Summary

School starts again in August and Shirley is really nervous about starting the 6th grade. Shirley is afraid everyone will have changed and she won’t have any friends anymore. Shirley has a dream the night before about her being back in China. In her dream her family is laughing at her and her uncle paints her as a weird looking bird. The next morning, once she reaches school, she realizes she had nothing to fear because everyone is exactly the same and they even have the same teacher.

The only different thing is Emily, the new girl. Shirley makes small talk with Emily and they become fast friends, and when Shirley goes to Emily’s house she realizes her family is far different than her own. They call each other by first names, even the children to the parents. Emily insists Shirley keep...