George Brown, Class Clown 18 – Dribble, Dribble, Drool!

Nancy Krulik's Dribble, Dribble, Drool is a George Brown, Class Clown story for 6 year olds about a basketball bet George really can't afford to lose.

What happens

George has a secret that nobody knows (well, nearly nobody). He once made a wish on a shooting star and only half of it came true. Now a magical super burp bubbles up at the worst possible moments and takes charge of his arms and legs.

At basketball practice it has him galloping round the court, neighing like a horse. Then it dribbles drool all over the coach's brand-new white trainers.

Louie Farley sees the whole thing. So of course he makes George a bet. Whoever's team loses will spend a whole week as the other one's butler.

George needs to play in that game. Which is tricky, because his best mate Alex has just become a safety monitor. He's found a dusty old rule book behind a radiator and he's putting half the school on report. Uneven pigtails? Report. Odd socks? Report.

You can probably guess where this is heading. When the burp sends George diving into the big bins behind the canteen, Alex doesn't help him climb out. He gets his notebook out instead.

It's a silly book and it knows it. There are burps and drool and a pair of giant shorts that fall down in the middle of a match. Louie's mum calls him Loo Loo Poo.

But underneath all that there's a proper falling-out between two best friends. George's feelings about it are very easy to recognise. Is it fair to be cross with a friend who's only doing his job? Your reader might have an opinion on that!

This is the eighteenth George Brown book. The burp gets explained again near the start, so it won't matter if your reader hasn't met George before.

What to read next

If they like the idea of a wish that goes wrong, Nancy Krulik has another series built on one. Katie Kazoo once wished she could be anyone but herself, and now a magic wind keeps turning her into other people. Her teacher has a rule for absolutely everything in I Hate Rules!