Piper Green and the Fairy Tree

by Ellen Potter

  “I’m mad at her.” Leo held up his pinkie, which had a Band-Aid on it. “She gave me a paper cut.”

  Aunt Terry was sitting on the floor. The kittens were climbing all over her.

  “Mom and Dad say we can keep them,” I told Erik.

  “Now you have to find good names for them,” Aunt Terry said.

  “How about Indiana Jones and Chewbacca?” suggested Leo.

  “Too long,” Aunt Terry said. “How about Magnificat and Meatball?”

  “Too weird,” I said.

  And anyway, I already knew what I was going to call them.

  The next day in school, everyone’s definition of themselves was hanging on the wall. Except for mine.

  “I left a spot right by Jacob’s for your definition, Piper,” said Ms. Arabella. “And it’s nice to see your ears,” she added, smiling.

  “Nice to see yours too,” I told her.

  She made a little noise in her throat before she swished back to her desk.

  I knew exactly how I was going to finish my definition. I had thought about it all yesterday. I picked up my pencil, and in my neatest handwriting I wrote:

  Piper Green’s favorite things: My brother Erik, cinnamon buns, and my brand-new kittens named Glunkey and Jibs.

  THE END

  THE PERFECT STRAWBERRY

  I was in a great mood this morning. That was because today Mom was going to paint my bedroom lime green, which is my new favorite color.

  “Remember to paint my dresser lime green, too, okay?” I told Mom at breakfast.

  “I will.”

  “And the knobs on my dresser,” I said. I scooped up Jibs and put him in my lap. He is my little gray kitten. His brother, Glunkey, was still sleeping on the couch. He’s the lazy one.

  “Dresser knobs, lime green. Got it,” Mom said. She put a bowl of oatmeal down in front of me, and one in front of Leo.

  “And paint my bookshelf lime green, too, please,” I said.

  “Don’t you think that’s a lot of lime green, Piper?” Mom asked.

  “No, because lime green is the best color. It’s the color of my cereal milk on Saint Patrick’s Day.”

  “You know why cereal milk is green on Saint Patrick’s Day?” Leo said. He leaned over and whispered in my ear, “Because it’s leprechaun pee.”

  I ignored him.

  Mom grabbed a bowl of strawberries from the fridge. She took out a strawberry and began to cut it into my oatmeal.

  “Not that one!” I screeched so loud that Jibs jumped off my lap. “That one’s got a lump on it.”

  I am a fussbudget about my strawberries. And the problem with strawberries is that you can almost never find the perfect one. They’re either too scrawny or they have dents in them or they have some weird bump growing on their skin.

  Mom took out another strawberry.

  “I don’t like the looks of that one either,” I told her.

  “Piper, I’m growing gray hairs waiting for you to pick a strawberry.”

  “I think I see the gray hair,” Leo said, squinting at Mom. “It’s right on your chin.”

  Just then, I spied the perfect strawberry in the bowl. It was big and shiny and bright red.

  “That one!” I pointed at it. “It’s the most perfect one. I love it with all my heart!”

  Mom sighed. She fished around in the bowl until she found the one I wanted. Then she held it over my oatmeal and started to cut it.

  “NOOOO!”

  “Jeezum crow, Piper, what now?” Mom said.

  “It’s too beautiful to eat,” I told her.

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  Although she doesn’t ride a lobster boat to work, Ellen Potter can look out her window and see islands, just like the one Piper lives on. Ellen is the author of ten books for children, including the award-winning Olivia Kidney series. She lives in Maine with her family and an assortment of badly behaved creatures. Learn more about Ellen at ellenpotter.com.

  ABOUT THE ILLUSTRATOR

  Qin Leng was born in Shanghai and lived in France and Montreal, where she studied at the Mel Hoppenheim School of Cinema. She has received many awards for her animated short films and artwork, and has published numerous picture books. Qin currently lives and works as a designer and illustrator in Toronto.