Topaz Band 13
Tara Binns
Tara Binns
e p i r d t r I o n n t v n e I
epid Inventor r t n I TARA BINNS INTREPID INVENTOR
Fire! When things go wrong in the design lab, can Tara Binns invent a way to help Ayesha and Ortez escape in time? Browse the complete Collins catalogue at
www.collins.co.uk ISBN 978-0-00-837329-0
WISE 9 780008 373290 www.collins.co.uk/collinsbigcat
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This book has been endorsed by The WISE Campaign.
An adventure story
Lisa Rajan
Alessia Trunfio 04/12/2019 11:37
Tara Binns
e p i r d t Inv entor n I
Written by Lisa Rajan Illustrated by Alessia Trunfio
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Chapter 1 Tara Binns climbed into the attic at the top of her house. She was looking for the old costume box. There it was! Tara knelt down in front of it, beaming with excitement. The box was full of uniforms, clothes, hats and shoes. There was an outfit for every job Tara could think of, and several she’d never heard of. Every time Tara visited the box, it gave her a costume that she wouldn’t normally have chosen for herself – and then it sent her off on an adventure.
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Tara lifted the lid. She felt a tingling in her hand, which spread up her arm. It whirled her around until she felt she was falling, tumbling, spinning through space and time. She squeezed her eyes tight shut and wondered ‌ What will I be today?
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Chapter 2 When Tara felt the ground beneath her feet again, she opened her eyes. Everything looked huge! She realised she was looking through goggles that magnified everything. She pushed them up on to the top of her head. Where was she? BEEP! Tara jumped sideways as a delivery lorry reversed up to the open doors of the giant building behind her. She spun round and read the huge sign on the front of the building.
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How exciting! Was she an inventor? She looked down at her outfit. The trousers were blue with padded knees. The orange jacket was covered in pockets. What was inside them? Tara had a look. Wires, nails, sticky tape, glue, pencils, scissors … everything you might need to design and make something. “Good to see you, Tara!” called a boy behind her. “There’s a lot happening today!” 5
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Tara followed the lorry into the loading area. “I’m Ortez and this is Ayesha,” the boy went on. “We’re the chief product designers here at Sky High Inventions. We invent new products to solve people’s problems. We also look for ways to make products work better.” The lorry driver hopped out and began unloading boxes. “We’re working on a top-secret project,” added Ayesha, her eyes sparkling, “and it’s nearly finished! The sky is – really, truly – the limit with this one.” Ortez explained: “We have to leave our mobiles outside. That’s because the bosses are worried about security leaks.” Ayesha beckoned Tara towards a high-tech electronic door. She placed her palm on a touch-pad scanner. Ping! WHOOSH! The doors slid open.
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Ortez frowned. The delivery driver was stacking the boxes in front of the emergency exit. “Don’t put them there – they’re blocking the emergency door!” he shouted, before following Ayesha and Tara through to the workshop. None of them noticed a little spark and fizzle on the touch-pad scanner as the doors closed behind them. 7
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Chapter 3 The design workshop was a large room with a high ceiling, and windows that were out of Tara’s reach. So nobody can peek in at the top-secret ideas, she thought. Every worktop was filled with inventions. Then Ayesha whisked a cloth off a table to reveal the most amazing invention Tara had ever seen. “Anti-gravity boots!” Ayesha announced proudly.
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Tara’s eyes popped. “Do they make you fly?” she asked. “Yes!” said Ortez. “They’re like normal boots, but they have metal plates with jets on the bottom. The jets blast air downwards, and you shoot upwards!” “Wow!” exclaimed Tara. “What are the gloves for?” “The gloves keep you steady,” explained Ortez, “so you don’t fall over in the air! They have jets attached to them too.” “How are the jet plates fixed to the boots and gloves?” Tara wanted to know. “Really strong magnets,” said Ayesha. “Look … you click them into place like this … and then switch on the jets … Oops! Sorry!”
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