Fleming, Ian. Chitty-Chitty Bang-Bang. New York : Random House, 2003.
Plot: After making millions with through a musical candy invention, the Potter family decides to buy a special car. After looking throughout the town, they discover a broken-down green machine with a racing history. Through several months of work, the family makes the car into something truly remarkable. The car thinks for itself and can fly like an airplane or float like a boat. At the car's urging, the Potters travel to France for a holiday, but the discovery of a mobster's armory could put a damper on the trip.
Genre: Fantasy, Adventure
Reading Level: Grades 4-9
Similar Titles: Chitty-Chitty Bang-Bang Rides Again, Mary Poppins
Personal Thoughts: The title manages to create a fantasy story with a frank view of childhood and adulthood silliness. Parents and children accept the magical world the of the green car with little problem, allowing the adventure to continue for the adventure's sake.
Some readers, like me, probably saw the movie produced by Disney before reading the book. As such, I feel obligated to warn potential readers that no child-hating barons, castles, pompous grandfathers, or benign heiresses exist in the text. Instead, the Potter family consists of a man, a woman, and twins who use their fantastic car to fight mobsters and save a French candy maker.
Ian Fleming is actually best known for his books about a member of the British Secret Service, famously known as Agent 007.
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