Stories must be authentic, so before I began writing I met with my thoughtful and articulate friend Maggie Welsh, a student at Silver Spring International Middle School, who told me what middle school is like right now, today, for students like her. Maggie helped me get my stories off on the right foot. My dear friend Anne Sprout arranged for me to speak to a lovely, lively group of sixth-grade girls at the school where she is the librarian. We had a blast. I couldn’t scribble fast enough to capture all the great ideas the girls had, popping like popcorn! And talk about fun: My bright, beguiling Lunch Bunch girls at St. John the Evangelist School in Silver Spring, Maryland, inspired, encouraged, informed, and delighted me every time we met. I’d bring animal crackers and questions, and they’d bring enthusiasm, insights, and answers. I am forever grateful to their teacher, Maureen Rossi. And oh, I can never thank you enough my Lunch Bunch girls—Arsema, Kika, Nora, Madelyn, Baeza, Caroline, Emily, and Colleen—but here’s a start: THANK YOU!
—Valerie Tripp
PHOTO CREDITS: Cover (sky), Evgeny Karandaev/Shutterstock; background doodles throughout: Shutterstock and Adobe Stock; 1, Ann Ronan Pictures/Print Collector/Getty Images; 2, stockcam/Getty Images; 3, World History Archive/Alamy Stock Photo; 4, Ian Dagnall Computing/Alamy Stock Photo; 5, Ian Dagnall Computing/Alamy Stock Photo; 6, NASA/Donaldson Collection/Getty Images; 7, Bettmann/Getty Images; 8, NGS Explorer Program; 9, NGS Explorer Program
Izzy Newton and the S.M.A.R.T. Squad Page 11
