Junie B., First Grader: Shipwrecked Read online

  Laugh out loud with Junie B. Jones!

  #1 Junie B. Jones and the Stupid Smelly Bus

  #2 Junie B. Jones and a Little Monkey Business

  #3 Junie B. Jones and Her Big Fat Mouth

  #4 Junie B. Jones and Some Sneaky Peeky Spying

  #5 Junie B. Jones and the Yucky Blucky Fruitcake

  #6 Junie B. Jones and That Meanie Jim's Birthday

  #7 Junie B. Jones Loves Handsome Warren

  #8 Junie B. Jones Has a Monster Under Her Bed

  #9 Junie B. Jones Is Not a Crook

  #10 Junie B. Jones Is a Party Animal

  #11 Junie B. Jones Is a Beauty Shop Guy

  #12 Junie B. Jones Smells Something Fishy

  #13 Junie B. Jones Is (almost) a Flower Girl

  #14 Junie B. Jones and the Mushy Gushy Valentime

  #15 Junie B. Jones Has a Peep in Her Pocket

  #16 Junie B. Jones Is Captain Field Day

  #17 Junie B. Jones Is a Graduation Girl

  #18 Junie B., First Grader (at last!)

  #19 Junie B., First Grader: Boss of Lunch

  #20 Junie B., First Grader: Toothless Wonder

  #21 Junie B., First Grader: Cheater Pants

  #22 Junie B., First Grader: One-Man Band

  #23 Junie B., First Grader: Shipwrecked

  #24 Junie B., First Grader: BOO … and I MEAN It!

  #25 Junie B., First Grader: Jingle Bells, Batman Smells! (P.S. So Does May.)

  #26 Junie B., First Grader: Aloha-ha-ha!

  #27 Junie B., First Grader: Dumb Bunny

  Top-Secret Personal Beeswax: A Journal by Junie B. (and me!)

  Check out Barbara Park's other great books, listed at the end of this book!

  1. Breathing Germs

  2. Letting Go

  3. V-I-R-U-S

  4. Finding Facts

  5. The Winner(s)!

  6. Teamwork

  7. Ship Building

  8. Practicing

  9. Shipwrecked

  10. Surprise!!!

  I put down my pencil to think about this situation.

  Only I didn't even have time to concentrate, hardly. ’Cause, all of a sudden, there was a noise on the other side of the room.

  I turned my head to look.

  And SPLAT-O!

  A boy named Roger throwed up on the floor!

  It was the disgustingest thing I ever saw. Also, the air did not smell delightful.

  I quick held my nose and closed my eyes.

  Only too bad for me. ’Cause my dumbbunny eyes have a brain of their own. And they kept on sneaking peeks of the splat-o.

  It was Cheerios, I believe.

  Finally, I put my head on my desk. And I covered up with my arms.

  Only just then, more trouble happened.

  And it's called, a boy named Sheldon couldn't stand the splat-o.

  And so he jumped up from his chair!

  And he ran straight out of Room One!

  And that was a surprise, I tell you!

  Mr. Scary ran after him.

  He brought Sheldon back in a jiffy.

  Then he quick called the school nurse, Mrs. Weller, on the phone. And he told her that we need her help right now.

  “Hurry!” he said. “Fast!”

  And so, Mrs. Weller zoomed to Room One as fast as a speedy rocket.

  And then she hurried over to Roger. And she talked to him in a calmy voice. And she said everything is going to be okay.

  Roger hanged his head real embarrassed.

  I felt sorry for that guy.

  Also, he was making me ill.

  Finally, Mrs. Weller helped him get up from his chair. And she held his hand. And she took him to her office.

  After that, Room One could not do any work. On account of how can you do work with splat-o on the floor?

  Only hurray, hurray!

  ’Cause pretty soon, our janitor named Gus Vallony came rushing through the door.

  I jumped right up when I saw him.

  “Gus Vallony! It's me! It's me! It's Junie B. Jones!” I hollered out. “Roger throwed up! Roger throwed up!”

  Gus Vallony winked at me.

  Then he went straight to Roger's desk. And he took out his important janitor equipment. And he sprinkled powder all over the splat-o.

  And wowie wow wow!

  That stuff sweeped up like a miracle!

  We could not believe our eyeballs.

  “Whoa!” said my friend named Lennie.

  “Sí … whoa!” said my other friend José. “That powder is like magic.”

  I sniffed the air. “Yes! It is like magic, José!” I said. “Plus now it smells lemony fresh in here!”

  Other children sniffed, too.

  “Mmm. It does smell lemony fresh,” said a girl named Shirley. “I wish I had some of that stuff for my mother. She loves to clean up messes.”

  “Mine does, too,” said my bestest friend named Herbert.

  Then, all of a sudden, Herb springed out of his seat very excited.

  “Wait! Hold it! My mother's birthday is on Sunday!” he said. “And so that's what I'll get her! I'll get her a tub of that magic powder! What's the name of it, Mr. Vallony? Huh? What's it called? What's it called?”

  Gus Vallony's face went kind of funny. He glanced his eyes at Mr. Scary, and then back at Herbert again.

  Finally, he ran his fingers through his bald hair. And he said the name of it.

  “Vomit absorbent,” he said kind of quiet. “It's called vomit absorbent.”

  At first, Herbert just stood at his desk very frozen. He did not say any words.

  Then, after a minute, he did a little shiver. And he sat back down.

  “Maybe I'll just draw her a picture,” he said.

  Gus Vallony nodded.

  Then he packed up his stuff. And he waved goodbye to Room One. And Mr. Scary walked him into the hall.

  While he was gone, Sheldon put his lunch sack on his head.

  As soon as Mr. Scary saw it, he tried to take it off.

  But Sheldon held on tight.

  “No … don't! I need this!” he said. “If I stay in here, I won't catch Roger's germs.”

  I raised my eyebrows at that remark.

  “Yeah, only I don't get it, Sheldon,” I said. “How can you catch Roger's germs? ’Cause Gus Vallony just sweeped them up in his bucket, remember?”

  Sheldon talked to me through his bag.

  “Roger's germs aren't just in the bucket, Junie B.,” he said. “Whenever somebody throws up, their germs shoot out in the air all over the place. Then, if somebody else breathes that same air, those germs can get sucked right up their nose nostrils.”

  I did a little cringe at that information.

  Then I looked all around in the air.

  And—very slow—I lifted my hand. And I closed my nose nostrils.

  Room One watched me.

  Then—one by one—they closed their nose nostrils, too.

  And so all of us held our noses tight with our fingers.

  And we didn't breathe for the whole rest of the morning.

  It is not easy to hold your nose and eat a sandwich.

  You cannot swallow good like that.

  Also, you can't actually breathe.

  The reason I know this is because Room One kept on holding our noses while we ate lunch.

  My ears felt blocked when I chewed.

  I tapped on my friend Herbert.

  “I am not enjoying my cheese sandwich today,” I said.

  “Me too,” said Herb. “I am not enjoying my sandwich, too. Plus I don't even know what I'm eating. ’Cause I can't taste what's under my lettuce.”

  I thought for a minute.

/>   Then I tapped on him again.

  “Yeah, only what if you're eating something you hate?” I said.

  Herb thought, too.

  Then he quick put down his sandwich. And he lifted up the bread so both of us could see.

  We leaned our heads in real close.

  Lennie and José leaned their heads in, too.

  “Hmm,” said José. “This is only a guess … but I'm thinking tuna salad.”

  Lennie shook his head. “I'm thinking ham spread.”

  Herb made a face.

  “I'm thinking I'm done,” he said.

  After that, he got out his apple. And he tried to take a bite. Only he couldn't actually get it in his mouth. On account of he was still holding his nostrils.

  Finally, Herbert got frustration in him.

  “I give up,” he grouched.

  Then he let go of his nose. And he breathed in a big sniff of air.

  “Mmm … ahhh … air,” he said.

  It looked good to do that.

  I let go of my nostrils and breathed, too.

  “Mmm … ahhh … air,” I said.

  Next to me, May's whole mouth came open. She did the cuckoo sign at us.

  “You two are crazy to do that,” she said. “Dirty, nasty germs are getting sucked right up your nose this very minute, I bet.”

  I looked surprised at that news.

  “Really, May?” I said. “Thank you for telling me that.”

  Then I leaned over next to her. And I breathed out my nose air on her shoulder.

  “There. All gone,” I said.

  May did a gasp.

  “EW! EW! EW!” she hollered real loud.

  Then she jumped right up. And she tattletaled to Mr. Scary at the front of the table.

  “Mr. Scary! Mr. Scary! Junie Jones breathed nose air on my shoulder! And now I've got germs on me!” she yelled.

  Mr. Scary kept on eating his lunch.

  He was pretending May was not there, I believe.

  May kept on tapping on his arm. And she wiped her shoulder.

  “Nose air! Nose air! Nose air!” she hollered in his ear.

  Finally, Mr. Scary stood up real calm. And he walked May back to her seat.

  “Boys and girls, I know that many of you are still worried about what happened to Roger this morning,” he said. “And I promise that we'll talk more about this after recess, okay? But right now, I want all of you to release your nostrils. And eat your lunch.”

  He stood there and waited.

  One by one, all of us let go of our nostrils.

  Only not Sheldon.

  Instead, Sheldon ducked his head under the lunch table. And he said he was looking for his pickle.

  I peeked at him under there.

  He was hiding under his napkin holding his nose.

  When the bell finally rang for recess, Room One was the first class out the door.

  “FRESH AIR! FRESH AIR! FRESH AIR!” we shouted very joyful.

  Then all of us breathed big snorts of breath. Because Roger couldn't have shot his germs all the way outside, probably.

  After that, we skipped and jumped and clapped and played.

  Except for not Sheldon.

  And not May.

  Sheldon sat down and held his nostrils some more.

  May went to the water fountain and washed her shoulder.

  Just then, there was a knock at our door. And Mrs. Weller came in.

  Mr. Scary went to meet her.

  “Mrs. Weller, I'm very glad you could come back,” he said. “Room One is still worried about what happened to Roger this morning. And we need some advice about how to stay healthy.”

  Mrs. Weller's eyes glanced over to Sheldon's bag head.

  Mr. Scary's eyes glanced there, too.

  “Some of us are a little more worried than others,” he said kind of soft.

  Mrs. Weller went to the board. And she printed some big letters:

  V-I-R-U-S

  “Virus,” she said. “These letters spell the word virus, children. Have any of you ever heard the word virus before?”

  Lucille jumped right up.

  “I have! I have!” she said real excited. “My nanna grows viruses all over the place! You should see our house, Nurse! Sometimes we have fresh viruses in every single room, almost!”

  For a second, Mrs. Weller's face went funny. Then, all of a sudden, a light bulb came on in her head, I think.

  “Ohhhhh. I think you mean irises, Lucille,” she said. “Irises are very beautiful flowers, aren't they? But viruses are tiny little germs that can make people sick.”

  Lucille started fluffing her hair very embarrassed.

  Then she fluffed and fluffed and fluffed. Until finally, she sat down again.

  Mrs. Weller kept on talking.

  “Boys and girls, there's a stomach virus going around school. And I'm guessing that your classmate Roger has caught it now, too.”

  May nodded her head and pointed at herself.

  “That's why I'm holding my nose,” she said. “See me, Mrs. Weller? I'm being smart by not breathing the germy air.”

  Mrs. Weller looked kind of puzzled.

  “Yes, but you're still breathing, May,” she explained. “The air is simply going in your mouth instead of your nose.”

  May looked shocked at that comment.

  Mrs. Weller smiled.

  “I'm sorry, dear. But I'm afraid it just doesn't help to hold your nose,” she said.

  “In fact, one of the easiest ways to catch a virus is to touch your nose with germy hands.”

  May didn't move a muscle. She just kept on sitting there looking surprised.

  Finally, I leaned over and tapped on her.

  “I think that means you, nose squeezer,” I said.

  Lennie and Herbert laughed real loud.

  They enjoy my humor.

  After that, Mrs. Weller printed four rules on the board about how to stay healthy:

  Do not share straws or glasses or forks or spoons!

  Do not share food or drinks!

  Keep your hands away from your mouth, eyes, and nose!

  Wash your hands—OFTEN—with soap and water!

  She put down the chalk and glanced over at Sheldon again.

  “Oh, and I'm sorry to have to tell you this … but you can't really hide from germs, either,” she said. “So—for those of you wearing paper bags on your heads— there are probably thousands of germs in there with you.”

  For a second, Sheldon sat as still as a statue.

  Then, all of a sudden, he shouted real loud, “AAUUGGHH!” And he quick pulled off the bag!

  Then he zoomed straight to the sink!

  And he washed his hands and face with soap! Plus also, he washed his arms and his legs with a paper towel.

  After that, he took off his shoes to wash his feet. But Mr. Scary said no.

  “We're not doing a full-body scrub, son,” he said. “Your face and hands are enough.”

  Sheldon looked upset.

  “But germs can get on other places, too,” he said. “Like what if someone drools on your arm? Or what if you get burped on? Or what if you fall down on top of a sick person, and he sneezes germs right directly up your nostrils?”

  Mr. Scary rolled his eyes. “Come on, Sheldon. Now you're just being silly,” he said. “I've been around a long time. And believe me, no one has ever sneezed germs directly up my nostrils.”

  After that, he took Sheldon's hand. And he sat him down again.

  Pretty soon, Mrs. Weller had to go back to her office. But before she left, she took us to the sink. And she showed us the right way to wash our hands.

  Room One lined up and washed very perfect.

  Then we waved goodbye to Mrs. Weller. We were sad to see her go. ’Cause now we had to do schoolwork, probably.

  Only here is what we didn't even know.

  Mr. Scary had a happy announcement! And he'd been waiting all day to tell us!

  “Boys and girls, I know we
had a pretty rough morning. But I think I have some news that will cheer you up,” he said.

  He smiled. “In two weeks, our school is having an event called Parents' Night. Have any of you ever heard of Parents' Night before?”

  Lennie quick raised his hand.

  “I have!” he said. “My sister told me all about it. She said Parents' Night is the night when parents come to school and they poke their nose in your business.”

  Mr. Scary did a little frown.

  “Yes, well, I don't really think that's the best way to put it, Lennie,” he said. “Your parents don't come to poke their noses in your business. Parents are interested in what we do here in school. So sometimes they like to come to the classroom and—”

  “Spy on us,” said José.

  “Butt in where they don't belong,” said Shirley.

  “Invade our own personal space,” said Sheldon.

  Mr. Scary closed his eyes a second.

  Then he walked back to his desk real slow. And he sat down in his chair. And he ran his fingers through his tired hair.

  “Okay. I'll get right to the point,” he said. “This year for Parents' Night, I thought it would be fun to do something special. So I was wondering how you would feel about putting on a play.”

  My ears perked up at that word.

  “A play?” I said kind of thrilled.

  “A play?” said Herbert and Shirley.

  “A play?” said May.

  Then, all at once, Room One started clapping and clapping.

  “A PLAY! A PLAY! A PLAY!” we shouted. “YAY! YAY! A PLAY!”

  I springed out of my chair.

  “I know a lot about plays, Mr. Scary!” I said. “On account of last summer I went to a real, actual children's theater. And I saw a play about a mouse. And that thing was a hoot, I tell you! And so maybe we can do a mouse play, too!”

  Mr. Scary smiled. “Yes, well, I'm sure a mouse play would be fun, Junie B. But since it's October, our play is going to be about Christopher Columbus,” he said. “We celebrate Columbus Day this month, remember? So Parents' Night will be perfect timing.”

  I thought it over a second.

  Then I shook my head no.

  “Nope, sorry. I think a mouse play is still the way to go here,” I said.

  Mr. Scary said thank you for my opinion and please sit down.

  I tapped my foot kind of annoyed. Then I gazed my eyes around the room.