Looking for a Sign by Susie Dumond

Author:Susie Dumond [Dumond, Susie]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Random House Publishing Group
Published: 2024-06-11T00:00:00+00:00

* * *

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Gray arrived a couple of hours before their meeting the next day. That way the security guard could let her in before leaving for the day, and it gave her plenty of time to set up. The principal, however, didn’t arrive until twenty minutes after six, her high heels tapping brusquely against the linoleum.

“This better actually be important,” she said as she rounded the door into the library. “I have a very busy week and—is that Brown Girl Dreaming?”

Gray looked up from the child-sized armchair she’d wedged herself into, one ankle crossed over the other knee, book in hand. “Yeah, it is. It’s amazing.”

“I know it is. That’s why I put it on my list of—” Veronica froze, looking over Gray’s shoulder at two shelves full of gleaming new books. “Oh,” she said, her tone completely changing from irritation to surprise.

Gray stood, the armchair momentarily lifting with her before clattering back to the ground. “Surprise!” she said, gesturing grandly to the shelves Veronica was already inspecting. “I thought about streamers and glitter cannons, but I didn’t want to get on the janitorial staff’s bad side.”

Her mouth hanging open in awe, Veronica ran a finger along the spine of a copy of The Prince and the Dressmaker. “This is…Is it everything on our library wish list?”

“Plus a few extras recommended by that Diversifying Middle Schools Consortium you’re a member of,” Gray said.

Veronica slid out one book, Long Way Down by Jason Reynolds, and thumbed through it. “There’s no way you got the board to approve buying them.”

“Hell has not frozen over, no,” Gray said. “Besides, I wouldn’t go over your head like that.”

“Then how did you do this?” Veronica said, her hair hanging around her face, making it hard for Gray to gauge her reaction. “Did you buy them yourself? That’s thousands of dollars. Not to mention the board could still find a way to pull them from the shelves.”

Gray rocked on her heels, nervous as a middle schooler trying to impress the principal. “I would have spent thousands of dollars on this if I had it to spare. But I thought of that too. So I came up with something better. You know Gina Byers Kane?”

For the first time, Veronica actually made eye contact with Gray. “The paranormal mystery author?”

“That’s the one.” Gray stepped closer and put the book she’d been reading back on the shelf by the other copies. “You know we just announced she’s the keynote speaker at the high school graduation this year?”

Veronica gave a single nod, clearly waiting for Gray to get to the point.

“After a chat with Dr. Donovan, I convinced him to reach out to Gina and explain the situation—that we were having trouble getting approval for the books you hoped to buy. She’s pretty into free speech and access to books, you know. On the board of trustees at PEN America and everything.”

“Huh,” Veronica said. “That makes me love her books even more.”

“Me too,” Gray said. “Well, at least it makes me want to read them more.

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