The One Great Gnome

The One Great Gnome — page 1 — CHAPTER 1 This Isn’t Manhattan Sarah was having a dream and it was a good one She was walking arm in arm with her best friend Lily They were on East 48th Street and looking in the window of Habington’s Bookstore one of their favorite hangouts Lily loved books and reading as much as Sarah did The girls hung out in the store so often that Mr Habington hired them on weekends to help stock the new books Sarah not only had the fi rst pick of all the new titles but she was getting paid for it too Not bad for an eleven-year-old Then Sarah heard a noise It sounded off in the distance somewhere Bang bang OUCH She woke from her dream and yawned In those fi rst moments she was confused She looked around through her squinting eyes This wasn’t her bedroom in the apartment building where she lived 1

The One Great Gnome — page 2 — This room was different It was big bare and filled with boxes Then she heard that thumping noise again Bang bang bang OUCH That OUCH sounded like her father Sarah stumbled out of bed Dad are you okay she called I’m fine called her father from the floor below Just whacked my thumb with the hammer again You should get up now he added Breakfast is ready Sarah looked around Now she remembered She wasn’t in Manhattan anymore and this wasn’t her room Well it was her room her NEW room Just the day before she and her parents had packed up their cozy little apartment and moved here And here was almost 100 miles away in Hadley Connecticut Her parents despite her noisy and frequent protests had bought this big old run-down farmhouse on five acres of land Sarah’s mom was a librarian and had just been hired to run the new Hadley Town Library Her dad was a writer and had always wanted a separate room where he could work rather than having to use the kitchen table in their tiny apartment Her dad also had always thought of himself as a handyman and wanted this house because it needed a lot of work Sarah and her mother both knew he was anything but handy when it came to fixing things But her father loved to try anyway So both of her parents were very happy about the move Sarah had liked things just the way they were 2

The One Great Gnome — page 3 — Sarah rubbed her eyes and stretched She looked out the window There was a thick layer of fog on the ground but she could still make out the endless fields of trees and rolling hills Not a single bookstore in view No coffee shop on the corner no flashing Take Out neon sign no Chin’s Fruit Market nothing Sarah her dad called again If you don’t move it I’m gonna eat your breakfast Sarah turned from the window and went to get her slippers and robe She looked around and saw nothing but boxes so she just wrapped her comforter around her and walked down the steps The wood creaked under her feet Sarah entered the kitchen She saw her dad trying to hang some spices on a homemade rack But nothing was straight and the spices looked like they were about to slide off Her father also seemed to be having a hard time because he had a towel wrapped around his thumb He saw Sarah staring at it I haven’t found the bandages yet he laughed Sarah shook her head and smiled Last night the kitchen had been nothing but piled-up furniture and boxes But today well it looked like a kitchen Her parents must have either stayed up late or gotten up early to get it into shape About time Her dad smiled as she sat down Sarah ran her hands over the smooth lime-green top It was the same linoleum kitchen table with the mismatched chairs where she had always eaten Even the old toaster which seemed to 3

The One Great Gnome — page 4 — only have one setting on it BURNT sat on the counter It was nice to see Sarah felt something brush against her legs Smokey she said as she petted her cat I bet you like it here she said Plenty of places to explore She’s been out all morning said her father He put a glass of orange juice and a bowl of cereal in front of Sarah It was Chocolate Blasts her favorite Mom never lets me eat these she said as she poured the milk over it Where is she anyway You know your mother said Dad as he sat down next to her She doesn’t start her job at the library for another hour but she was so excited she went early Sarah’s dad grabbed one of the puffs of cereal from her bowl and popped it into his mouth Hey that’s mine Sarah laughed Get your own Her dad laughed too and got back to unpacking the last box in the kitchen I know this isn’t easy for you kiddo he said as he pulled out a jar of peanut butter and put it in a cupboard But this has been a dream of your mother’s for a long time to live in the country AND to be the head of a town library Sarah knew that Even though they had lived in Manhattan her mother had every issue of Country Living and tons of books on farmhouses and barns stacked on the overloaded shelves in the apartment I know I know said Sarah as she ate She wondered 4

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