Bink & Gollie: Best Friends Forever Read online

  .

  .

  .

  Kate DiCamillo and Alison McGhee

  illustrated by

  Tony Fucile

  .

  For Jennifer Roberts, tallest of them all

  K. D.

  For Charlie Anken, loved and missed

  A. M.

  For Stacey, my best friend forever

  T. F.

  Text copyright © 2013 by Kate DiCamillo and Alison McGhee

  Illustrations copyright © 2013 by Tony Fucile

  All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, transmitted, or stored

  in an information retrieval system in any form or by any means, graphic, electronic, or

  mechanical, including photocopying, taping, and recording, without prior written

  permission from the publisher.

  First electronic edition 2016

  Library of Congress Catalog Card Number 2012942669

  ISBN 978-0-7636-3497-1 (hardcover)

  ISBN 978-0-7636-7092-4 (paperback)

  ISBN 978-0-7636-9138-7 (electronic)

  This book was typeset in Humana Sans.

  The illustrations were done digitally.

  Candlewick Press

  99 Dover Street

  Somerville, Massachusetts 02144

  visit us at www.candlewick.com

  .

  3

  .

  “

  I have long suspected that royal blood flowed

  in my veins,” said Gollie.

  4

  “And here, at last, is the proof.”

  5

  .

  “

  Good news, Bink,” said Gollie. “I have

  made an extraordinary discovery.”

  “

  I’ll be right over,”

  said Bink.

  6

  “Good news almost always means pancakes,” said Bink.

  7

  .

  “Bring on the pancakes,” said Bink.

  “Pancakes?” said Gollie. “What pancakes?”

  “The good-news pancakes,” said Bink.

  8

  “

  Bink,” said Gollie, “you must stop thinking with

  your stomach. Look.”

  9

  .

  “Who’s that?” said Bink.

  10

  “

  That,” said Gollie, “is my great-aunt Natasha. As you

  can see, she was a queen.”

  “All righty, then,” said Bink. “Let’s eat!”

  “

  I shall no longer be cooking pancakes for you, Bink,”

  said Gollie.

  .

  “Why not?” said Bink.

  “I regret to inform you,” said Gollie,

  “that royalty does not cook for others.”

  12

  “

  Oh,” said Bink. “Okay. I regret to inform you

  that I am going home.”

  13

  .

  “I look like my true self,” said Gollie.

  14

  “

  The queen is thinking of

  paying you a visit, Bink,”

  said Gollie.

  “What queen?” said Bink.

  “Queen Gollie,” said Gollie.

  “

  I’m not home,”

  said Bink.

  15

  .

  “

  Very well, then,” said Gollie. “I shall go

  forth into my kingdom alone.”

  16

  “A remarkable road,” said Gollie.

  17

  .

  “

  The queen thanks you for your efforts on behalf

  of the empire. Carry on.”

  18

  “

  Lovely onions,” said Gollie. “Pungent in the extreme.

  The queen does love a good onion. Carry on.”

  19

  .

  20

  21

  .

  “

  Mr. Eccles. Mrs. Eccles,” said Gollie. “You may

  be interested to know that I, too, find myself

  in possession of an empire.”

  22

  “

  May peace reign

  upon both of our

  empires,” said Gollie.

  23

  .

  “Knock, knock,” said Gollie.

  “Who’s there?” said Bink.

  “The queen,” said Gollie.

  “I’m still not home,” said Bink.

  24

  25

  .

  “The Kingdom of Gollie has grown muddy,” said Gollie.

  27

  .

  “The crown grows heavy,” said Gollie.

  28

  “The queen is lonely,” said Gollie.

  29

  .

  “Knock, knock,” said Gollie.

  “Who’s there?” said Bink.

  “It’s me,” said Gollie. “Gollie.”

  30

  “Gollie,” said Bink. “I’ve missed you.”

  31

  .

  33

  “

  Could you step aside, Bink?” said Gollie.

  “

  I can reach that, Bink,”

  said Gollie.

  “

  Let me get that for you,

  Bink,” said Gollie.

  .

  “That’s a good ques

  tion,” said Bink.

  34

  “I can’t think of a reason,” said Bink.

  “

  All righty, then,”

  said Bink. “I will.”

  .

  36

  37

  .

 
38

  “Or else what?” said Bink.

  39

  .

  “This Acme Stretch-o-Matic is top quality,” said Bink.

  “I can feel it working already.”

  40

  KNOCK,

  KNOCK,

  KNOCK!

  41

  .

  “

  Hello, Gollie,” said Bink. “Notice

  anything different about me?”

  “I do not,” said Gollie.

  42

  “

  All righty, then,” said Bink. “Back to the

  Acme Stretch-o-Matic.”

  “

  The Acme Stretch-o-Matic?”

  said Gollie.

  43

  .

  “

  Things are happening now,”

  said Bink.

  44

  “

  Are you ready to be astonished, Gollie?”

  said Bink. “A dramatic change has

  occurred. You won’t want to

  miss this. Act now!”

  “Oh, dear,” said Gollie.

  45

  .

  KNOCK,

  KNOCK!

  “

  Come in!” said Bink.

  46

  47

  .

  48

  49

  .

  50

  “

  Bink,” said Gollie, “I fear that it will be well-nigh impossible

  to reconstruct the Stretch-o-Matic.”

  51

  .

  “Step aside,” said Bink. “I’m using my gray matter.”

  “May I help?” said Gollie.

  “Hand me part 22-C,” said Bink.

  52

  “

  Now hand me some peanut

  butter,” said Bink.

  53

  .

  55

  “Astonishing,” said Gollie.

  “It makes me feel taller just to look at it,” said Bink.

  “Art can have that effect,” said Gollie.

  .

  57

  .

  “

  Look, Bink,” said Gollie. “Here is Edna O’Dell and

  her collection of international garden gnomes.”

  “Hmm,” said Bink.

  59

  .

  “

  Look,” said Gollie. “Here is the world’s largest ball of

  tinfoil. How very interesting.”

  “Hmm,” said Bink.

  “

  Look,” said Gollie. “ ‘Pictured here is Mr. Jerome Gardner

  of Freeport, New York, sitting with a few million of

  the marbles in his ever-growing collection.

  Good work, Jerome.’ ”

  60

  61

  .

  “Maybe we should collect something,” said Bink.

  “

  Excellent idea, Bink,” said Gollie. “Then we, too, could have

  our photo in Flicker’s Arcana.”

  “But what should we collect?” said Bink.

  62

  “

  Surely we can find something at Eccles’ Empire of

  Enchantment,” said Gollie.

  63

  .

  64

  65

  .

  “Help you?” said Mr. Eccles.

  “Help you?” said Mrs. Eccles.

  “Yes,” said Gollie. “We would like to start a collection.”

  66

  “

  We’re going to become world-record holders and

  get our picture in this book,” said Bink.

  67

  .

  “

  Well, as far as collecting goes, you’ve got your

  rubber worms,” said Mr. Eccles. “You’ve got your

  gold star stickers.”

  68

  “

  You’ve got your decorative thimbles,” said Mrs.

  Eccles. “You’ve got your rings made out of spoons.”

  69

  .

  “

  I like gold star stickers,”

  said Bink. “Let’s start with

  gold star stickers.”

  70

  “Aisle ten,” said Mr. Eccles.

  “

  Aisle ten,” said Mrs. Eccles.

  .

  “

  One hundred packages of sixty-six stars each makes

  sixty-six hundred gold star stickers,” said Bink. “No one

  in the entire world could possibly have more gold star

  stickers than that. We’re winners.”