Super Surprise Read online

  OTHER BOOKS

  IN THE ZIGZAG KIDS SERIES

  Number One Kid

  Big Whopper

  Flying Feet

  Star Time

  Bears Beware

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

  Text copyright © 2012 by Patricia Reilly Giff

  Jacket art and interior illustrations copyright © 2012 by Alasdair Bright

  All rights reserved. Published in the United States by Wendy Lamb Books, an imprint of Random House Children’s Books, a division of Random House, Inc., New York.

  Wendy Lamb Books and the colophon are trademarks of Random House, Inc.

  Visit us on the Web! randomhouse.com/kids

  Educators and librarians, for a variety of teaching tools, visit us at randomhouse.com/teachers

  Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

  Giff, Patricia Reilly.

  Super surprise / by Patricia Reilly Giff;

  illustrated by Alasdair Bright. — 1st ed.

  p. cm.

  Summary: When Destiny Washington gets the notion that everyone’s favorite teacher, Ms. Katz, is going to be dismissed from the Zigzag Afternoon Center, she and classmate Yolanda think of several ways to save her.

  eISBN: 978-0-375-89640-8

  [1. Schools—Fiction. 2. Problem solving—Fiction.]

  I. Bright, Alasdair, ill. II. Title.

  PZ7.G3626Str 2012

  [Fic]—dc22

  2011034342

  Random House Children’s Books supports the First Amendment and celebrates the right to read.

  v3.1

  For Anne Reilly Eisele,

  my sister,

  with love

  —P.R.G.

  To Joe, Charlotte, Paul, and Clare

  —A.B.

  Contents

  Cover

  Other Books in the Zigzag Kids Series

  Title Page

  Copyright

  Dedication

  Characters

  Chapter 1: Friday

  Chapter 2: Still Friday

  Chapter 3: Monday

  Chapter 4: Still Monday

  Chapter 5: Still Monday

  Chapter 6: Tuesday

  Chapter 7: Wednesday

  Chapter 8: Thursday

  Chapter 9: Friday

  Chapter 10: Still Friday

  About the Authors

  Destiny Washington raced along the hall. She was on her way to the school library. It was movie time at the Zigzag Afternoon Center. And after that, Ms. Katz, her favorite teacher, had promised a surprise.

  But wait.

  A sign was tacked up on the wall.

  Destiny squinted at the sign. Too bad she wasn’t such a great reader.

  RHYME TIME BEGINS.

  JOIN RIGHT IN!

  “Rrrrrrr …,” she whispered.

  Rhinoceros?

  No good.

  That animal wouldn’t even fit in the school.

  She stood on one foot. “That R word is one tough baby,” she said.

  Gina came up behind her. “Are you talking to yourself?”

  Destiny crossed her fingers. “Just humming.”

  Gina pointed to the sign. “I’m going to join right in.”

  “Me too,” Destiny said.

  Hmmm. Join in what? she wondered.

  Gina kept going down the hall.

  “Rrrrr …” Destiny spelled it out: “R-H-Y-M-E.”

  And then she had it. She really did!

  Rainbow!

  She couldn’t believe it. She’d sounded out one of the hardest words in the world.

  That was it. They’d all be rainbows next week!

  She’d wear her best butterfly bow. It was red and green and orange, her favorite color.

  But she had to hurry. The movie would begin any minute.

  She rushed down the hall.

  She circled Jake the Sweeper. He was peering into the mop closet.

  His face was red. “What a mess in here,” he said.

  Poor Jake.

  Destiny was the last one in the library.

  A thousand books covered the shelves. All the seats were taken. There was almost no room.

  Her friend Beebe was squashed up in front. Beebe wore round aids in her ears to help her hear.

  Sometimes she could even read lips!

  In back, Yolanda was sitting on a bench. She moved over to make room for Destiny.

  “Thanks!” Destiny slung her backpack underneath the bench.

  Ms. Katz smiled at them.

  “You’re so lucky, Destiny,” Yolanda said. “Ms. Katz is your classroom teacher. And she’s the librarian for the Afternoon Center, too.”

  Destiny nodded. Ms. Katz was the best teacher in the school. Maybe in the whole United States of America.

  The movie began. It was about a princess and a witch who locked her in a castle.

  “That’s what witches always do,” Yolanda said.

  Destiny tried to see.

  The other kids’ heads bobbed up and down in front of her.

  Along came a godmother. She said:

  I’ll get you out.

  Don’t you worry.

  I’ll think of something

  In a hurry.

  And that was what happened.

  The godmother said:

  Hop in bed.

  Say good night.

  Hold on tight!

  The princess and the bed flew out the window. They landed in a river. They sailed away.

  Free.

  The movie was over. Everyone clapped.

  Mitchell whistled. Almost whistled. It was more of a shu-shu sound. He was still working on it.

  Ms. Katz snapped up the shades. “Here comes the surprise. Think about the movie. What does it have to do with the sign?”

  Rainbows, Destiny thought. Colors!

  The princess wore a pink and purple gown.

  Yes, that was it.

  Outside the library, Destiny saw Jake go by. He was shaking his head.

  Mrs. Terrible Thomas, Jake’s cat, went by, too. She wasn’t supposed to come to school. But she liked to sneak in.

  Now Destiny was ready for the surprise.

  What could it be?

  Ms. Katz sat on the edge of the desk. “Whew. Not an inch of room in here.”

  She looked around. “Can anyone guess what the surprise is?”

  Destiny raised her hand. She waved it hard.

  Ms. Katz looked over her eyeglasses. “Yes, Destiny?”

  Destiny stood up. This news was important. Let everyone get a good look at her.

  “We are going to be rainbows at the Zigzag Center next week.” She twirled around.

  Everyone looked surprised.

  Gina covered her mouth.

  Destiny could see she was trying not to laugh.

  Something was wrong.

  Very wrong.

  Gina stood up, even though Ms. Katz hadn’t called on her.

  “Next week is rhyme time,” Gina said. “We’re going to be poets, right?”

  “Yes, that’s the surprise,” Ms. Katz said. “You’re an excellent thinker, Gina.”

  Destiny took a quick look at Ms. Katz.

  Was Ms. Katz disappointed in her?

  Destiny put her head down.

  Rhyme time, not rainbow time.

  She wondered if she might cry.

  Probably.

  Next to her, Yolanda whispered, “Don’t worry. Everyone makes mistakes.”

  Ms. Katz was still talking. “Bring in your poems on Monday. Bring one e
very day next week, if you like.”

  Peter Petway, a sixth grader, stood up. “I’ll copy some of the poems into my newspaper, Zigzag News—Read All About It.”

  “Wow,” Gina said.

  Mitchell almost whistled.

  Destiny swallowed. She’d never get her name in the Zigzag News.

  She was not an excellent thinker. She wasn’t even a so-so thinker.

  Outside, Ramón, the college student who helped out, blew his whistle. Afternoon Center was over for the day.

  Everyone scrambled for the buses.

  Everyone except Destiny. She didn’t scramble. She didn’t want to see anyone. She didn’t want anyone to see her, either.

  Halfway down the hall, she remembered something.

  She’d left her backpack under the bench in the library.

  She had to get it. Even if she missed Bus Thirteen.

  Even if she had to walk two million blocks to get home.

  The backpack had her homework. Her leftover cookie from lunch. It also had last week’s Zigzag News—Read All About It.

  She rushed back to the library.

  The door was still open.

  Jake the Sweeper went by, pushing a broom. “No room,” he was saying to himself.

  Jake was right about that, Destiny thought. Books and papers were all over the place. Computers and boxes were lined up against the wall.

  Jake went into the mop closet.

  He was still talking to himself. “What a mess! It’s really time …”

  A bucket banged into the wall. “… Katz to go.”

  Destiny stepped around Mrs. Terrible Thomas. She stopped on one foot.

  Was Jake saying Ms. Katz had to go?

  This was the worst news Destiny had ever heard in her life.

  She grabbed her backpack.

  She raced outside.

  Bus Thirteen was still there. It sounded as if it were coughing.

  Destiny climbed up. She sat on the ripped seat. It was the only one left.

  But who cared about that?

  All she could think about was Ms. Katz leaving the Zigzag Afternoon Center.

  Then she thought about the godmother in the movie. The godmother who had saved the princess.

  Destiny had to be like the godmother.

  She had to save Ms. Katz!

  It was time for Afternoon Center. Destiny hurried down the stairs.

  She was the lunch lady’s helper. She was going to give out snacks.

  She passed Ms. Katz in the hall.

  Ms. Katz had a pile of papers in her arms.

  She dropped them all over the place.

  Destiny looked around. She hoped Jake didn’t see the mess Ms. Katz had made.

  She helped Ms. Katz pick up the papers. Every single scrap. Homework sheets. Drawings. Even Ms. Katz’s Stop & Shop list.

  Ms. Katz put her hand on Destiny’s shoulder. “What would I do without you?”

  Destiny smiled a little. But what would everyone do without Ms. Katz?

  She looked around. Whew! Jake was nowhere in sight.

  But there was Mrs. Terrible Thomas, the cat. She padded down the hall. She had sneaked into school again.

  She was carrying one of her kittens.

  It was the one who looked like an orange ice pop.

  The cutest one.

  “That one’s my favorite,” Destiny said.

  “I think I like the gray one,” said Ms. Katz. She waved and went up the stairs.

  Destiny went the other way, into the lunchroom.

  She wished she knew where Yolanda was.

  She had to tell someone the bad news about Ms. Katz.

  She needed help. Somehow, they had to save Ms. Katz.

  But Yolanda wasn’t in the lunchroom yet.

  Destiny handed out cups of chocolate pudding. They had little whipped cream hats.

  She gave a nice fat one to Gina.

  “Mmmm,” Gina said.

  She gave two huge ones to Mitchell and Charlie.

  “Thanks,” Charlie said.

  Mitchell almost whistled. Shu-shu.

  Clifton, a kindergarten kid, came next.

  Destiny gave him a pudding with a great swirly hat.

  “This stuff is wiggly,” Clifton said. He scooped the top into his mouth.

  At last Yolanda came in the door.

  She raced up to Destiny. “I almost didn’t make it. I was working on a poem.”

  “I have to tell you …,” Destiny began.

  Yolanda sank into a chair. “Do you know what rhymes with rose?”

  Destiny thought for a moment. “Nose,” she said.

  Yolanda slapped her forehead. “That’s terrific. All I could think of was boze and goze.”

  Destiny was surprised at herself. Nose. Not bad.

  “I’m a better artist than a poet.” Yolanda leaned forward. “What’s under that whipped cream?”

  Destiny held out the pudding cup. Clifton was right. The whole thing was jiggly.

  It made her laugh.

  Yolanda laughed, too.

  Somehow, Destiny jiggled too hard. The cup tipped. The whipped cream slid off the top.

  So did a blob of chocolate pudding.

  They flew onto Yolanda’s shirt.

  “Oh, no!” Destiny said.

  Yolanda looked down at her shirt. “That’s a surprise,” she said, and gulped.

  Destiny picked up a napkin. At least she could wipe off the mess.

  That made it worse.

  She felt tears coming.

  “Don’t worry.” Yolanda headed out the door.

  Destiny could see that she was trying to smile.

  “Wait,” Destiny called. “I have to talk to you about something.”

  But Yolanda disappeared down the hall.

  Destiny gave out another bunch of chocolate puddings.

  Sometimes she gave out two.

  She had to hurry.

  She had to find Yolanda.

  First Destiny tried the library.

  Ms. Katz was alone in there. She was sitting at her desk.

  Books were piled up in front of her.

  Destiny called hello. She kept going.

  She tried the girls’ room next.

  Mitchell’s sister, Angel, was pinning a clip in her hair.

  “How do you think this looks?” Angel tilted her head.

  “Neat!” Destiny said. “Do you know where—”

  Angel was still talking. “I’m making up a poem about it. Listen.…”

  Destiny wanted to hurry away. But she couldn’t hurt Angel’s feelings.

  Angel looked up at the ceiling. “My clip is green. I look like a …” She frowned. “I don’t know the rest.”

  “Queen,” said Destiny.

  “Great!” Angel said.

  “Thanks.”

  Destiny ducked out of the girls’ room. She headed for the gym.

  Yolanda wasn’t there, either.

  Sumiko was swinging on a rope. She was the best rope swinger in the school.

  Where else could Destiny look?

  How about outside in the school yard?

  Destiny raced up the stairs. She went out the door.

  Ramón was playing ball with Peter Petway and a couple of other sixth graders.

  Peter’s brother, Trevor, a kindergarten kid, was bashing a ball against the wall.

  And there was Yolanda!

  She was sitting on the cement. In front of her was a big cardboard box.

  “Whew,” Destiny said. “I thought I’d never find you.”

  “Don’t worry about my shirt,” Yolanda said. “I think the pudding will come out in the wash.”

  Destiny put her hand over her mouth. She’d forgotten about the shirt.

  “I’m really sorry,” she said.

  She looked down into the box.

  Mrs. Terrible Thomas’s six kittens were rolling around. They were playing with each other. Their tiny claws were out.

  Two were gray and white
striped. Another two were white with black spots. One was gray, Ms. Katz’s favorite.

  And then there was the orange ice pop kitten.

  “Orange is my favorite color,” Destiny told Yolanda.

  If she had a cat, she’d name it …

  What?

  Never mind what.

  She had a bunch of fish in a tank. Mom said fourteen fish were enough pets in one house.

  Fish didn’t do very much, though. They just swam back and forth. They gulped in water.

  You couldn’t even tell them apart.

  But never mind the fish.

  It was Ms. Katz she had to think about.

  “I have terrible news,” she told Yolanda. “Jake says Ms. Katz has to go.”

  Yolanda looked as if she might cry. “Ms. Katz is the best teacher in the United States of America.”

  “I guess she’s a little messy,” Destiny said.

  “We have to save her,” Yolanda said.

  “I know it,” Destiny said.

  If only she were an excellent thinker!

  For a moment, they petted the kittens.

  “The Afternoon Center won’t be the same without Ms. Katz,” Yolanda said.

  “I won’t have a teacher, either,” Destiny said.

  “How about this?” Yolanda said.

  At the same time, Destiny said, “I have an idea.”

  “You first,” Yolanda said.

  Destiny nodded. “When we go home tonight, we’ll think and think.”

  “Yes! That’s what I was going to say,” Yolanda told her.

  They gave each other a high five.

  “And somehow,” Destiny said, “we’ll save Ms. Katz.”

  A few minutes later, Ramón blew his whistle.

  Afternoon Center was over for the day.

  Destiny gave Orange Ice one last pat. If only she could take her home!

  Destiny waved goodbye to Yolanda.

  Yolanda was lucky. She was a walker. She’d be home in two minutes.

  Destiny hurried to the gate.

  She climbed onto Bus Thirteen. She sat in front next to Charlie.

  The bus started up.

  It was rocking back and forth.

  “Here we go,” Charlie said.

  Bus Thirteen coughed out onto the street.

  Just then—