We take the T-bird out once a week and drive the same route I bike every day. Arthur often falls asleep in the car, like a fussy baby, and I drive around town until he wakes up and yells at me that he needs to go to the bathroom. If we were characters in a movie, Arthur and I would go on a road t...
The pink blanket is on her lap and she is staring at the photograph. My dish of sorbet is still sitting on the counter. Suddenly I crave the simple cold sweetness on my tongue. I stand silently, spooning the melted goop into my mouth. I finish off what’s in the bowl and get the container out of t...
When I try to talk, it feels as if someone is slamming my face with a brick. I groan, and Mom turns around and hands me a bag of frozen peas. I’m so out of it, I didn’t even know we had stopped at a store. “This will help,” she says. “We’re going directly to the U Dub Medi...
I ask. “Counting this time? Seven,” my dad says. “Or maybe eight.” “Why?” I ask. “It’s always for a good cause. Or it starts out that way, anyway.” Mom sounds tired. “Save the coral reefs. Save the rain forest. Save the whales. But Mike always takes it a step further. Protesting isn’t enough for ...
—E.B. White, Charlotte’s Web I have read Charlotte’s Web once a year, on my birthday, since I was eight. I never get tired of it. If I ever have a son, I’m going to name him Wilbur. Okay, maybe not his first name, but his second for sure. At first I loved the pictures almost as much as I loved th...
Mom said over dinner. “She’s very confused and upset.” Welcome to the club, I thought. “Shutting people out isn’t helping, March,” Dad said. “We’re all concerned about you, Natalie included. She’s your best friend. Call her. Tell her what’s going on.” “She wouldn’t understand.” I put my fork down...