Chitty Chitty Bang Bang Flies Again facts for kids

Chitty Chitty Bang Bang Flies Again is an exciting children's novel written by Frank Cottrell-Boyce. It continues the amazing story of Chitty-Chitty-Bang-Bang, which was originally created by Ian Fleming. The Fleming family asked Boyce to write this new adventure. The book was first published by Macmillan Children's Books in 2011, bringing a classic flying car back to life for a new generation of readers.

The Tooting Family's New Ride

The story begins with the Tooting family. Mr. Tooting has just lost his job. This makes his wife, Mrs. Tooting, and their children, Lucy, Jem, and little Harry, quite sad. Instead of finding a new job, Mr. Tooting tries to fix things around their house. But his attempts often lead to funny disasters!

Seeing his struggles, Mrs. Tooting gets an idea. She brings home an old, broken camper-van. She suggests that Mr. Tooting is the perfect person to fix it. He agrees, and soon he and his son, Jem, start working on the van. They spend weeks together, turning the old van into a working vehicle once more.

Discovering a Magical Engine

One day, Mr. Tooting and Jem visit a local junkyard. They are looking for new spark plugs for their van. Mr. Tooting spots something unusual high up in a tree. It's a very old engine! He manages to get it down by starting it and revving it until it falls.

Mr. Tooting decides to put this special engine into their van. Jem isn't too happy about this idea at first. But Mr. Tooting thinks it must be important because of the name "Zborowski" written on it. Jem also finds a small airplane mascot, which he decides to keep as a lucky charm.

Chitty Takes Flight

After installing the new engine, Mr. Tooting and Jem gather the rest of the family. They are ready for a test drive in their newly fixed van. But soon, the car starts acting very strangely! It ignores traffic signs and the speed limit. It even seems to enjoy racing other cars on the road.

The van suddenly turns off the freeway and onto an old, bumpy path. They find themselves at a camper-van club. Mr. Tooting forgets to put the car in park, and the van rolls down a hill. With little Harry still inside, it goes right over a cliff! Everyone is terrified. But then, the car comes back, now with a set of wings! After making sure Harry is safe, the family gets back in the van and flies away into the sky.

Adventures in Paris

The next morning, the Tooting family wakes up to find themselves parked on top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris, France! They decide to explore the beautiful city. That night, they return to figure out how to get their flying van down.

Mr. Tooting gets a phone call from a man named Tiny Jack. Tiny Jack wants to buy their unique van. When Mr. Tooting refuses, the man gets very angry and demands the car. Mr. Tooting quickly ends the call and tries to start the van. While he's doing this, Jem notices two old lamps on a nearby billboard. He sees the name "Zborowski" written on them, just like the engine! He and Mr. Tooting attach the lamps to the car's front grill. As soon as they do, the car starts up! As the family flies away, the car makes a different, special sound. They decide to give it a name: Chitty Chitty Bang Bang.

Egyptian Encounters

The following evening, Chitty runs out of gas and makes a bumpy landing near the famous Pyramids of Egypt. There, they meet a kind woman called "Nanny." She has found some old wheels in the sand. Nanny invites the Tootings to stay with her for the night, and they happily accept. Nanny takes them to a large, fancy estate where they can relax and enjoy themselves. Mr. and Mrs. Tooting decide to go out for the evening, leaving the children with Nanny.

A Tricky Situation and Escape

The next morning, the children discover a big surprise: the estate is actually a huge boat, and it has sailed away, leaving their parents behind! They learn that Nanny works for Tiny Jack. Tiny Jack has taken Chitty apart, looking for something called the "Zborowski Lightning." This is actually the airplane mascot that Jem has. With Chitty in pieces, they can't escape.

Lucy and Little Harry cleverly distract Tiny Jack and Nanny by tricking them into playing Hide and Seek. While they are busy, Jem quickly puts Chitty back together. Once Chitty is ready, they grab the old wheels from Egypt (which also have "Zborowski" written on them) and escape into the sea! Chitty then magically turns into a submarine. After a thrilling encounter with a giant squid, they make their way to the shores of Madagascar.

Finding Chitty's Missing Pieces

In Madagascar, they meet a family who accidentally pulls Chitty out of the water with their fishing net. While Lucy and Little Harry explore the town, Jem notices something important. The boat the family is using is actually an old car shell with the word "Zborowski" on it! Jem finally understands: Chitty has been taking them around the world to collect her old body parts and put herself back together.

The Tootings trade their camper van for the car shell. A local mechanic then takes all the parts and is able to put Chitty back to her original, amazing form. They drive Chitty into the sky to search for their parents. Soon, they find them and decide to head home to finish Chitty's repairs. On their way, they learn more about Chitty and the family who owned her before them: the famous Pott Family.

A Trip Through Time

On their journey home, little Harry accidentally pulls a lever in Chitty. It's called the "Chronojuster." This lever sends Chitty speeding backward through time! When she finally stops, they find themselves in a place filled with huge Dinosaurs! Jem reads a journal that warns the lever should only be used "unless time travel is required." It seems their adventure is far from over!

Images for kids

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  The first edition cover of the book.