Mr Badger and the Magic Mirror
Mr  Â
Badger
and the      Â
Magic Mirror
Leigh HOBBS
First published in 2011
Copyright © Leigh Hobbs 2011
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording or by any information storage and retrieval system, without prior permission in writing from the publisher. The
Australian Copyright Act 1968
(the Act) allows a maximum of one chapter or ten per cent of this book, whichever is the greater, to be photocopied by any educational institution for its educational purposes provided that the educational institution (or body that administers it) has given a remuneration notice to Copyright Agency Limited (CAL) under the Act.
Allen & Unwin
83 Alexander Street
Crows Nest NSW 2065
Australia
Phone:Â Â Â (61 2) 8425 0100
Fax:Â Â Â (61 2) 9906 2218
Email:Â Â Â [email protected]
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Cataloguing-in-Publication details are available from
the National Library of Australia
www.trove.nla.gov.au
ISBN 978 1 74237 420 8
Cover and text design by Sandra Nobes
Set in 15 pt Cochin by Sandra Nobes
Author photograph by Jack Hobbs
This book was printed in July 2011 at McPherson's Printing Group,
76 Nelson Street, Maryborough, Victoria 3465, Australia
www.mcphersonsprinting.com.au
1 3 5 7 9 10 8 6 4 2
For Princess Elliott
Contents
10 Back at the Boubles Grand Hotel
W
henever Mr Badger came home tired after a hard day's work at the Boubles Grand Hotel, Mrs Badger understood why â for every day brought with it new adventures. Mrs Badger looked forward to hearing all about them at dinnertime.
No matter how exhausted Mr Badger might be, he always made sure he read a bedtime story to his darling daughter Berenice, and baby Badger, too. If Mr Badger dozed off in the middle of a story, Mrs Badger knew better than to rouse him from his early evening snooze.
On this particularly wintry evening, though, it was going to take an extraspecial effort for Mr Badger to sit and read a story, for he felt absolutely worn out. His day at the Boubles Grand Hotel had been even more eventful than usual.
Still, the last thing he wanted was to disappoint the little badgers waiting patiently for him. So, Mr Badger made himself comfortable in the special reading chair next to their beds and began.
âOnce upon a timeâ¦' said Mr Badger, as two small, eager faces peered up at him. He knew this part by heart, for every story seemed to begin this way. âOnce upon a time, there wasâ¦'
As he was reading, Mr Badger thought about his day. And what a strange day it had been â surely as strange as any story in the book he was holding between his pawsâ¦
M
r Badger's day had begun normally enough. After tea and toast, he had kissed Mrs Badger, darling daughter Berenice, and baby Badger, too. Then he had walked to work at the Boubles Grand Hotel while the moon was still high in the chilly sky.
âGood morning, Algernon,' said Mr Badger with a wave of his arm as he passed the big ape standing in the glass case in the foyer.
Mr Badger always greeted Algernon.
Continuing along the corridor, Mr Badger noticed loud hammering sounds coming from the top of the stairs. Workmen were busy attaching a large mirror with a golden frame onto the wall at the top of the main staircase. Mr Badger recalled that Sir Cecil Smothers-Carruthers had requested a mirror be moved from one of his private rooms and hung above the stairs. He made a little note to himself to check on its progress later.
