The author gratefully acknowledges
Gabrielle Charbonnet
for her help
with this book.
Contents
Title Page
Dedication
1 Dear Andrew
2 I Will Be Home for Christmas
3 Movie Excitement
4 The Audition
5 Karen Brewer: Star-to-Be
6 Allison Hunter!
7 Thanksgiving Plans
8 Three Extra Musketeers
9 Karen’s Last Chance
10 Fake Snow
11 Pre-Thanksgiving Plans
12 Where’s Boo-Boo?
13 Karen’s Great Idea
14 Daddy’s Sad News
15 A New Friend
16 Welcome Home, Andrew!
17 Farewell to Boo-Boo
18 Happy Thanksgiving!
19 Allison’s Surprise
20 I Am Thankful For …
About the Author
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Copyright
Dear Andrew
“Karen, hurry up!” called my stepsister, Kristy. “Nannie just made popcorn and hot chocolate!”
“Okay, coming!” I yelled back. On my way inside, I took one more running leap into the pile of leaves in our backyard. I landed with a satisfying whump! Then I dusted myself off and ran to the back door.
“Fall, fall, fall,” I sang, hanging my jacket up in the mud room. “Fall, autumn, autumn, fall.”
I hummed all the way into the big-house kitchen. (I have a big house and a little house. I will explain why later.) In the kitchen, Kristy, my stepbrother David Michael, and Nannie were sitting at the table. A huge bowl of popcorn sat before them. A steaming mug of hot chocolate waited at my place.
“You seem chipper,” said Nannie. (Nannie is my stepgrandmother.)
“I am chipper,” I said, taking a handful of popcorn. Then I listed all the things I was chipper about.
“Number one, it is autumn. I love autumn,” I said. “Crisp days, cozy evenings, hot chocolate. Number two, autumn means all the holidays are right around the corner: Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year’s. Number three, my little-house family will soon be home!” I finished happily.
“I know you are looking forward to that,” said Kristy.
“Yes. In fact, I think I will send Andrew an e-mail right now. I will tell him that there are only seventeen days left until he comes home.” Andrew is my little brother. He is four. I am seven.
“Good idea,” said Nannie. “When you are done, you can come back and help me set the table for dinner.”
“Okeydokey,” I replied, running to Daddy’s office, where our computer was. Luckily no one else was using it just then. There are so many people at the big house that it is a miracle when a room is empty.
I turned on the computer and logged on to e-mail. Then I typed slowly:
Dear Andrew,
I am counting the days until you, Mommy, and Seth come home. There are seventeen days left. I cannot wait to see you again. It will be so great to sleep in my bed at the little house. It will also be kind of strange. I have been here at the big house for a long time.
Our new kitten, Pumpkin, is growing fast. She is so funny and cute. She has not learned not to pounce on people yet. I am trying to teach her. Poor old Boo-Boo is not doing too well. But he has gotten very sweet. (If you can believe that.) I like Boo-Boo now. He even sleeps with me sometimes. I cannot wait for you to meet Pumpkin.
Oh! I almost forgot the most exciting news of all. Guess what. (You will never guess, so I will tell you.) A real, live Hollywood movie will be filmed here in Stoneybrook. And they are even using the outside of Daddy’s house in the movie! They will be starting soon. I plan to be here a lot. I bet when the director sees me, he will realize that I could add a lot to the movie. I could play a Stoneybrook girl named Karen Brewer.
I have to go help Nannie set the table now. I will send you another e-mail soon. I love and miss you very much.
Your big sister,
Karen
I clicked on the send button and sent my letter to Andrew. Although he is only four, he can read a lot of words. Mommy would help him if he got stuck. I love e-mail. I love to write letters. I love to get letters. With e-mail, I can send and receive letters much faster. In my opinion, the more things that can happen faster, the better. It is very, very hard for me to wait for anything. So you can imagine how hard it has been for me to wait for my little-house family to come home. It has been the hardest thing of my life.
I guess you are wondering who my little-house family is, and where they are. I will tell you — really fast.
I Will Be Home for Christmas
A long time ago, when I was little, I lived here at the big house all the time. Back then my family was just me, Andrew, Mommy, and Daddy. Then Mommy and Daddy got divorced. Mommy took Andrew and me to live with her in a little house, not very far away. Daddy stayed in the big house, since he had grown up there. (We still saw him all the time. Both of my houses are in Stoneybrook, Connecticut.)
Mommy met a nice man named Seth Engle. They got married, and Seth became my stepfather. So my little-house family became me, Mommy, Andrew, and Seth. Also Seth’s dog, Midgie, and his cat, Rocky.
Back at the big house, Daddy married Elizabeth Thomas. That made Elizabeth my stepmother. Elizabeth had been married before, and she had four children. They became my stepsister and stepbrothers. There is David Michael, who is seven, like me. Kristy is my favorite. She is thirteen. Sam and Charlie are very old. They are in high school.
Later Daddy and Elizabeth adopted my little sister, Emily Michelle. She is two and a half. She came from a faraway country called Vietnam. I love her very much.
We also have pets at the big house. Shannon is David Michael’s humongous puppy. Scout is a Labrador puppy that Kristy is training to be a guide dog. Boo-Boo is Daddy’s cat. He is very, very old. He used to be cranky and no fun. But lately he has gotten much nicer. He never scratches anyone anymore. He lets me pet him and brush him gently. And sometimes he even curls up on my bed with me. I like him much better now.
Our newest pet is an all-black kitten named Pumpkin. We got her around Halloween. She is gigundoly adorable. She is very playful and pouncy and climby and cute.
I also have a pet rat, Emily Jr. I named her after my little sister. Andrew has a pet hermit crab named Bob. And we both have goldfish. Mine is named Crystal Light the Second. Andrew’s is named Goldfishie.
It is so busy and hectic and crazy at the big house that Elizabeth’s mother, Nannie came to live with us. She helps take care of everyone.
Usually my little brother, Andrew, and I spend one month at the little house with Mommy and Seth, and the next month at the big house with everyone else. But since last spring, Seth has had an important job in Chicago, which is very far away. So Mommy, Seth, and Andrew rented an apartment there. I went to Chicago with them at first, but I decided I missed my big-house family too much. So I came back. I have not lived at the little house for six whole months.
But now my little-house family was coming back for good! They would be home in time for Thanksgiving. Then I would leave the big house and spend a month at the little house. Then back to the big house again. Back and forth, back and forth. It is the story of Andrew’s and my lives.
To tell you the truth, we are used to it. It is actually kind of fun. That is because we have two of lots of things, so we do not have to pack much when we switch back and forth. In fact, I made up special names for Andrew and me. I call us Andrew Two-Two and Karen Two-Two. We have two mommies, two daddies, two houses, two bedrooms (each), two bicycles, two sets of clothes…. The list goes on and on. I even wear two pairs of glasses. The blue ones are for r
eading, and the pink ones are for the rest of the time.
I was really looking forward to being with my little-house family again. But I was also glad I would have a few more weeks at the big house. I was very excited about the movie that would be filmed right in front of Daddy’s house!
Not only that, but one of my favorite actors, Allison Hunter, was the star of the movie. Allison is eight years old. Ever since I heard about the movie, I have been planning ways to meet Allison. I want her autograph. I want to talk to her. Most of all, I want to ask her how I, Karen Brewer, can become a start too.
I bet when I meet Allison Hunter, we will become friends. When I am friends with Allison, maybe she will ask the director if I can be in her movie. Then I will be a star — at both of my houses.
Movie Excitement
The very next morning, before breakfast, the huge movie trucks arrived. They parked all up and down our street. Some were full of equipment, one was a minirestaurant for the movie workers, and some were for people to get dressed in. I wondered which one Allison would be in.
Before I left for school that day, I said good-bye to Boo-Boo and Pumpkin. “You two be good,” I told them. “I will be home later this afternoon.”
I am in second grade at Stoneybrook Academy. When I am at the big house, I take the bus to school with my best friend Hannie Papadakis, who lives across the street and one house down. At the little house, I take the bus with my best friend Nancy Dawes, who lives next door. Yes, that is right. I have two best friends. Hannie and Nancy and I call ourselves the Three Musketeers.
At school, Nancy was waiting for Hannie and me. She ran to us as soon as we got off the bus.
“Guess what!” she said. “My daddy saw in the newspaper this morning that the movie people need some extra kids for a crowd scene! We can audition for it!”
“Oh, my gosh!” I gasped. “That is wonderful!”
“We are all going to audition,” said Sara Ford, who is also in our class. “The auditions will be in the Stoneybrook Middle School gym.”
“When? When?” asked Ricky Torres. (He is my pretend husband.)
“Tomorrow,” said Addie Sidney. She wheeled her wheelchair back and forth in excitement. “Tomorrow at two o’clock. I will be there.”
Well. This was just about the most exciting thing that had happened all autumn.
“You know, if they hire us to be in the movie,” I said, “we would be sure to meet Allison Hunter.”
“Yes!” exclaimed Hannie eagerly.
“Ugh,” said Omar Harris. “Why would you want to meet her? I hear she is stuck-up and unfriendly.”
“I do not believe that,” I said firmly. “She seems very nice in her movies. Anyway, I still want to meet her.”
Then the bell rang, and it was time to go to class. Our teacher, Ms. Colman, is the best teacher ever. She is very patient and kind. All morning, I was thinking and thinking. The auditions would take place the next day. What should I do at my audition? Recite a speech or sing a song? I decided to ask Ms. Colman for help. Teachers always know about that kind of thing.
“Ms. Colman?” I said after everyone had left for lunch. (I asked Nancy and Hannie to save me a seat.)
“Yes, Karen? What is it? Are you all right? You were unusually quiet this morning.”
“Oh, I am fine, thank you,” I said. Then I told her about the auditions for I’ll Be Home for Christmas. (That was the name of Allison Hunter’s movie.) “Can you help me find a poem to audition with?”
“Certainly,” said Ms. Colman.
“I was thinking of Shakespeare,” I said. “He is always very popular.”
“Hmm,” said Ms. Colman. “Shakespeare is wonderful, but also sometimes difficult. How about if we find something else for you instead?”
“That would be okay,” I agreed.
That night I could hardly sleep. I kept repeating my poem over and over to myself. I tried to put a lot of emotion into it.
When morning came, I was a nervous wreck.
The Audition
Early Saturday morning, the movie people began to get our house ready to be filmed. I helped by keeping all of our pets inside. The movie would use only the outside of the house. The producer told Daddy that all of the inside shots would be filmed at a studio in California. (I know it sounds weird. But that is how movies are made.)
The director, assistant director, and cameraman walked around our house many times, looking at it from all different directions. When I saw them from a window, I waved. Sometimes they waved back.
For most of the morning I sat in a front window in the living room, watching the people outside. Boo-Boo sat next to me. I stroked his fur. He had lost some weight lately. He used to be gigundo, but now he is much thinner. Daddy says that is because he is getting old.
After lunch Elizabeth drove me to Stoneybrook Middle School for the auditions. All the way there, I kept repeating my poem to myself. This audition could make or break my movie career.
Tons of kids were at the school. I would have to put lots of emotion into my poem if I wanted to stand out.
“Hello, kids!” called a man. “Thank you for coming. As you know, we are holding auditions for walk-on parts in I’ll Be Home for Christmas. Since these are non-speaking parts, called ‘extras,’ in a crowd scene, you do not have to give a speech. We just need to look at you.”
“Oh, no!” I said to Hannie and Nancy. “I was up all night preparing.”
“Me too,” said Hannie. “I memorized a whole speech.”
“I was going to sing a song,” said Nancy. “But now I am glad I do not have to.”
“Oh, look,” I said, pointing. “That is the assistant director. I saw her this morning at my house.”
Another assistant had started lining kids up in groups. Then two people would look at them and say whether they could stay or go. Most of the kids had to go. Only a few were right for the crowd scenes. I could not tell why some kids could stay and others not. I was excited to see that Addie Sidney and Sara Ford were both chosen.
We Three Musketeers waited for our turn. When the assistant director walked past us, I called, “Hello, Ms. Wynoski.”
She turned to look at me, then she smiled. “Hello. You’re the Brewer girl, aren’t you?”
“Yes,” I said eagerly. “I’m Karen Brewer. These are my friends Hannie Papadakis and Nancy Dawes. We are here to audition for a part together. We are all best friends.”
“Oh, good,” said Ms. Wynoski.
“In fact,” I continued quickly, “I have prepared a poem to recite. ‘I think that I shall never see —’ ”
“Just a moment, Karen,” said Ms. Wynoski, holding up her hand. “These are non-speaking roles. Bill? Could you come here, please?”
I wanted to continue with my poem, but Ms. Wynoski was talking to one of the men who had been choosing kids. He looked at us and nodded, then walked away.
“Guess what?” said Ms. Wynoski. “I think you three best friends just got walk-on parts in the crowd scene.”
Nancy gasped and put her hand to her mouth. Hannie and I beamed.
Ms. Wynoski gave us each a card. It said where to go and when to be there. Then she smiled at us and left to look at some other kids.
The Three Musketeers stood there, smiling. I was gigundoly happy that all of us had been chosen. As we waited for Mrs. Papadakis to pick us up, I had only one regret: I had not had a chance to perform my poem. How would my talent be discovered if I did not perform?
Karen Brewer: Star-to-Be
Usually I love school. I am almost always happy to go to it. But I was not happy on Monday morning. Too many exciting things were happening at the big house. I did not want to miss anything.
“Yesterday they washed the whole outside of the house,” I told Hannie and Nancy at lunchtime. “And they have been trimming bushes and raking leaves and washing windows.”
“I guess they want your house to look perfect for the movie,” said Natalie Springer. (She is also in our cla
ss.)
I nodded. “They even planted a new tree in our front lawn! They told Daddy we could keep it after the filming.”
“You are so, so lucky,” said Natalie. Sara Ford nodded, and so did Addie.
I tried to look modest. “I know.”
* * *
That afternoon after school, Hannie and Nancy came home with me. We could hardly see my house when we got off the school bus. There were huge trucks, humongous lights, and other pieces of equipment all over the place. It seemed as if a hundred people were swarming over our lawn. We did not see Allison Hunter anywhere.
“She was supposed to arrive today,” I told Hannie and Nancy. “Maybe that lady knows where she is.”
A tall, dark-haired woman was walking around slowly. She carried a large camera on her shoulder. She was looking through its eyepiece. I waited until she had glanced up, then said, “Ahem. Excuse me. Do you know where Allison Hunter is?”
“No, I am sorry,” said the woman. “I do not see the stars too much. My name is Kathy Hopper. I am an assistant cameraman. Right now I am taking shots that will be edited into the final movie.”
“Oh. That is very interesting,” said Nancy. “But what about all this noise?” She waved her hand at the hubbub happening around my house. “Won’t you record all the noise too?”
The woman shook her head. “No, I am not recording any sound right now. These are general shots of the house and neighborhood. They will probably be played with background music.”
Ms. Hopper told us all sorts of interesting things about how a movie is made. For example, she said that every moviemaker films hundreds of scenes — sometimes the same scene over and over again. But only a small number of them make it into the final version of a movie. That worried me. What if my crowd scene was edited out of the movie? I might never become a star.
Another thing Ms. Hopper told us is that the scenes in movies are not filmed in order. A scene at the very front of the movie might be filmed in the middle of the schedule, or even at the very end. Or they might film all of the outdoor shots one right after another, even though a lot of other stuff comes in between in the movie. It sounded very difficult and complicated. I did not know how they kept all this stuff straight.