Deja reaches up and touches her head.
“This doesn’t feel right!” She jumps up and runs to the bathroom to check it in the mirror. Then she comes running back.
“Look what you did to my hair!”
“I like it . . . ,” Nikki says weakly.
“It doesn’t look like it’s supposed to!”
“Yes, it does.”
“It doesn’t.”
Deja flops down on the couch. She slips her thumb into her mouth and turns back to The Mouse Queen, her favorite cartoon. Deja won’t let anyone except Nikki see her sucking her thumb. She knows Nikki won’t laugh. Nikki slides over next to Deja on the couch. There isn’t anything about Deja that Nikki would laugh at, and there isn’t anything about Nikki that Deja would laugh at.
After a while, Deja takes her thumb out of her mouth and says, “I’m tired of cartoons. Let’s go outside. I don’t need my hair combed for that.”
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About the Author
KAREN ENGLISH is a Gryphon Award winner, Coretta Scott King Honor recipient, and the author of the Nikki and Deja series. Her chapter books have been praised for their accessible writing, authentic characters, and satisfying story lines. She is a former elementary school teacher and lives in Los Angeles, California.
About the Illustrator
Photo by Karen Rosen
LAURA FREEMAN has illustrated several books for children, including ten chapter books about the kids of Carver Elementary. She grew up in New York City and now lives near Atlanta, Georgia, with her husband and two sons. Her drawings for this book were inspired by her children, as well as her own childhood.
Learn more at www.lfreemanart.com
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