Fabulous Five 007 - The Kissing Disaster (9 page)

When Miss Dickinson announced the homework assignment, Katie
Shannon thought that she must have heard her teacher wrong. This was English
Literature, she had thought, not Pop Culture 101.

"Making your own bumper stickers will help you to
understand satire and how it is used in literature," Miss Dickinson had
said, handing out long strips of paper. "Satire is simply sarcasm, usually
cleverly written, that criticizes some aspect of the world. And of course,
condensing it to fit your paper will help you say what you mean in a very few
words."

Katie felt relieved when Miss Dickinson explained it that
way. Actually, she could think of lots of things in the world that needed
criticizing, and doing it with bumper stickers just might turn out to be a lot
of fun.

Joel Murphy's hand rocketed into the air, and the rest of
his body looked as if it were going to follow. "I've got one already,"
he cried.

Miss Dickinson shook her head. "Write it down, Joel.
You'll get plenty of opportunities to read your bumper sticker wisdom to the
class tomorrow."

A lot of kids snickered, and Katie rolled her eyes to the
ceiling. I can just imagine what kind of macho slogan he came up with, she
thought.

The bell rang before Joel could protest, and the class filed
into the hall.

"Some assignment, huh?" said Shawnie Pendergast,
coming up beside Katie.

Katie smiled and glanced at Shawnie, glad to see that her
eyes weren't red. Almost every morning Shawnie came to school looking as if she
had been crying. Katie wasn't sure why, except that she had heard rumors that
Shawnie's parents were unbelievably strict and that Shawnie had even threatened
to leave home.

"I think it's going to be fun," said Katie. "It's
our chance to make a statement about something we really believe in."

Shawnie's face brightened. "You've got a point,"
she said. "There are a few things I'm
dying
to say out loud. Maybe
this is my chance."

Katie stopped at her locker and watched Shawnie scuff on
down the hall. She acts like a volcano that's about to blow, Katie thought,
frowning.

Katie spent the entire evening working on her bumper
sticker, and her wastebasket overflowed with ideas she had written down on
pieces of scrap paper and then discarded. Finding the subject was the hardest
part. There were so many things she cared about. The women's movement. Justice.
Peace. Finally she settled on an idea, wrote it on her bumper sticker, and went
to bed.

In English class the next day, everyone wanted to be first.
Joel Murphy was his usual obnoxious self, waving his bumper sticker in the air
and making grunting noises that sounded like a monkey to Katie.

"All right, Mona Vaughn, you may go first," said
Miss Dickinson, ignoring Joel's antics.

Mona stood and unfurled her bumper sticker for the class to
see. "It says, 'Help the hungry—keep them out of the school cafeteria!'"

The class thundered its applause and Miss Dickinson had to
shout for everyone to be quiet.

"Marcie Bee, you're next."

Marcie looked nervous. "'Peace in the world or the
world in pieces,'" she mumbled, holding her sticker down by her side.

"Hey! I've heard that before," shouted Steve
Hernandez.

"This is supposed to be original," said Matt Zeboski.

"It's all I could think of," Marcie protested.

Katie raised her hand, and Miss Dickinson nodded.

"'Nuclear war: the choice of the
last
generation!'" she said proudly. No one laughed at that one, and Katie sat
down, satisfied that she had made the others think about something serious for
a change.

"'School is a ball . . .
and a chain!
'"
said Derek Travelstead, and the class was laughing again.

Finally Joel got his chance. "'A spare rib is another
name for a useless woman.'"

The boys laughed at that one, and the girls booed. Katie
seethed with anger.

Finally it was Shawnie's turn to read her sticker. She stood
by her seat, and Katie noticed that her face was blotched, as if she had been
crying again. Raising her sticker over her head, Shawnie spat out the words:
"'Empty
the nation's prisons. Let your kid out of the house once in a while!'"

Katie watched sadly as Shawnie crumpled back into her seat.
What was the matter with the Pendergasts, anyway? she wondered. Did they really
keep her a prisoner? No matter what, nobody should make their child that
miserable.

Will Katie be able to help Shawnie deal with her situation
at home? Or will Katie's sense of justice and fair play get her into more
trouble than she can handle? Find out in
The Fabulous Five
#8: THE
RUNAWAY CRISIS.