Read Online The Other Side of the Island by Allegra Goodman - Free Book Online

had told her stories about the time when people flew in planes, but she’d never seen anything from back then. She’d imagined those days were so long ago that kings and queens still lived in castles. She’d pictured rockets and airplanes roaring through the sky like dragons in those once-upon-a-times when the atmosphere was not so delicate.
    “See,” said Pamela, pointing to the blue bag. “There’s a picture of an airplane, and it says Blue Skies Kids. It must have been a child’s flight bag.”
    “Open it,” said Honor.
    Pamela hesitated. Then she pulled open the zipper on top. The bag was floppy and nearly empty. Pamela pulled out some old candy wrappers. Honor was disappointed. Then Pamela pulled out a box half full of colored pencils and a small plastic pencil sharpener.
    “There’s something else,” said Pamela. She drew out a floppy workbook. It was called Learn to Draw, Step by Step.
    Pamela set the book down in front of them and they gazed at the book’s yellow cover together. There was a drawing of a dog, half shaded, and the invitation, Start with simple shapes and learn to draw! They did not dare open the book because of Safety Measures. They both knew books were Not Approved for private use. Owning them was Not Allowed.
    “Let’s go,” said Honor. The book was dangerous. She pulled at her mother and Pamela got up.
    They started down the steps, but Pamela hesitated. She had a strange look on her face; her cheeks flushed pink. “I want it,” she whispered to Honor.
    “No!” Honor protested, but her mother didn’t listen. She grabbed the book and stuffed it under her big shirt. “You can’t!” Honor said.
    Pamela just walked on. Honor scurried to keep up. “Please, Mommy,” she begged.
    “Shh,” said Pamela.
     
    The school year was long in those days. The Corporation did not recognize the old seasons, and so there was no summer vacation on Island 365. The children in Honor’s class kept working. They harvested their vegetables and finished weaving their table runners. They sorted rocks and minerals and learned the properties of water.
    One day in month seven they sat at their desks and copied Earth Mother’s famous essay The End of Winter.
    In days of old, snow covered half the earth for half the year. There was little food, little light, little hope. The world was asleep. In the first glorious year of Enclosure, winter in the North came to an end. We sheltered the North from storms and cold. We brightened the dark skies. . . .
    During copying Mrs. Whyte expected students to sit still. No talking or squirming was allowed. “Think of your penmanship,” she said, but the essay was long. It went on for so many paragraphs that Honor’s hand cramped. She snuck a look at the aquarium across the room, where new orange and purple fish swam back and forth. Only one more day and she would have a chance to feed them. She had been waiting for her turn. Fish monitor was her favorite job. Warm weather came to the North and strayed, copied Honor. Then she caught her mistake. She was supposed to have written stayed, not strayed. She sighed and took her white pen to blot out the error.
    At that moment she saw Octavio move. He unfurled one long tentacle and then another. He seemed to be stretching. The suckers on his tentacles stuck to the glass as the octopus inched his way up the side of the tank. Why was he crawling up the glass? Was he sick? Was he trying to escape?
    “Honor,” Mrs. Whyte said sharply. “What are you looking at?”
    Honor ducked her head and turned back to her work.
    All that day Honor peeked at Octavio. She was sure he was trying to get out, but no one else noticed.
    The next morning at chore time, Honor went to the supply cabinet. The other girls were busy taking out the broom and mop, the brush and pan and wool dusters. Honor took out the jar of fish food. She climbed the ladder to reach the top of the huge tank and opened the hatch in the aquarium lid. She stared down