The Rat Queen by Pete Hautman

Author:Pete Hautman [Hautman, Pete]
Language: eng
Format: epub, azw3
ISBN: 9781536227246
Publisher: Candlewick Press
Published: 2022-01-15T00:00:00+00:00

They sat in the big chairs in front of the fireplace. Papa asked her how she was feeling.

“I’m not sick,” Annie said.

“How are you feeling about Ozols?”

Annie hesitated. She wasn’t sure, because her feelings about Ozols had gone through several changes. At first, she hadn’t liked her at all. Especially at breakfast, when Ozols had served her a bowl of plain oatmeal. But then she had put out a bowl of whipped cream, and another bowl of fresh strawberries, and a bowl of sugar. “Oatmeal needs lots of toppings,” Ozols had said. After that Annie liked her better. But then there was the boring history book, and Annie hadn’t liked that at all. But then Ozols had read Annie the story about the princess . . .

“I like her sometimes,” Annie said.

Papa nodded slowly. “She can be difficult,” he said. “But Vaira is family. She will be staying with us for a while. Tomorrow I will be flying back to Litvania to take care of some business. Ozols will be in charge while I am gone.”

“Isn’t she sort of in charge already?”

Papa laughed. “She can be a bit bossy!”

“How long will you be gone?”

“A week. Perhaps longer. And while I am gone, you must continue to feed the nuodeema burna. Remember, it is only for you and me. Do not mention it to Ozols.”

“Okay.”

“Vaira may tell you stories. You should take them all with a grain of salt.”

“Salt?”

“That means you should not believe everything she tells you.”

“She told me a story today.”

“What story?”

“The one about the princess and the mirror.”

“Ah, a fairy tale.”

“And she helped me look up incorrigible. It means I don’t like to be corrected.”

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