Mustaches for Maddie

by Chad Morris

  He smiled big. “The magic doesn’t work on me. It’s my magic.”

  I looked at the wand. “Okay, well, maybe I’ll try to use the magic on me.”

  “You got it,” he said beaming.

  I gave him another hug. Mom, Dad, and I said good-bye to my brothers one more time and picked up our bags.

  As we walked out the door, my dad stopped so fast Mom and I almost bumped into him. There was a box on the porch, and Dad had almost stepped on it. “What’s this?” he said. He picked up the box, then turned and handed it to me.

  It was wrapped in blue-and-white paper, but it didn’t have a bow or ribbon. There was a simple card. Three words were written in boy-handwriting.

  Just in case.

  I opened the box. Inside was a bottle. A bottle I had seen before with the label “Antidote.”

  Devin.

  I smiled again. I didn’t think I’d be smiling so much today of all days. I wished he was here. I would probably hug him. But then he would feel embarrassed so maybe this way was better. Unless we hugged while wearing mustaches, then it would just be funny and not all awkward.

  As I walked to the car, each step felt heavy. And that was after the hugs and smiles to cheer me up. Each step felt difficult even with the wand, the bag of snacks, and the antidote. This could be the worst thing I had to face. Worse than Dragoporkisaur. Worse than Orcalops. Worse than my last surgery. This was the climax. The time where I either turned out to be a glorious hero who triumphed over a dreaded challenge, or a tragic kid who fell in battle.

  I had a monster to face.

  All of a sudden, I stood in a field, the sun setting, and the beat of my pounding heart matching the tremors of a ginormous beast stomping my way.

  Seriously ginormous.

  Bigger than it had ever been.

  It was coming closer.

  And closer.

  Each step thundered through the ground.

  I craned my neck, trying to see the top of this monster, and with each earthshaking step, I was starting to get an idea of how huge and horrifying it was. Its jaws gaped open wide enough to swallow my city whole. Its eyes were like glowing fires, and its whole body was covered in ugly, jagged scales. Down its back ran spikes that looked like axe blades the size of two basketball courts. Its clawed feet were bigger than shopping malls, and the claws themselves were huge, each one the length of a tetherball pole. They gouged the ground and rocks until they were dust.

  The giant beast raised onto its hind legs and roared so loudly the trees blew over and the tips of the mountains crumbled. When it fell back down on all fours, the ground rumbled and rolled like a giant wave. Boulders and houses flew their places.

  I told you it was ginormous. Seriously.

  I had never faced anything like this.

  But I had to. I had no choice.

  Then it started to run. The terrifying monster stampeded forward, its burning eyes focused on me.

  I took a deep breath, then smiled.

  Yep, I smiled.

  This thing probably thought it had me beat. It probably had no idea that I wasn’t just any girl.

  No. Not even close.

  I’m a ninja-centaur-princess with alien technology in my brain. And I sneeze lasers. I bet it won’t see that coming. Plus, I had crossed the Sahara, finished secret missions, and escaped the Orcalops.

  But I was pretty okay without that stuff, too. I had made new friends. I had stood up to Cassie, had a brain surgery, and performed Juliet while wearing a mustache. How many kids had done that?

  Maybe I could do this.

  It stomped closer.

  And closer.

  This wasn’t like the last surgery. This one was bigger, harder.

  I still had to try.

  “You’re going down, you crazy giant ugly monstrosity,” I yelled. I didn’t really know it was going down, but I figured I might as well sound confident.

  “That’s for sure,” I heard a voice next to me.

  “Definitely.” Another voice on the other side.

  I turned. My parents. Of course they were there. And they looked ready for a fight. My dad did a few of the karate moves he had used to scare away monsters when he was a kid. Maybe he wasn’t a ninja like me, but it could help. My mom revved the engine of our minivan. She had pulled up right behind me and looked ready to drive right into the monster.

  And then all my brothers ran up beside me. “Back down!” Christopher yelled. He sounded more intense than I’d ever heard him.

  “Yeah.” It was the twins. “You stupid, terrible, awful monster, you!” They took off their super-stinky socks and held them ready for battle. They could use all their almost-evilness against this terror.

  “You leave my sister alone!” Max yelled. He pulled out another magic wand—apparently he had a backup—and then he turned himself into a puppy dragon. He was adorable even while he snarled and spewed out a thin stream of fire.

  “No one is attacking Maddie while I can help it,” Lexi said. She’d snuck up on me from the other side. She had glowing cards she was ready to throw at the monster. I hadn’t seen glowing cards before, but I was sure they could do some damage.

  “Especially not an ugly, nasty monster like you,” Yasmin yelled at my nemesis. And then she burped out a bomb and caught it in her hand, ready to throw.

  Revving.

  A space cycle came from behind me. Devin. With a touch of a button, the guns and gadgets on the bike were ready for attack. Cesar swooped in with his jet pack. Then Sailor and Hannah, each in their space gear. One by one all sorts of kids in my class showed up with something they could hurl at the monster.

  “Back off,” a loud voice sounded, followed by roars. I looked back to see Mrs. Baer riding on a bear. She had a whole posse of them behind her. They snarled and roared, ready to run in for the attack.

  Maybe there was a chance. Maybe I could face this thing. Maybe we could face it together.

  With the monster thumping closer, I called out a battle cry, and we all charged, screaming, our weapons ready. With each step, my heart pounded harder.

  And if all else failed, I still had the antidote.

  Just before I came face-to-face with the beast—okay, more like face-to-foot—I caught a glimpse of a light to my side, something shiny. I glanced over, not able to tell for sure, but I thought I could see something coming from beyond the horizon. It glinted like a crown. Maybe it was the queen of my school, on her way to join us.

  I really hoped so.

  I didn’t know how the fight would turn out, but I knew I had some of the best family and friends in the world. And we wouldn’t give up.

  This battle was going to be epic!

  Thank you to Shadow Mountain. They were releasing Chad’s first book when Maddie went into surgery, and they were amazingly supportive, helping juggle his tour cancellations and rescheduling him where they could. They were patient and helpful. They wore mustaches for Maddie and wrote encouraging emails and always wanted to know how she was doing. They even assembled quite the gift basket for her.

  We especially need to thank Chris Schoebinger, Lisa Mangum, and Heidi Taylor. They invited us to write this book, believed in it, and gave us priceless feedback on several drafts to help the story come together. Thanks for believing in this story.

  We also owe thanks to Heather Ward for her amazing cover and Richard Erickson for the art direction. Lisa Mangum did more work for us as our editor. Ben Grange gave great advice and counsel and help as our agent. Peggy Eddleman, Jennie Bennett, Kimberley Johnson, Sharon Brown, and Madelyn Morris were fantastic beta readers.

  And thanks to Maddie for letting us write this story. She read and approved it. And thanks to our sons who were a great support to Maddie and who let us write about their stinky feet and licking toothbrushes.

  And again, t
hank you to everyone who helped our daughter, who made the real-life story the miracle it was.

  This book was based on the true story of our daughter, Maddie. She thinks fake mustaches are hilarious, has a great sense of humor, and loves to act in plays. In February 2013, she was diagnosed with a tumor on her pituitary gland pressing up against her brain. She courageously faced a very difficult situation, went through one successful surgery, and then later had to face another. Her brothers (she really has four brothers, and two of them are identical twins), teachers (Mrs. Acord and Mrs. Lyon), and friends were extremely supportive.

  People really did put on mustaches, took pictures, and sent them to her or posted them on the Internet with the hashtag #mustachesformaddie. (It was Jenny Mason’s idea. Thanks, Jenny, and thanks to everyone who made our girl smile.) There were hundreds, if not thousands. A few local news stations even did stories about it. All those mustaches definitely cheered Maddie up.

  We will forever love her doctors, William T. Couldwell and Jay Riva-Cambrin, and the staffs of Primary Children’s Hospital and the University of Utah Hospital. They pulled off a miracle for our girl.

  Maddie also faced pressures and problems in school, though Cassie and the difficult situations that happened at the elementary school in this book were entirely made up. Though Yasmin, Lexi, Devin, and others were fictional characters, Maddie had many real friends who helped her. And Maddie did make up games to get more kids involved in her school.

  Chad, the father in the story, really was in a hospital room with his girl when his debut novel hit the shelves. He had to cancel part of his promotional tour and doesn’t regret it at all.

  Near the end of 2014, Maddie had a second surgery, and her doctors were able to not only remove a cyst that had grown on the remaining tumor tissue, but miraculously, they also removed the rest of her tumor. As of 2017, no signs of the tumor have returned, though Maddie still has an MRI regularly to check. She was an amazing girl before the surgery and has grown to become even stronger, braver, and more caring through her experience.

  To all those out there who face something extremely challenging, may you also face it with good family and friends, a strong imagination, lots of prayers, and maybe even a few mustaches. Good luck!

  Hello fellow readers,

  I hope you liked this book. It is kind of weird having a book based on me, but it’s also pretty cool.

  You’ve read about the story version of me. I wanted you to know the real me. I do really like potatoes and mustaches and acting in plays. And my elementary school really did do scenes from Shakespeare. I wasn’t Juliet, though; I was Petruchio from Taming of the Shrew. I got to wear a long golden cape and a cool hat. And my friend even drew a mustache on my face. It was pretty awesome. I also like to read, draw, and crochet.

  Even though Cassie isn’t based on a real person and some of the situations at school in this book are different from my life, I did have troubles with some girls, and I really did make up games to help me make new friends, including Claire, Ashley, Emma, Nieve, Lauren, Aubrey, and Kate. The part about my tumor is pretty accurate except the surgeries were about a year and half apart, instead of months.

  I think everyone who reads this book should realize the moral of the story is . . .

  Drum roll please . .

  To love potatoes and mustaches!

  Okay, probably not really. There’s more to it.

  I learned a lot through my friend troubles and surgeries. Like, small acts of kindness can go a long way. A really long way. And when things are rough, you can always find a way to laugh.

  I try really hard to be friends with everyone. We don’t always realize what trials other people are going through. Sometimes it takes courage to be kind to some people. But we need to always stick up for what’s right. You can do it. Anytime, anywhere, you can have compassion. Everybody needs a friend and that friend can be you. So show them that you truly care.

  Be kind. Smile more. Laugh more. Dream more.

  Thanks for reading,

  1. Maddie loves mustaches because they make her laugh. What do you love? What makes you laugh?

  2. What did you think of Cassie? Have you ever been in a situation where someone didn’t welcome others to hang out with them? How did it make you feel? What did you do?

  3. Maddie wanted to stand up for Lexi, but she didn’t have the courage. Why is it sometimes hard to stand up for others? Why do you think it might be worthwhile to make sure that others are invited to hang out instead of walking around alone?

  4. Maddie has a large family. What is your family like? How many siblings do you have? How well do you get along with them? How do they help you through hard times? How do you help them?

  5. In Maddie’s class, a lot of the students are excited about doing scenes from Shakespeare’s plays. Have you ever been in a play? Did you like it? Why or why not? Have you ever read or seen any of Shakespeare’s plays? What did you think of them?

  6. Lexi was a new girl in school and didn’t have many friends. Have you ever been the new kid in school? What was good about it? What was difficult? Do you have anyone in your class or grade who is new this year? How might you be able to help them?

  7. When Maddie struggled with her arm and leg, she had to go to the doctor. She felt nervous in several of the medical situations. When have you been to the doctor? How did you feel?

  8. Maddie discovered that she had a tumor pressing against her brain. What did Maddie learn from going through that challenge? What is a challenge you have had to face? What did you learn from going through that difficult experience?

  9. Maddie didn’t want her teacher or her class to know about her tumor. If you were in Maddie’s situation, would you want others to know? Have you ever had a difficult problem that you didn’t want to share with others? When do you think it’s a good idea to share and when isn’t it?

  10. Maddie’s friends and family put on mustaches to encourage her. Lexi, Maddie, and others also wrote cards to cheer up Cassie. Do you know someone who could use some cheering up or encouragement? What could you do for them?

  11. Maddie has a great imagination and uses it to deal with her challenges. Do you have a great imagination? How does your imagination help you?

  12. Maddie made up a few new playground games, including Poison Dragon Death Claw and Supernova. Have you ever made up a new game? What was it like? If you had to make up a new game, what would it be?

  Chad Morris and Shelly Brown are the proud parents of four sons and one daughter, Maddie, who was diagnosed with a brain tumor when she was nine.

  Chad grew up wanting to become a professional basketball player or a rock star. Neither of those plans quite panned out, so he wrote and performed sketch comedy while going to college. Now he’s a teacher and a writer.

  Shelly loves to write books for children. In her spare time, she enjoys the theater and traveling. In addition to her five children, she has three chickens and sixty-four Pez.