The Trouble in Me (18 page)

At last I was in charge. I could choose my own future.

But while I was waiting around to make a choice, I did what I always did and found someone to make a choice for me. I met some nice guys and they had a plan to make a ton of quick money. They were just missing one piece of the plan to make it all happen, and since I had always been a piece of someone else's plan I once again fit right in. I wanted to be just like them and that led to another disaster, which released the trouble already lurking within me. If you read
Hole in My Life
, you'll see what I mean.

 

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Jack Gantos
has been hailed as “elementary school's answer to Hunter S. Thompson” (
BCCB
). He is the author of many books, including the Jack Henry and Joey Pigza series; the Rotten Ralph books; the Printz Honor and Sibert Honor memoir
Hole in My Life
; and the two Norvelt novels-
Dead End in Norvelt
, recipient of the Newbery Medal, and
From Norvelt to Nowhere
. He lives in Boston. You can sign up for email updates
here
.

 

BY
JACK GANTOS

Heads or Tails: Stories from the Sixth Grade

Jack's New Power: Stories from a Caribbean Year

Desire Lines

Jack's Black Book

Joey Pigza Swallowed the Key

Jack on the Tracks: Four Seasons of Fifth Grade

Joey Pigza Loses Control

Hole in My Life

What Would Joey Do?

Jack Adrift: Fourth Grade Without a Clue

The Love Curse of the Rumbaughs

I Am Not Joey Pigza

Dead End in Norvelt

From Norvelt to Nowhere

The Key That Swallowed Joey Pigza

The Trouble in Me

 

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CONTENTS

Title Page

Copyright Notice

Dedication

Epigraphs

Preface

Fire

The Follower

Trophy Moment

Depth Charge

White Fire

Incoming Fire

Fire Away

Heat-Treated

Ring of Fire

Flaming Wallet

Words of Fire

Faith in Flames

House on Fire

Afterword

About the Author

Also by Jack Gantos

Copyright

 

Farrar Straus Giroux Books for Young Readers

175 Fifth Avenue, New York 10010

Text copyright © 2015 Jack Gantos

All rights reserved

First hardcover edition, 2015

eBook edition, September 2015

macteenbooks.com

Our eBooks may be purchased in bulk for promotional, educational, or business use. Please contact the Macmillan Corporate and Premium Sales Department at 1-800-221-7945, ext. 5442, or by e-mail at [email protected].

The Library of Congress has cataloged the print edition as follows:

Gantos, Jack.

    The trouble in me / Jack Gantos. — First edition.

        pages cm

    Summary: “Fourteen-year-old Jack falls under the spell of a delinquent Florida neighbor and gets way more trouble than he bargained for”—Provided by publisher.

    ISBN 978-0-374-37995-7 (hardback)

    ISBN 978-0-374-30345-7 (e-book)

    [1.  Behavior—Fiction.   2.  Juvenile delinquency—Fiction.   3.  Friendship—Fiction.   4.  Moving, Household—Fiction.   5.  Florida—Fiction.   6.  Humorous stories.]   I.  Title.

PZ7.G15334Tr 2015

[Fic]—dc23

2015013115

eISBN 9780374303457