Summary

As Chapter One opens, three girls are preparing to take baton-twirling lessons. One of them is Raymie Clarke. The girl beside Raymie, later identified as Louisiana Elefante, falls to the ground as if she has fainted. She rouses herself to say, “I'm sorry I betrayed you” to someone named Archie (Location 30). The twirling teacher, Ida Nee, is not patient with Louisiana.

The girls are beginning their twirling lessons on June 5, 1975. Two days earlier, Raymie's father ran away with a younger woman, a dental hygienist. Raymie's mother is very sad over the situation. Raymie is sad also, but she has a plan.

In Chapter Two, Ida Nee tells Louisiana to get up. The third girl, Beverly Tapinski, says she has seen lots of people faint because her father is a police officer. Raymie is upset that the baton-twirling lessons are delayed. She plans to...