      The worst thing of all was the damage to one of the works of art. It was Tim Wong-Smith’s horse sculpture, which only yesterday had stood proudly on the front desk. Now it lay on the art room floor, crushed and broken. Tim had made his horse out of chicken wire, then covered it with wet newspaper, let it dry and painted it. Everyone had admired Tim’s horse, from its flowing mane to its black painted hooves.

      Ms Carter said it was good enough to win the art prize in the local competition, which

      Enjoying the preview?
      Page 1 of 1