Read Online Beezus and Ramona by Beverly Cleary - Free Book Online

to do to celebrate your birthday next week?”
    Beezus thought a minute. “Well…I’d like to have Aunt Beatrice over for dinner. She hasn’t been here for such a long time. And I’d like to have a birthday cake with pink frosting.” Beezus smoothed a fresh sheet over the bed. She almost enjoyed helping Motherwhen they could talk without Ramona’s interrupting all the time. The rain beating on the windows and Ramona’s happy singsong made the day seem cozy and peaceful.
    â€œAll right, that’s exactly what we’ll do.” Mother seemed really pleased with Beezus’s suggestions. “It’s a long time since we’ve seen Aunt Beatrice, but of course teachers always have a lot to do when school starts.” Beezus noticed that Mother gave a little sigh as she smoothed her side of the sheet. “She’ll probably have more time now that the semester has started and it really isn’t long before Thanksgiving and Christmas vacations. We’ll see a lot of her then.”
    Why, Mother misses Aunt Beatrice too, thought Beezus. I believe she misses her as much as I do, even though she never says so.
    Leaving Beezus with the new and surprising thought that grown-ups sometimes missed each other, Mother gathered up thesheets and pillowcases that had been removed from the beds and carried them to the basement. While she was downstairs the telephone rang. “Answer it, will you, Beezus,” Mother called.
    When Beezus picked up the telephone, a hurried voice said, “This is Mrs. Kemp. Do you mind if I leave Willa Jean when I bring Howie over this afternoon?”
    â€œJust a minute. I’ll ask Mother.” Beezus called down the basement stairs, repeating the question.
    â€œWhy, no, I guess not,” Mother replied.
    â€œMother says it’s all right,” Beezus said into the telephone.
    â€œThank you,” said Mrs. Kemp. “Now I’ll (Howie, stop banging!) have a chance to do some shopping.”
    Well, thought Beezus when she had hung up, things won’t be quiet around here much longer. Howie, who was in Ramona’s class atnursery school, was the noisiest little boy she knew, and he and Ramona often quarreled. Willa Jean was at the awkward age—too big to be a baby and not big enough to be out of diapers.
    â€œYou know,” said Mother, when she came up from the basement, “I don’t remember telling Mrs. Kemp that Howie could come over this afternoon, but maybe I did. I’ve had so much on my mind lately, trying to get the nursery-school rummage sale organized.”
    After an early lunch Mother decided there would be enough time to wash everybody’s hair before Howie and Willa Jean arrived. She put on her oldest dress, because Ramona always squirmed and got soap all over her. Then she stood Ramona on a chair, made her lean over the kitchen sink, and went to work. Ramona howled, as she always did when her hair was washed. WhenMother finished she rubbed Ramona’s hair with a bath towel, turned up the furnace thermostat so the house would be extra-warm, and gave Ramona two graham crackers to make up for the indignity of having her hair washed.
    Then Beezus stepped onto the stool and bent over the sink for her turn. After Mother had washed her own hair and before she went into the bathroom to put it up in pin curls, she said to Beezus, “Would you mind getting out the vacuum cleaner and picking up those graham-cracker crumbs Ramona spilled on the rug?”
    Beezus did not mind. She rather liked running the vacuum cleaner if her mother didn’t make a regular chore of it.
    â€œI’m going to have a par-tee,” sang Ramona above the roar of the vacuum cleaner. Then she changed her song. “Here comes my par-tee!” she chanted.
    Beezus glanced out the window and quickly switched off the vacuum cleaner. Four small children were coming up the front walk through the rain. A car stopped in