Survival Strategies of the Almost Brave (24 page)

“Billie!” I called.

She waved. So did Julie.

“I just told Julie the Barbie joke!” yelled Billie.

And right then, at that exact moment, I just knew. I guess you could say it was instinct, mixed in with a little inspiration. Maybe it was Mom's soul cells, but I knew we were going to be okay, Billie and me. This place felt almost sacred, like if we stayed here long enough, all of us in our exact places, we might just stay shiny and golden forever.

I looked up at the sky. Little white sheep clouds.

Fault lines crisscrossed inside my heart and my head and forged me back together. I was a newer, stronger Liberty. And for now, that was enough.

 

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

A book is never written without an endless supply of lovely human beings to help along the way. And so I acknowledge these people for their expertise, love, and support:

Joy Peskin, editor extraordinaire, who remembered two lost sisters and who loved them from the beginning. Thank you for your editing eye, thoughtful advice, and all-around
hoorays
for this book and for me. Thank you to the team at Farrar Straus Giroux Books for Young Readers who made this book excellent in every respect. Thank you to my publisher, Simon Boughton, and copy editor, Kate Hurley. Thank you to Elizabeth H. Clark for the most amazing cover. Thank you, thank you, and thank you again.

Charlotte Sheedy, my wonderful agent, who said yes immediately, and then has ever since cheered and championed this book and me. Thank you. I adore you.

Thank you to Janessa Ransom and Ann Dee Ellis, the smartest reader/writers I have ever met—as well as some downright awesome people. Thank you for reading this book again, and again, and
again
.

And a
huge
thank-you to the talented faculty, staff, and student body at Vermont College of Fine Arts.

My classmates Nicole Griffin, Emily Wing Smith, Corrinne Lewis, and my other Whirligigs, thank you. Everyone needs an intelligent posse of writers as a cheering squad.

My mom and dad, who never said no to books … unless I had unhealthily holed myself up for a day with six or seven, in which case they forced me into the daylight to interact with people. Talking to people is important, too. Your love and unfailing support of everything I choose to do means more than you will ever know.

Thank you to Pam White for dropping everything at a moment's notice when I needed you.

Thank you to my siblings: Kim, Terresa, Jack, and Nick, who have given me an endless supply of sibling stuff to write about. And for being the first friends I have loved and cared for.

So grateful to SJ, GC, SA, LG, and LM, for giving my heart a place to live.

And, most importantly, thank you to Adam, who never said no, even when I sounded crazy (which was sometimes a lot).

 

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Jen White
holds an MFA in writing for children and young adults from Vermont College of Fine Arts. She lives in San Clemente, California, with her family. Survival Strategies of the Almost Brave is her debut novel. You can sign up for email updates
here
.

 

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CONTENTS

Title Page

Copyright Notice

Dedication

Survival Strategy #1: Fake It

Survival Strategy #2: Act Normal

Survival Strategy #3: Blue Skies Do Not Mean Happiness

Survival Strategy #4: Watch Out for Predators

Survival Strategy #5: Hibernate

Survival Strategy #6: Fight or Flight

Survival Strategy #7: Camouflage

Survival Strategy #8: Escape, If You Dare

Survival Strategy #9: Timing Is Everything

Survival Strategy #10: Beware of Traps

Survival Strategy #11: Sometimes You Should Feel Sorry for the Cobra

Survival Strategy #12: Nest and Rest

Survival Strategy #13: Take It

Survival Strategy #14: Beware of “Skip to My Lou”

Survival Strategy #15: Trust Instinct

Survival Strategy #16: If It's Good Enough for a Sea Turtle, It Might Be Good Enough for You

Survival Strategy #17: Acclimate

Survival Strategy #18: Don't Get Comfortable

Survival Strategy #19: Never Answer the Door

Survival Strategy #20: Panic Is Not Your Friend

Survival Strategy #21: Be Patient, Like a Snapping Turtle

Survival Strategy #22: If You Look Hard Enough, You Can Find Almost Normal

Survival Strategy #23: Blend In

Survival Strategy #24: Run

Survival Strategy #25: Hide

Survival Strategy #26: Use Everyone

Survival Strategy #27: Never Trust Luke Skywalker

Survival Strategy #28: Oreos Can Be Dangerous, Too

Survival Strategy #29: Don't Be a Hero

Survival Strategy #30: Go Back to the Beginning

Survival Strategy #31: Beware of Sharks

Survival Strategy #32: Dreams Are Dangerous, Too

Survival Strategy #33: Accidents Happen

Survival Strategy #34: Don't Hide, Go Outside

Survival Strategy #35: Beware of Unexpected Gifts

Survival Strategy #36: Instinct Can Be Trouble

Survival Strategy #37: Help Yourself

Survival Strategy #38: Flee

Survival Strategy #39: Sometimes They Come Back

Survival Strategy #40: Sometimes Help Comes from a Tattooed Guy

Survival Strategy #41: Dr Pepper Can Ruin Everything

Survival Strategy #42: Eat Food

Survival Strategy #43: Trust Your Heart

Survival Strategy #44: Know Who to Trust

Survival Strategy #45: Beware of Prisoners

Survival Strategy #46: Bargaining Is Best

Survival Strategy #47: Beware of Fault Lines

Survival Strategy #48: Rescue Yourself

Survival Strategy #49: Make Your Own Pod

Survival Strategy #50: If You Can, Be Brave

Survival Strategy #51: Face It

Survival Strategy #52: New Pods Can Be Golden

Survival Strategy #53: Corners Can Be the Most Important Pieces

Acknowledgments

About the Author

Copyright

 

 

Farrar Straus Giroux Books for Young Readers

175 Fifth Avenue, New York 10010

Copyright © 2015 by Jen White

All rights reserved

First hardcover edition, 2015

eBook edition, May 2015

macteenbooks.com

eBooks may be purchased for business or promotional use. For information on bulk purchases, please contact Macmillan Corporate and Premium Sales Department by writing to [email protected].

The Library of Congress has cataloged the print edition as follows:

White, Jen.

    Survival strategies of the almost brave / Jen White.

        pages cm

    Summary: Soon after their mother's sudden death in San Diego, Liberty, twelve, and Billie, eight, are abandoned at an Arizona gas station by the father they barely know and Liberty must find a way to keep them together and safe until either Dad returns or they can contact Julie, their mother's best friend.

    ISBN 978-0-374-30084-5 (hardback)

    ISBN 978-0-374-30085-2 (e-book)

    [1.  Abandoned children—Fiction.   2.  Sisters—Fiction.   3.  Single-parent families—Fiction.   4.  Fathers and daughters—Fiction.   5.  Survival—Fiction.]   I.  Title.

PZ7.1.W445Sur 2015

[Fic]—dc23

2014040665

eISBN 9780374300852