It felt strange at first writing a new installment of someone else’s story. But in the end, isn’t that what we always do when we tell stories — take something old and give it something of ourselves in the hope that it will fly once more?
So I’d like to thank Lucy Fleming, Kate Grimond, and Robert Laycock for lending me their vintage car and letting me play with it (for longer than I said I would); Sarah Dudman — my incomparable editor — for finding and tuning the engine; Talya Baker for keeping track of all the thousands of screws and washers that hold the machine together. Thanks also to Solofo Eric Rakotoarisoa for the lesson in Malagasy and to George Sarkis for the lesson in Egyptian Arabic. Also to James Clay for unparalleled camper-van knowledge.
Above all, as ever, I have to thank my wife, Denise, who is forever driving us off the edges of cliffs while convincing us that we can fly.
Frank Cottrell Boyce is a writer of books for young readers, most notably the Carnegie Medal–winning Millions and Cosmic, both of which have been adapted into films. He is also the author of The Unforgotten Coat. He says, “I’ve had a lot of fun writing Chitty Chitty Bang Bang Flies Again, but somewhere amid all the fun, I found it strangely emotional to revisit myself as a boy and ask if he could help me restore an old-fashioned contraption and make it fly again.” Frank Cottrell Boyce lives in England.
Joe Berger is an editorial cartoonist, animator, and illustrator. He has illustrated numerous books, including the Nosy Crow title Hubble Bubble, Granny Trouble by Tracey Corderoy. Joe Berger lives in England.
Chitty Chitty Bang Bang Flies Again is approved by the Ian Fleming Estate.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either products of the author’s imagination or, if real, are used fictitiously.
Text by Frank Cottrell Boyce copyright © 2011 by the Ian Fleming Will Trust
Illustrations by Joe Berger copyright © 2011 by the Ian Fleming Will Trust
Chitty Chitty Bang Bang is a trademark of Danjaq, LLC, and United Artists Corporation and is used under license by the Ian Fleming Will Trust. All Rights Reserved. The right of Frank Cottrell Boyce to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted in accordance with Sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988. The right of Joe Berger to be identified as the illustrator of this work has been asserted in accordance with Sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
No part of this book may be reproduced, transmitted, or stored in an information retrieval system in any form or by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, taping, and recording, without prior written permission from the publisher.
First U.S. electronic edition 2012
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is available.
Library of Congress Catalog Card Number pending
ISBN 978-0-7636-5957-8 (hardcover)
ISBN 978-0-7636-5961-5 (electronic)
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