Pushing our good bikes with one hand and half-wheeling, half-carrying the old junky bike between us with the other, we headed off to my place, which was only a couple of streets away. The whole way Thicky did nothing but talk about the wonderful new thing we’d found. We could do it up and sell it, we could use the bits as spares to make a tandem bike or a fancy trike or a pedal-powered helicopter, and on and on…
When Nobby and Thicky find an old, busted-up bike, Nobby thinks its just rubbish, but Thicky is sure it can be used for something useful. When Shirley sees it, she has an idea – an idea that could make money for the three of them. It’s a plan so crazy it just might work. But then again, it might not.
Queasy Rider is a fast-moving tale of a silly plan to make money using an old bike and a steep hill. Nobby and Thicky’s ingenuity and Shirley’s schemes soon have them setting up business daring people to ride the old bike down the hill without falling off. Any kid who has ever dreamt of making easy money will relate, and the short length of the text will allow even a reluctant reader to finish the story quickly.
Part of the new Lightning Strikes series from Walker Books, Queasy Rider is suited to upper primary aged readers of all abilities.
Queasy Rider, by James Roy
Walker Books, 2008