Andy Stanton - Mr Gum and the Cherry Tree

For Sandy. W’eeeeeey! Well out of order! Eggs!

Mr Gum and the Cherry Tree First published 2010 by Egmont UK Limited This edition published 2019 by Egmont UK Limited, The Yellow Building,1 Nicholas Road London W11 4AN

Text copyright © 2010 Andy Stanton

Illustration copyright © 2010 David Tazzyman

The moral rights of the author and illustrator have been asserted

First e-book edition 2019

ISBN 978 1 4052 9375 4

eISBN 978 1 4052 5933 0

mrgum.co.uk www.egmont.co.uk

A CIP catalogue record for this title is available from the British Library

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system, without the prior written permission of the publisher.

Stay safe online. Any website addresses listed in this book are correct at the time of going to print. However, Egmont is not responsible for content hosted by third parties. Please be aware that online content can be subject to change and websites can contain content that is unsuitable for children. We advise that all children are supervised when using the internet.

Egmont takes its responsibility to the planet and its inhabitants very seriously. We aim to use papers from well-managed forests run by responsible suppliers.

Read all of Andy Stanton’s books!

You’re a Bad Man, MR GUM!

MR GUM and the Biscuit Billionaire

MR GUM and the Goblins

MR GUM and the Power Crystals

MR GUM and the Dancing Bear

What’s for Dinner, MR GUM?

MR GUM and the Cherry Tree

MR GUM and the Secret Hideout

Cover

Title Page

Dedication and Copyright page For Sandy. W’eeeeeey! Well out of order! Eggs! Mr Gum and the Cherry Tree First published 2010 by Egmont UK Limited This edition published 2019 by Egmont UK Limited, The Yellow Building,1 Nicholas Road London W11 4AN Text copyright © 2010 Andy Stanton Illustration copyright © 2010 David Tazzyman The moral rights of the author and illustrator have been asserted First e-book edition 2019 ISBN 978 1 4052 9375 4 eISBN 978 1 4052 5933 0 mrgum.co.uk www.egmont.co.uk A CIP catalogue record for this title is available from the British Library All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system, without the prior written permission of the publisher. Stay safe online. Any website addresses listed in this book are correct at the time of going to print. However, Egmont is not responsible for content hosted by third parties. Please be aware that online content can be subject to change and websites can contain content that is unsuitable for children. We advise that all children are supervised when using the internet. Egmont takes its responsibility to the planet and its inhabitants very seriously. We aim to use papers from well-managed forests run by responsible suppliers.

Front series promotional page Read all of Andy Stanton’s books! You’re a Bad Man, MR GUM! MR GUM and the Biscuit Billionaire MR GUM and the Goblins MR GUM and the Power Crystals MR GUM and the Dancing Bear What’s for Dinner, MR GUM? MR GUM and the Cherry Tree MR GUM and the Secret Hideout

1 Spring Fever

2 Off to the Forest

3 Who Went Through the Arch?

4 Who Didn’t Go Through the Arch?

5 The Voice in the Tree

6 Alan Taylor Gets the Pets

7 Chapter 7

8 A Plan is Born, and So Are Some Pets

9 The Dance of the Cherry Tree Goblins

10 The Cherry Tree Song

11 An Old Friend Says Hello

12 In the Cherry Tree

13 Babies and Rainbows

14 Precious Things

15 Runtus and the Pets

16 Feasts and Such

EPILOGUE

About the Author

About the Illustrator

Praise

Some of the crazy old townsfolk from Lamonic Bibber

Y es! No! Maybe? What! Hello.

The whole squeak-mantling mess began on a day so innocent, a day so sweet and pure, a day so splendid, superb and smagnificent it could only be the first day of Spring. Ah, Spring! Or as it is called in France, ‘Le Boing’. It is a brilliant season, definitely in the top five.

And what a freshial, special Spring morning it was in the town of Lamonic Bibber, my friends! The sun was shining, the birds were playing Quidditch in the treetops and the ground was sort of just laying there letting people walk all over it. It was a glorious, give-me-morious, start-of-the-storious sort of a Spring morning. And as you can imagine with your tiny little brains, everyone was looking forward to it like a rascal.

‘I’m looking forward to it like a rascal,’ said Jonathan Ripples, the fattest man in town. ‘I think I’ll celebrate by eating not one, not two, but eight hot cross buns.’

‘I’m looking forward to it like a rascal,’ said Martin Launderette, who ran the launderette. ‘I think I’ll celebrate by spitting on not one, not two, but all eight of Jonathan Ripples’ hot cross buns.’

‘I’m looking forward to it like a rascal,’ said a little girl called Peter. ‘I think I’ll read my favourite children’s book – “Biffy the Worm Gets Arrested for Accidentally Murdering Everyone in Canada”.It’s unputdownable!’

But just as everyone was about to settle down into their beautiful Spring mornings of eating, spitting and reading, a terrible shrieking was heard. It was Old Granny, the oldest woman in Lamonic Bibber. She was running up the high street and she was shrieking at the top of her voice.

‘The Old Ways are back!’ cried Old Granny as she hinged it up the street, her petticoats all a-billow.

‘Oh, dear,’ said Jonathan Ripples, shaking his big fat head big fat sadly. ‘She’s been at the sherry again.’

‘LIES!’ protested Old Granny, taking a quick sip of sherry from the bottle she always kept hidden in her handbag. ‘I never touch the stuff! But listen! The Old Ways are back, I tell you!’

Well, by now quite a large crowd had gathered, and amongst them were two heroes you may know quite well. One was Friday O’Leary, a marvellous old fellow who knew the secrets of time and space. And the other was Polly, the happiest nine-year-old you could ever hope to meet. She was brave and true, like a how-do-you-do and she had everything she needed in life – a face, a couple of elbows and a pocket full of felt-tip pens. And hardly any of them had even run out.