Extract - Run, Odds, Run - by Matt Stanton

The ABC ‘Wave’ device is a trademark of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation and is used under licence by HarperCollins Publishers Australia.

HarperCollins Publishers Australia • Brazil • Canada • France • Germany • Holland • Hungary India • Italy • Japan • Mexico • New Zealand • Poland • Spain Sweden • Switzerland • United Kingdom • United States of America

First published in Australia in 2021 by HarperCollins Children’sBooks a division of HarperCollins Publishers Australia Pty Limited ABN 36 009 913 517 harpercollins.com.au

Copyright © Beck & Matt Stanton Pty Ltd 2021

The right of Matt Stanton to be identified as the author and illustrator of this work has been asserted by him in accordance with the Copyright Amendment (Moral Rights) Act 2000 . This work is copyright. Apart from any use as permitted under the Copyright Act 1968 , no part may be reproduced, copied, scanned, stored in a retrieval system, recorded, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, without the prior written permission of the publisher.

A catalogue record for this book is available from the National Library of Australia ISBN 978 0 7333 4064 2 (paperback) ISBN 978 1 4607 1212 2 (ebook)

Cover and internal design by Matt Stanton Author photograph by Jennifer Blau Printed and bound in Australia by McPherson’s Printing Group

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BIP!

HONK!

VRRM!

BEEP!

HONK!

BEEP!

VRRM!

HONK!

SCREECH!

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For Bonnie, Boston, Miller and Sully You are even more extraordinary than I imagined.

RUN ODDS RUN words and pictures by Matt Stanton , , THE ODDS

NEE-NAW!

NEE-NAW!

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CHAPTER ONE The Odds are a problem

BANG!

BANG!

BANG!

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BANG!

BANG!

BANG!

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Hello, Kip, dear.

Hi, Mrs Papatonis.

I was just coming to check if everything is all right in there?

Well –

and it still sounds like you’ve brought the city zoo home for the night.

It’s just that I’ve turned my hearing aids off ...

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I’m sorry about –

I can’t hear you, love.

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But I can hear the hullabaloo coming from your apartment. If you don’t cut it out, I’m going to invite my grandson over

to practice his tuba right outside your front door. We’ll see how you like that.

You’ve been warned.

His tuba playing is awful.

Will you please be quiet!

CLUNK!

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Ninja-Nina, Lance, Unicorn, Racer, GOAT, Theo, Booster, Blub, Mr Pink, Diana – I said,

WILL YOU PLEASE BE QUIET!

HA!

BRRRM!

BRRRM!

DA-DAH!

DA-DAH!

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BLAH!

BLAH!

BUMP!

SPLISH!

CREAK!

SPLASH!

DING!

CREAK!

DING!

DING!

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Hiya!

Ah!

DAD!

I’m a pretty princess!

Get off the road!

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Squark!

Blap!

Goal!

SNAP!

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Dad! I need your help out here. The Odds are going crazy!

Who would have thought this might happen, eh, Kip? Ten crazy characters turn up in real life, direct from your imagination. We decide to keep them all here in our two-bedroom apartment and it doesn’t magically work out fine.

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Not a good time to be sarcastic, Dad. I need you to help me get them under control.

I can’t, Kip. I have work to do. I have to try to come up with a brand-new idea for a graphic novel. Ever since you brought Lance to life, I can’t draw him anymore.

My publisher is angry and asking me to invent something totally new and I have no ideas … which might have something to do with the TEN MANIACS DESTROYING MY HOUSE!

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Will you all please knock it off?

It’s not MY fault, Dad!

Clear the race track!

RREOOWWW!!!

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