Mr McMarvel's Amazing Machines

By Barbara Godwin

Tim is a keen young helper at Mr McMarvel’s workshop, and he’s desperate to learn how to make amazing machines. There’s Rupert, (Mr McMarvel’s robot,) the Unlock-Anything Machine, and the Grunts-Squeaks-and Scary-Noises Machine for starters. Not to mention the Extra-Fast-Rollerblading Machine (for people in a hurry) and the Dappled-Ice-Cream Machine (that needs fresh grass.)

But all is not well at the workshop. Tim is horrified to learn that Mr McMarvel is in trouble. Things get worse when creepy Max Fish comes to help out. Max has a diabolical plan, and it’s all down to Tim, Rupert and the amazing machines to outwit Max, rescue Mr McMarvel and solve the problems in the workshop.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Barbara Godwin
• Release date: Feb 5, 2013
• ISBN: 9781301771752

Book preview

Chapter 1

The Extra-Fast-Rollerblading Machine

The Extra-Fast-Rollerblading Machine swooped round the corner. Smoke and stars poured out of the back. It shot past Mr McMarvel’s workshop and rolled on down the road.

Tim bent forward, his face screwed up as he wrestled with the controls. The machine’s big boots stuck into his knees. He was going so fast he couldn’t swing the machine in the right direction.

The machine choked and stuttered. Smoke and stars swirled about. The machine slid sideways and upended Tim onto the pavement.

Mr McMarvel had invented the Extra-Fast-Rollerblading Machine for people who were in a hurry. Tim had been testing it out for two days now, and he was black and blue from falling off. He could operate the other machines in the workshop but not this one. Tim desperately wanted to be useful. In fact, secretly, he wanted to impress Mr McMarvel so that he would show him how to invent amazing machines. So far, Tim hadn’t had the courage to ask him.

The wheels on the Rollerblades whirled madly at super express speed. They slowly came to a stop. Tim looked up. The name over the street door shone out in multi-coloured lights:

…MR MCMARVEL’S AMAZING MACHINES…

Mr McMarvel’s robot, Rupert, came out of the door.

Hello Tim, said Rupert. Rupert had a mass of shiny springs on his head that bounced and jiggled when he moved. His cheery voice had a chuckle in it, like Mr McMarvel’s own voice, but Mr McMarvel and Rupert didn’t look the same. Rupert was more of a square shape and was made of silvery metal. Mr McMarvel was the shape of a rather large egg. He wore his hair in dreadlocks and he was human.

Rupert held one metal hand down to Tim. The words

…HELLO TIM…

lit up across Rupert’s tummy in green letters so that people could hear and read along at the same time.

Hi Rupert, said Tim, taking Rupert’s hand and jumping up. I can’t get the hang of this machine. I hope it’s not damaged.

Sad faces rolled across Rupert’s tummy. Then, they changed to smiles. I can fix it to make it go better.

That’d be great, thanks, Rupert, said Tim. He switched off the Extra-Fast-Rollerblading Machine and Rupert picked it up, along with the controls. It looked bashed, but not too bad. The machine’s eyes had slipped down inside the boots. It always did when Tim crash landed, as if it didn’t want to see what was happening.

Tim frowned, but not about the Extra-Fast-Rollerblading Machine. He had been worried about Mr McMarvel lately. Mr McMarvel hadn’t been his usual jolly self. He was spending hours and hours in his office instead of making machines in the workshop.

Is Mr McMarvel okay? Tim asked Rupert.

He’s underneath the Butter-Your-Toast Machine, said Rupert.

Smiley faces rolled across Rupert’s tummy. Tim grinned. That meant Mr McMarvel wasn’t shut away in the office today.

The Butter-Your-Toast Machine always needed attention. It often buttered and marmaladed both sides of the toast. Sometimes it tipped cups of tea on the floor making puddles which the customers slid on.

Are there any jobs for me to do? asked Tim.

The red, orange and green lights on Rupert’s chest lit up one after the other.

The Grunts-Squeaks-and-Scary-Noises Machine needs fixing, he said.

Bet it needs oiling, said Tim, following Rupert into the workshop.

The Grunts-Squeaks-and-Scary-Noises Machine was a green and yellow box with alien aerials on the top that danced and twisted. It was just inside the street door. Tim heard the machine give an agonised, ghostly whimper. He grabbed a can and squirted its joints with oil, until the noises became loud squeaky scary groans. The aerials whirled round, sending creepy shadows down the workshop. Tim switched it off - in case it scared the customers.

Tim looked round for some other jobs. The Dappled-Ice-Cream Machine for making the Creamiest-Ever-Ice-Cream stood in the corner. She had brown and white patches and she mooed at him.

Tim gave her some grass to chomp on.

The Extra-Fast-Rollerblading Machine is fixed, said Rupert, coming towards him. His words lit up in coloured lights, and he held out a steaming paper bag. Have a doughnut, he added.

Thanks, Rupert, said Tim, taking a still-warm doughnut. I had an idea at school while the others were doing sums. What about having a machine to make doughnuts but with no dough but with raspberries on the inside and toffee crunchiness on the outside?

Wild, Tim, said Mr McMarvel, breezing through the workshop. I’d eat one or two... or three. Got to keep my tummy filled up.

Mr McMarvel had a large spanner in one hand and a greasy cloth in the other. He was always inventing machines and the workshop was full of them. The local people liked them too, and would give Mr McMarvel orders to make machines for things they wanted.

Mr McMarvel pointed his thumb back to the Butter-Your-Toast Machine. That machine’s a scallywag. I’ve fixed the front sprocket and the side spring but it’s like it’s full of jumping beans.

My dad says you can do anything, Mr McMarvel, said Tim. Everyone says you could turn scrap metal into gold if you wanted to.

Mr McMarvel gave a great belly laugh. Do they really say that? he asked, wiping his oily cloth across his forehead. Only wish it was true.

But you know all about inventing, and drawing plans, and cogs and wheels, Mr McMarvel, said Tim.

Mr McMarvel nodded his head. I do know lots of things like that. Truth is, Tim, I really can’t do just anything. Like, I had to know how to make scrambled eggs before I made a Scrambled-Egg Machine. If I don’t know how things are made, I can’t make a machine that can make them.

Umm, said Tim, working it out. So, if you don’t know how to do something, you can’t make a machine that does it?

You got it, Tim. But you know what? If I can make a machine to do a job, it will do it much better than I can. That’s why the scrambled eggs are especially scrummy. Only…, Mr McMarvel’s forehead wrinkled into a frown, if I don’t know how in the first place, I’m really, really stuck.

Tim insides turned over. Mr McMarvel was not talking about scrambled eggs any more. Something was wrong. Tim had to know what it was. He took a deep breath and asked, Has something bad happened, Mr McMarvel?

Mr McMarvel looked glum. He shook his head. It’s the workshop, he said. It might have to close down.

Tim with Mr McMarvel and Rupert

Chapter 2

The-Doughnut-without-the-Dough Machine

No! cried Tim, shocked. You can’t close down. You’re brilliant at making machines. No-one else can make them. I’ll help. I’ll do anything. Who’d look after the machines? Who’d look after Rupert?

Mr McMarvel’s face went a purple shade of red. "I’m in an awful lot of trouble, Tim. I’m hopeless at the money side of things, and adding up and taking away, and because I’m hopeless at arithmetic I