The Miscalculations of Lightning Girl
Page 19
Now, though, I have the letter in my hand, and I don’t even know what I want it to say!
Nana smiles like she knows something, but the envelope is still sealed. I turn it over and over in my fingers.
“Aren’t you going to open it?” she asks.
“Yeah.”
She stares at me, and I keep fiddling. When a car honks behind us, she finally starts to drive away.
“Lucy, what are you waiting for?”
“I don’t know.”
“Even if you’re accepted, you don’t have to go. You can stay at your middle school.” She pats my knee. “You know that.”
“Don’t you want me to go?” I ask.
“When the time is right.”
I slide a finger under the flap of the envelope but stop. “How do you know when the time is right?”
“I don’t.” She laughs. “Not so easy to calculate. What I do know is, whenever you leave home—whether it’s for the academy or Stanford—you’ll leave a Lucy-sized hole in my heart. We won’t be able to avoid that.”
I stare out the window. Nana turns on the radio, and Christmas music fills the car. She’s right: some things aren’t easy to calculate. I put the letter in my backpack.
“Now what are you thinking about?” she asks. “You’ve got a goofy look on your face.”
“Just adding some stuff in my head.”
“You always are,” she says with a little laugh.
But this time the math is different.
Since starting at East Hamlin, I’ve climbed the 55 steps in the school 232 times and counted all 950 lockers. I’ve grown ¾ of an inch and gained 6 pounds. I’ve had 77 math classes with 1 amazing teacher. I’ve read 2 books in language arts class (or 91,255 words). I’ve helped save 23 dogs so far and fallen in love with 1. I’ve even made 2 friends. I can add it all up, but the total doesn’t begin to tell the story. As it turns out, I’m more than just numbers.
Pi is a mathematical constant. That means it’s fixed. It won’t change. We’re stuck with it.
Pi is represented by the Greek letter π, pronounced “pie.”
Pi is the relationship between a circle’s circumference and its diameter.
Circumference is the distance around the outside of a circle.
Diameter is the distance across the circle, passing through the center.
Pi is the circumference divided by the diameter.
π = circumference ÷ diameter
Or pi can be expressed like this:
Pi is the same for all circles, whether microscopic or gigantic.
The digits in pi go on for infinity. There is no end or repeating pattern, so pi is called irrational.
This is pi to the 500th decimal place:
3.14159265358979323846264338327950288419716939937510582097494459230781640628620899862803482534211706798214808651328230664709384460955058223172535940812848111745028410270193852110555964462294895493038196442881097566593344612847564823378678316527120190914564856692346034861045432664821339360726024914127372458700660631
But it is common to round pi to as little as 3.14.
A circle with a diameter of 1 has a circumference of 1π.
A circle with a diameter of 2 has a circumference of 2π.
A circle with a diameter of 88 has a circumference of 88π.
A circle with a diameter of 9,727,360 has a circumference of 9,727,360π.
The day to celebrate pi, perhaps with a slice of pie, is March 14. Get it? 3/14.
Pi is a great name for a dog.
Lucy sees math all around her—and not just digits, though she loves those, too. The shapes that make our world can often be calculated. Lucy’s favorite example of this is the Fibonacci sequence, which can be graphed as an approximate spiral and found in nautilus seashells, seed patterns in a sunflower, the arrangement of petals in a rose, hurricanes, the bracts of a pinecone, and spiral galaxies. These are nature’s masterpieces, and Lucy hangs this art in her bedroom.
The Fibonacci sequence is a series of numbers that begins with 0 and 1 and where every number that follows is the sum of the 2 numbers before it.
0, 1
So the next number would be 0 + 1.
0, 1, 1
The next would be 1 + 1.
0, 1, 1, 2
Then 1 + 2. And it can go infinitely.
0, 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21, 34, 55, 89, 144, 233, 377, 610, 987, 1597, 2584, 4181, 6765, 10946, 17711, 28657, 46368, 75025, 121393, 196418, 317811, 514229, 832040, 1346269…
When the Fibonacci sequence is drawn as a set of blocks, these squares can be used to create an approximate spiral.
The day to celebrate Fibonacci is November 23. Get it? 11/23.
While Pi is a great name for a dog, Fibonacci might be a good name for a cat.
As I sit down to write this, I’m going to estimate that there are at least 50 people I need to thank for making this book (and my dreams!) a reality. Let’s see if I calculated correctly.
1 & 2: Lori Kilkelly (world’s best agent) and Paul Rodeen of Rodeen Literary Management. Lori, thanks for plucking me from the slush pile in 2013 and being my champion and friend ever since. Your patience and care for this book elevated the story. Here’s to long hours, hard work, gluten-free options, celebrations, and the Green Bay Packers.
3: My editor at Random House Books for Young Readers, Caroline Abbey, whose passion for MLG was evident from the beginning. Luckily, the hearts in the manuscript margins continued draft after draft. Caroline, thank you for caring deeply about these characters and pushing for the best book.
4–10: The Random House team behind the book, including Michelle Nagler, Maria Middleton, Kathy Dunn, Jenna Lisanti, Julie Conlon, Kristin Schulz, and Barbara Bakowski (sorry for all. the. math.). The enthusiasm for MLG could not be topped. Thank you for believing in this book, making it the best it could be, and launching it into the world.
11 & 12: Carolyn Coman and Stephen Roxburgh, the best writing teachers and indie editors in the world. Can you believe this is actually happening? This book would not be possible without you.
13–20: My writing buddies Laura Gehl, Peter McCleery, Camille Andros, Lori Richmond, Megan Bryant, Tara Luebbe, Jason Gallaher, and Anthony Piraino. You are my coworkers. I love this job, but having you with me (mostly virtually, but sometimes in real life) makes it merrier.
21–23: Sharon Kolling-Perin, Caleb Kolling-Perin, and Dr. Jennifer Gagné. Thank you for offering your insights into OCD. You made this book better and more authentic. Any mistakes or inconsistencies are my fault alone.
24–27: Daniel Tammet, Darold A. Treffert, and Jason Padgett and Maureen Seaberg, all of whom wrote fascinating books about savant syndrome.
28 & 29: Dr. Nancy Wrinkle Molden and Natalie Strange, for expanding my math world.
30: Rebecca Vanarsdall at the Mathematical Association of America (MAA.org). Check out its site for all things math.
31–34: My moral support team of Jen Black, Julie Hamilton, Mabel Cameron, and Penny Nichols. You are who I turn to when I need anything, especially a laugh.
35 & 36: Delaney Black and Laura Gruszka, for reading early drafts.
37: Kate Beasley, for the first blurb and the sweetest, most supportive email I’ve ever received.
38–43: Lin-Manuel Miranda, Tina Fey, Amy Poehler, Mayim Bialik, Oprah, and John Oliver. When I’m taking a break from writing, these are the creative minds that entertain me. (And if I’m being honest, maybe by mentioning them, I’ll get to meet these brilliant folks someday.)
44: My dad, who loves all books, says nice things about me behind my back, and encouraged me to be an engineer. (He also thought I should consider acting, though, because he doesn’t believe in limiting oneself.)
45: My mom! Supportive from day 1—meaning, since the day I was born.
46–56: And more family—Suzanne, Glen, Bob and Fran, Kristen (idea-generating genius!) and Andy, Frank and Stacey, Brian and Jess, and Gram.
57–59: In memory of Pepper—for nearly nine years she was my office mate and furry baby. And Jack and Munchkin, who keep me company while I write, often under my desk, on my feet (just like Pi). I’d be lost without my K9 support team.
60: Henry, my funny boy who has promised to be a neuroscientist when he grows up, because I’m obsessed with the human brain. (Though at this point he’d prefer to be a YouTube star.)
61: Lily, who after reading an early draft cried for Lucy and then gave me the silent treatment for being mean to my character. That was incredibly encouraging.
62: Cora, for reading this book more times than anyone else, and creating fan art, and shipping Levi and Lucy from the 1st draft. And for helping me solve the Putnam problem. It only took us a few hours, working together, to do what Lucy did in 15 minutes.
63: Brett. For everything! I love you.
Well, it was 63. Looks like I was off by 26 percent.
A few final, immeasurable thanks:
To teachers, librarians, booksellers, parents, and anyone who puts books into the hands of young readers. Thank you! And a special shout-out to these booksellers for the early love: Abby Rauscher, Janelle Smith, Joanna Albrecht, Colleen Regan, Margaret Brennan Neville, Dea Lavoie, Carol Moyer, Kira Wizner, and Leslie Hawkins.
And thank YOU, Reader (with a capital R). This book is for you.
Stacy McAnulty is an award-winning author of 8 picture books and 8 chapter books. She worked as a mechanical engineer for 8 years before becoming a writer. Originally from 12054 (NY), Stacy now lives in 27284 (NC) with her 3 kids, 3 dogs, 1 husband, and 1 goldfish (for a total of 8 roommates). The Miscalculations of Lightning Girl is her 1st novel. To learn more, visit stacymcanulty.com or find her on social media:
Twitter: @stacymcanulty
Instagram: StacyMcAnulty
Facebook: StacyMcAnultyAuthor
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