by Betsy Uhrig
“Same,” said Sonia.
“It sounded epic,” said Andrew longingly.
“So,” said Vincent, “what if we start a club where we do stuff like that?”
“Break into companies and try to steal things?” Nikhil asked. But he sounded more intrigued than disapproving.
“Not quite,” said Vincent. “But kind of. What if we start a club where we go on adventures like that? With permission, though. Those guards at Woozle obviously need more practice chasing intruders.”
“I bet the guards at Hopkins do too,” said Hoppy. “We could plan the whole thing out in advance—”
“Like a heist!” said Sonia. “And we could wear black—”
“And study building schematics,” Andrew put in.
“We’d need to train for stamina,” said Nikhil.
“Um, Nikhil,” I said. “Before you get too excited, I need to point out that I was probably low-grade humming the whole time we were in that golf cart.”
“You were,” said Lara. “When you weren’t screaming.”
“That’s okay,” said Nikhil. “To be honest, the humming has sort of grown on me.”
“So what should we call the new club?” said Steve.
“Anything but Dweeb Club,” said Sonia.
“You heard that too?” I said. “At the first meeting, right? That chucklehead as he was leaving?”
“We all heard it,” said Hoppy. “Didn’t we?”
“Not me,” said Steve.
“That kid totally missed out by quitting, though,” I said.
“He wouldn’t have learned anything anyway,” said Vincent. “Once a chucklehead, always a chucklehead, I say.”
I hoped this wasn’t true, since I was working really hard at not becoming the self-centered chucklehead Jason I’d seen in the recordings. I didn’t talk with my mouth full, at least.
“You know what?” Steve said. “I think we should own it. Let’s call it Dweeb Club and see who dares to sign up.”
“Not Dweeb Club,” said Andrew. “D.W.E.E.B. Club.”
“What does it stand for?” Lara asked.
Andrew thought for maybe two seconds. “How about “Daring, Wild, Exciting, Energetic, and Brave Club?” he said.
“Don’t ‘daring’ and ‘brave’ mean the same thing?” Hoppy asked.
“Let’s not overthink it,” I said. Then I looked around the smelly janitors’ closet at my seven friends and said, “Welcome to D.W.E.E.B. Club!”
Acknowledgments
Seventh grade can be hard, and friends really help, so I want to thank my own junior high Dweeb Club for getting me through it, notably Lisa, Jennifer, Marlene, Holly, and Mary Jo. At least we can laugh about it now!
Many thanks also to Patricia Kinneen, my seventh-grade English teacher, for referring to each of us, at one time or another, as “a gentleman and a scholar” and for giving out A+++s at a time in our lives when we needed all the encouragement we could get.
Ongoing thanks to the critique group (grown-up Dweeb Club) for all the wonderful suggestions and solidarity. I have no idea how people write books on their own, and I’m glad I don’t have to try.
My agent, Joan Paquette, may not even remember meeting me and critiquing the first pages of this book at an SCBWI conference, but she changed my future that day in ways I couldn’t have imagined. I’m incredibly grateful for everything she’s done for me since.
Thanks again to the folks at Margaret K. McElderry: my editor, Karen Wojtyla, for smoothing out the dried-up-rubber-band ball of a plot; Nicole Fiorica, for cheerful help with pretty much everything; managing editor Bridget Madsen, copy editor Brenna Franzitta, and proofreader Valerie Shea, for paying such close attention; Debra Sfetsios-Conover, for the fun and intriguing jacket design; illustrator Lisa K. Weber, for bringing my club members (and their skunk friend) to adorable life.
Special thanks to Crystal Shelley for her guidance and enthusiasm.
Thanks to the gang at the Silver Unicorn Bookstore, and to all the other indie bookstores out there, for helping get my books into the hands of readers.
Thanks to my colleagues for their friendship and encouragement, and thanks to my online buddies for “boosting!” and otherwise helping to spread the word.
Thanks to my family for their loving support, and apologies to the golfers among them for the fictional golf course damage.
And thanks as ever to Stephen, Clara, Max, and Ruby, for being in my corner and/or climbing all over my bookshelves.
More from the Author
Double the Danger and Zero Zucchini
About the Author
BETSY UHRIG is the author of Double the Danger and Zero Zucchini. She was born and raised in Greater Boston, where she lives with her family and even more books than you are picturing. She graduated from Smith College with a degree in English and has worked in publishing ever since. She didn’t join any clubs in seventh grade, but she was definitely a dweeb. For more information about her books (and her cats), visit BetsyUhrig.com.
Visit us at simonandschuster.com/kids
www.SimonandSchuster.com/Authors/Betsy-Uhrig
Margaret K. McElderry Books
Simon & Schuster, New York
Also by Betsy Uhrig
Double the Danger and Zero Zucchini
MARGARET K. McELDERRY BOOKS
An imprint of Simon & Schuster Children’s Publishing Division
1230 Avenue of the Americas, New York, New York 10020
www.SimonandSchuster.com
This book is a work of fiction. Any references to historical events, real people, or real places are used fictitiously. Other names, characters, places, and events are products of the author’s imagination, and any resemblance to actual events or places or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
Text © 2021 by Betsy Uhrig
Jacket illustration © 2021 by Lisa K. Weber
Jacket design by Debra Sfetsios-Conover © 2021 by Simon & Schuster, Inc.
All rights reserved, including the right of reproduction in whole or in part in any form.
MARGARET K. McELDERRY BOOKS is a trademark of Simon & Schuster, Inc.
For information about special discounts for bulk purchases, please contact Simon & Schuster Special Sales at 1-866-506-1949 or [email protected].
The Simon & Schuster Speakers Bureau can bring authors to your live event. For more information or to book an event, contact the Simon & Schuster Speakers Bureau at 1-866-248-3049 or visit our website at www.simonspeakers.com.
Interior design by Irene Metaxatos
CIP data for this book is available from the Library of Congress.
ISBN 9781534467682
ISBN 978153446770-5 (ebook)
