Always, Abigail Read Free Page A

Time
    All summer, AlliCam and I had been looking at magazines like Makeover Mania , Fashion Hits , and Team Spirit , taking personality and fashion quizzes, reading up on the latest accessories, and finding out the best ways to get middle school boys to notice us. I didn’t realize how much I had missed reading a really good book.

One Thing I Added to My “What to Bring Home from School Today” List
    (Right after “My Math Book” and Right before “My Science Book”)
    Newfangled Fairy Tales: Modern Day Fractured Fairy Tales for Teens. (Even though Old Hawk didn’t tell us we had to bring it home.)

Friendly Letter Reply #1 from Gabby to Me That I Found in My Streamer, Sequined, and Glitter-Covered Awesomely Cute Shoebox-Mailbox
    Dear Abby,
    Pom-poms? Yeah, I could see that. You’re the pom-pom type.
    Obviously , you are my letter partner, and obviously , we are both in sixth grade. You’re right. I do have an older brother. His name is Pete, but I call him Paul because he’s a tree climber. Get it? Paul Bunyan, the lumberjack from the tall tale. Pizza is my favorite food too, but I only like chocolate cake if it has nuts in it. As for Ella Enchanted , it was okay, but you’ve got to be kidding about Hatchet . My dad and I loved that book. As for mushrooms, I’m no dummy. I wouldn’t eat them if my life depended on it. They could be poisonous. And pumpkin pie? I can take it or leave it.
    Looking forward to your next letter.
    Your friendly letter friend,
    Gabby

The Not-So-Friendly Letter I Wished I Could Write to Gabby
    Dear Gabby,
    For your information, my name is “Abigail,” not “Abby”!
    Second of all, I’m not surprised you like the book Hatchet . You seem like the Hatchet “type.” And why would your dad even read it? Sounds a little weird to me.
    But most importantly, the reason you can see me as a pom-pom girl is because I was born to be one.
    And by the way, calling your brother “Paul” when his name is “Pete” sounds pretty stupid to me, even if he is a tree climber, whatever that is.
    Your “Assigned” Letter Partner,
    Abigail

The Friendly Letter I Actually Put in Gabby’s Shoebox-Mailbox, Which She Had Decorated to Look Like a Carton of Lemonade, Which Made No Sense
    (But for Gabby, Making No Sense Made Perfect Sense, So I Guess for Her It Actually Made Sense)
    Dear Gabby,
    It’s bad enough we have to write these letters, now Old Hawk has us making mailboxes out of shoeboxes? I mean, didn’t we all make enough Valentine mailboxes when we were in grade school? Doesn’t Old Hawk realize we’re almost teenagers?
    Speaking of teenagers, how old is your brother? I think he might be in the same grade as my brother, Ben. Ben’s a senior and is the captain of the baseball team. He’s really good. When I was little, he tried to teach me to play. All I remember about it is he kept saying, “You throw like a girl!” What a stupid thing to say. I AM a girl!
    You said your brother’s a tree climber. Is that a new extreme sport? I’ve never heard of it.
    Sincerely,
    Abigail (NOT Abby!)
    P.S. Obviously, I ignored the sarcastic way you used “obviously.” But I CANNOT ignore you calling me Abby. My name is ABIGAIL!

One Hilarious Thing That Happened at Alli’s House after School
    We got into World War III with Alli’s brother, Brian.
    We call Brian “The Brain,” because all he ever does is study. And as usual, he was upstairs studying while we were trying to practice poms.
    â€œTurn down that music, you little ‘pom freaks’!” he yelled from his bedroom.
    Alli’s mom wasn’t home, so he knew he couldn’t get in trouble for yelling at us. Alli’s mom would’ve stuck up for us because she had been a pom-pom girl in high school. She knew how important practicing was.
    â€œLeave us alone!” Alli yelled.
    That’s