Ethel attempted to “frost” the green gelatin mold with a mixture of Miracle Whip and catsup, but it kept running down the sides. Her friend Imogene helped with the pimientos …

For all that she wants, Janie knows Mr. Neilson will never kiss her. He conducts. When he conducts, his hair whips, his arms fly through the air. His moustache glistens. …

Mom lived three years as a chimney. We were now five, six and seven. When we asked for a brother, Mom said the chimney had been boarded up. Yet every …

Sam doesn’t believe in Christmas. She’s so against Christmas she wants to torch a toy store, reduce it to ash—or whatever plastic becomes when it melts. “People already bought their …