Page 84 of Bea's Book Wagon
‘Hummingbird Class, can we all say hello to Miss Miller?’ said Rose.
‘Hello, Miss Miller,’ the children parroted back.
‘Is your name, Bea?’ one of the taller boys asked, pointing at the writing on the side of the wagon. ‘It says Bea’s Book Wagon. See?’
‘Excellent detective skills, Ethan,’ said Rose, leaning in towards Bea. ‘You don’t mind if they call you Bea, do you?’ she whispered.
‘No, it’s fine,’ said Bea, smiling.
‘So, Bea is going to tell us about how she turned a horsebox into her beautiful book wagon,’ Rose explained.
‘What? Horses used to live in there? In the shop?’ a doubtful-looking Ethan asked.
‘Well, yes, they did, Ethan,’ replied Bea. ‘This absolutely used to be a horsebox before I turned it into a bookshop.’
‘No way!’ chorused the children in hushed whispers.
‘Yes way!’ said Bea, chuckling at their shocked faces. ‘I bought it from Millcroft Stables, and my friends and I pretty much rebuilt it from the floor up. We put in new walls, a new ceiling, and all these shelves are handmade by Nathan who makes the cheese.’
‘Wow!’ said Ethan, amazed, ‘that’s so cool!’
‘I think so too,’ Bea agreed.
‘We’re all going to get the chance to go inside in small groups, as there’s not enough room for all of us at once. Milton, Stacey, Percy, Hannah, Ethan and Sky – you six can go first, Rose explained.
Bea smiled as Ethan punched the air in delight.
‘And the rest of us will wait outside quietly until you’ve finished, okay everyone?’ said Rose in a no-nonsense tone.
‘Yes, Miss,’ the class chorused.
‘Come on, you lot,’ said Bea, to the six children who were lined up at the steps. ‘Let’s go!’
‘Wow, this place is really cool,’ said Ethan, as he ran his hands over the spines of Bea’s Harry Potter collection.
‘Look at these bookmarks,’ said Stacey, ‘they’re from Dork Diaries! I love those books!’
‘How much are these?’ asked a little boy she thought might be Milton, picking up a pack of stickers on her makeshift desk.
‘Oooh, stickers,’ said Sky, ‘cool.’
‘Actually, these are for you,’ said Bea, opening up one of the packs she’d ordered in especially for the school visit. They read ‘I’ve visited Bea’s Book Wagon’ in a variety of colours.
‘Yesss!’ said Ethan, ‘Can we choose?’ he asked, tugging Bea’s sleeve.
‘Go for it,’ said Bea, with a nod, as the children huddled around the pack, pulling out a round sticker each and placing them on their shirts. In no time at all, all six children had selected a book to be put aside, ready for when their parents would collect them from school, and the next three groups were equally as chuffed with their stickers.
* * *
‘Well, hello there,’ said Bea, bending down to fuss Bertie as he walked up the steps with the last group of children. Bea looked up to see a scruffy-looking boy walking across the playground towards her. His shirt was untucked, his hands stuffed into his pockets, and he was kicking a pebble, scuffing his shoes with every attempt.
‘I’ve been told I have to find a book,’ he said, his head bowed. He couldn’t have looked less enthusiastic if he’d tried. Bea wondered if he might be one of the reluctant readers Rose had mentioned.
‘Why don’t you come in and we’ll see if we can find a book you like the look of?’
‘I don’t like books,’ said the boy, confirming Bea’s suspicion.
‘Well, shall we have a look anyway?’ she tried.
