Though it’s horrible, I’m glad I know about 9/11. It’s history, just like the past—past history going all the way back to America’s birthday—July 4, 1776. America has changed and not changed. American values are part of my present, of Pop’s. Of Sabeen’s. Of everyone’s.
Miss Garcia had nightmares for months after 9/11. She says people helping people made her feel safe again. Strong.
American values are part of my future, too.
I love my American home. We are a family—not perfect, not all the same, some rich, some poor, all kinds of religions and skin colors, some born in America and some immigrating here.
It’s the fifteenth anniversary of 9/11. Americans believe in freedom. Two hundred and forty years as a nation, and this belief hasn’t changed.
FIELD TRIP
For Dèja:
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AUTHOR’S NOTE
September 11, 2001. I’ll never forget the horror and despair. Just as I’ll never forget the heroic first responders and how citizens comforted and supported one another.
Still, it was never my intention to write about 9/11.
My editor at the time, Liza Baker, having watched a news report about youth born after the towers fell, asked, “Why not write a novel about 9/11?”
“No way. Too hard,” I answered without hesitation. Too hard emotionally. Too hard, technically, to convey such history for middle grade students. Yet, the idea of writing about 9/11 haunted me.
This is true: I like doing hard things. I like writing challenging books.
For months, I kept thinking about how to teach 9/11 history in a YouTube and Internet age. How do I convey the devastation yet also the triumph of American resilience and ideas? How do I write a book that might inspire youth to become even better citizens?
While I was cocooned on a plane, traveling to London, a possible approach as well as the title, Towers Falling, popped inside my head. For me, this was a sign that I should try and write this book.
I knew I’d need the help of teachers. Researching, I discovered the Brooklyn New School, PS 146. The principal, Anna Allanbrook, and Susan Westover and Amanda Clarke, the librarians, were welcoming and shared how unfathomable and traumatic it was to have witnessed, through their classroom windows, planes flying into the towers. Wonderful teachers also shared stories, including how in the third grade study unit of New York, their students often asked about the missing towers after seeing old photos of the New York skyline. Having conversations about 9/11, teaching its significance and sharing memories with students, had not yet officially entered their curriculum. Inspired by this school, I tried to create a book that teachers could teach. A book that didn’t shy away from the tragedy but instead gave a sense of how citizens expressing our American identity were strong, brave, and triumphant over terror.
The PS 146 students, so smart and supportive of one another, inspired my fictional community. With their energy, kindness, and wit, and interest in social justice, cultural heritage, and solving real-life problems, these students made me envious of their teachers.
Dèja, Ben, and Sabeen, while imaginary, represent every child living today who will be protecting our nation and its values and promoting peace tomorrow.
After acquiring Towers Falling, Liza took another position at Scholastic. I remained at Little, Brown.
Two terrific editors, Allison Moore and Alvina Ling, helped birth Towers Falling. Their feedback, attention to detail, and accessibility were extraordinary. It’s been exhilarating working with two superb editors focused on creating the best book possible for youth. (Any and all missteps are my own.) Thank you, Alvina and Allison.
Thank you, Elizabeth Segal and Zohra Ashpari for your skillful reads.
Thank you, Victoria Stapleton, Jenny Choy, and Danielle Yadao, for launching my books to teachers and librarians. I am deeply grateful.
Thank you, Michael Bourret. Everyone asks what an agent does. In my case, Michael is the one who sustains me during the volatile roller-coaster ride of writing. Understanding my sensibility, my efforts and fears, he supports me to keep writing.
Thank you to Brad, husband, father extraordinaire, and trusted reader. Because of you, all things are possible.
Contents
COVER
TITLE PAGE
WELCOME
DEDICATION
EPIGRAPH
NEW SCHOOL
HOMEROOM
MISS GARCIA
LUNCH
AVALON
FRIDAY
RUINED WEEKEND
SMALL GROUPS
HOMEROOM
RECENT PAST, FAR PAST
STUCK INSIDE MY HEAD
BOGEYMAN DREAMS
SABEEN
SCHOOL
SUITCASE
SECRETS
SOUR
HISTORY
PACT
FIELD TRIP
SUBWAY
OUR STOP
SUBWAY HOME
POP
THE TALK
THE END
FIELD TRIP
AUTHOR’S NOTE
COPYRIGHT
Copyright
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons, living or dead, is coincidental.
Copyright © 2016 by Jewell Parker Rhodes
Interior illustrations © Andrea Vandergrift
Cover illustration © 2016 Melissa Gorman
Cover design by Marcie Lawrence
Cover © 2016 Hachette Book Group, Inc.
All rights reserved. In accordance with the U.S. Copyright Act of 1976, the scanning, uploading, and electronic sharing of any part of this book without the permission of the publisher is unlawful piracy and theft of the author’s intellectual property. If you would like to use material from the book (other than for review purposes), prior written permission must be obtained by contacting the publisher at permissions@hbgusa.com. Thank you for your support of the author’s rights.
Little, Brown and Company
Hachette Book Group
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Little, Brown and Company is a division of Hachette Book Group, Inc.
The Little, Brown name and logo are trademarks of Hachette Book Group, Inc.
The publisher is not responsible for websites (or their content) that are not owned by the publisher.
First ebook edition: July 2016
ISBN 978-0-316-26223-1
E3-20160525-JV-PC