by Chloe Taylor
Kate didn’t look quite so sure it was her, but then Kate wasn’t nearly as fond of clothing as she was of sports. “It’s really pretty, but . . .”
“Go on, try it on!” Libby urged her, the orchid on the fascinator bobbing with enthusiasm.
Kate plopped it unceremoniously on her head.
“Fashion heathen.” Priti sighed and arranged the hat properly, pushing Kate’s hair back from her face and straightening the veil. Priti examined her handiwork. “Much better.”
“What do you think, Zo?” Kate asked.
“Priti’s right, Kate. It’s looks gorgeous on you.”
“Definitely,” Libby agreed. “I love the half veil.”
“Okay, okay. I’m sold,” Kate said.
“Now we need to get you and Priti hatted up,” Libby said.
“Fear not! The Holbrooke Hattery is not exhausted yet,” Priti said, reaching for a hatbox.
Libby took off the lid of a nearby hatbox and pulled out a retro looking pillbox hat with a veil held in place in front with a huge white bow. “I think I like this one almost as much as the fascinator,” she said, trying on the pillbox.
Zoey picked up the fascinator and tried it on. “What do you think?” Zoey asked her friends.
“It suits you too!” Kate exclaimed.
Even though she also loved the pillbox hat, Libby looked a little disappointed.
“How about we wear each hat for half the day then switch at lunch?” Zoey suggested.
“That would be awesome! I like them both so much it’s impossible to choose,” Libby admitted.
“What do you think of this for me?” Priti asked. She was sporting a navy blue wide brimmed hat with an angled crown, decorated with cream-colored flowers.
“I definitely vote that over the flowerpot hat,” Zoey said. “We can actually see some of your face.”
“And you can kiss us—or anyone else who might be kissable,” Libby said, blushing.
“As if!” Priti said.
“And the color suits you,” Kate said.
“Okay, well now that our hat choices are settled, we need to practice our karaoke song,” Priti said.
“Um . . . I’ve been thinking. How about I cheer you on from the sidelines?” Kate suggested.
“But it’s the grand finale,” Zoey prodded.
“I know but—it’s a competition.”
Maybe it was from years of playing sports, but Kate usually played to win.
“No buts!” Priti said. “Everyone has to be a part of it. We’re not just friends—we’re a team. Besides, I’m working on the most amazing dance routine. Here we go. . . .” Priti put her mp3 player into the speaker dock and pushed play and started showing them dance moves.
Zoey watched her friend’s feet carefully and tried to imitate her. But she found herself distracted by the noise that suddenly started coming from downstairs. . . .
CHLOE TAYLOR learned to sew when she was a little girl. She loved watching her grandmother Louise turn a scrap of blue fabric into a simple-but-fabulous dress, nightgown, or even a bathing suit in an instant. It was magical! Now that she’s grown up, she still loves fashion: it’s like art that you can wear. This is her first middle grade series. She lives, writes, and window-shops in New York City.
Nancy Zhang is an illustrator and an art and fashion lover with a passion for all beautiful things. She has published her work in the art books L’Oiseau Rouge and Street Impressions and in various fashion magazines and on websites. Visit her at her blog: www.xiaoxizhang.com. She currently lives in Berlin, Germany.
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SIMON SPOTLIGHT
Simon & Schuster, New York
SewZoeyBooks.com
This book is a work of fiction. Any references to historical events, real people, or real places are used fictitiously. Other names, characters, places, and events are the product of the author’s imagination, and any resemblance to actual events or places or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
SIMON SPOTLIGHT
An imprint of Simon & Schuster Children’s Publishing Division
1230 Avenue of the Americas, New York, New York 10020
www.SimonandSchuster.com
Copyright © 2013 by Simon & Schuster, Inc.
All rights reserved, including the right of reproduction in whole or in part in any form.
SIMON SPOTLIGHT and colophon are registered trademarks of Simon & Schuster, Inc.
Text by Sarah Darer Littman
Jacket design by Laura Roode
Jacket illustrations by Simon and Schuster, Inc.
ISBN 978-1-4424-8979-0 (pbk)
ISBN 978-1-4424-8980-6 (hc)
ISBN 978-1-4424-8981-3 (eBook)
Library of Congress Catalog Card Number 2013935206