Chapter One ‘Today ve draw still life!’ announced Miss Alperstein, Arthur’s teacher, handing white sheets of paper around the class. ‘To start vis, ve vill not use a model. Ve vill use our … imaginations!’ Great! thought Arthur, who was eager to begin. ‘I vant you to shut your eyes. I vill describe ze object. See if you can vork out vot ve vill draw.’ Arthur closed his eyes, wondering what it might be. ‘Ze sing you vill draw is round.’ Arthur’s favourite things leapt to mind. Pizza, pancakes, biscuits. ‘It is round and firm.’ Must be a biscuit, thought Arthur. ‘It is round and firm,’ repeated Miss Alperstein, ‘and it starts off v-e-e-ry small. It zen grows and grows.’ Biscuits don’t grow! Arthur searched his mind for something that grew, something round and firm. Nothing came up. Just then, Arthur was distracted by Alison Grant’s sneezing. It wasn’t hard for Alison Grant to distract Arthur. With her long red hair and dimples, she was eminently distracting.
