He was laughing again. What was it about Bird that made him do that? — Patricia Reilly Giff

"With just the sweep of a pen, Thomas, you can change the world, all of it."

But that was a realworld, and he didn't have to put it down on paper. He ripped the page out of the book, tore it into shreds, and threw them behind the tree, where they settled into the weeds.

What had it been like the first time Da tried to read the same page? She could almost see his finger under each word, the whisper of his voice as he sounded out the words to himself. How had he ever done that? It seemed impossible.