Falling into Place

By Stephanie Greene

All the good things in Margaret’s world are collapsing, one by one, like a row of dominoes. First her dad remarried—plink. Then her grandfather died—plinkplink. Then her grandmother had to sell the house and move into a retirement community—plinkplinkplink. Now Dad’s new wife is having a baby, and Margaret is going to visit Gran at Carol Woods. There she learns that Gran is having an even harder time adjusting to change than Margaret herself.

Determined to cheer Gran up, Margaret and her younger cousin, Roy, set out to find her some new friends. Their quest leads them to some of Carolwoods’ most colorful characters, and ultimately helps Margaret to ease both Gran’s pain and her own. Stephanie Greene, the author of the popular Owen Foote books, introduces an appealing and bold new heroine in this funny novel that handles its serious themes with a light touch.

• Language: English
• Publisher: HarperCollins
• Release date: Aug 16, 2016
• ISBN: 9780544986947

Stephanie Greene

Stephanie Greene is the author of many books for young readers, including the popular Owen Foote books. Ms. Greene lives in Chapel Hill, N.C. Her website is www.stephaniegreenebooks.com.

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Clarion Books

3 Park Avenue, New York, NY 10016

Copyright © 2002 by Stephanie Greene

All rights reserved.

For information about permission to reproduce selections from this book, write to [e-mail] or to Permissions, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company, 3 Park Avenue, 19th Floor, New York, New York 10016.

Clarion Books is an imprint of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.

The Library of Congress has cataloged the print edition as follows:

Greene, Stephanie.

Falling into place / by Stephanie Greene.

p. cm.

Summary: As eleven-year-old Margaret struggles to find a way of coping with the hassles of a new stepfamily, she learns that her Gran is facing similar concerns after moving to a retirement community and becoming a widow.

[1. Grandmothers—Fiction. 2. Stepfamilies—Fiction. 3. Family life—Fiction. 4. Moving, Household—Fiction.] I. Title.

PZ7.G8434 Fal 2002

[Fic]—dc21 2002002744

ISBN 978-0-618-17744-8 hardcover

ISBN 978-0-618-68928-6 paperback

eISBN 978-0-544-98694-7

v1.0716

To my brothers and sisters

Before

Would you like to buy some magic dirt? asked Margaret.

Magic dirt? Gran looked surprised. Why, that’s just what I was looking for. How much is it?

It usually costs ten dollars a bag, but today you can buy six bags for a dollar.

What a bargain! What makes it magic?

It makes worms come to your garden.

That’s all fine and well, said Gran, frowning, but does it cure chicken pox?

Noooo.

What about stomachaches? Does it do anything for those?

"Gran! You’re not supposed to eat it!"

Sounds like you two are up to your old tricks again. Tad came out onto the front porch and rested his fishing pole against the railing.

Margaret says her magic dirt attracts worms, but it doesn’t do a thing about chicken pox, said Gran indignantly.

As long as the worms like it, I’ll take some, said Tad. He pulled a dollar bill from his pocket and held it out to Margaret.

You get five more bags for that much, she said, picking up one of the brown paper bags in front of her.

Put ’em on my account. Tad sat down on the top step and opened his tackle box. Come on, sport. Are we going fishing or aren’t we?

The picnic’s all ready, said Gran. It won’t take more than a minute to mix the lemonade. She disappeared inside the cool, dark front hall.

Margaret sat down next to her grandfather and rested her chin on her hands. In silence she watched him untangling his lures. Then she said, Tad?

Hmm?

Margaret frowned. Is Dad going to marry that lady?

Tad gave her a quick glance. You mean, Wendy?

She nodded.

Tad lifted up the top layer of hooks and took out a pair of clippers. Well, I can’t say for sure, Margaret. Why? You think it’s a good idea?

She shook her head.

I thought you two seemed to be getting along real well those times she came down here with you and your dad.

I don’t really like her.

You don’t, huh? Tad took his time unwinding a length of line from the spool, measuring it to the right length, and cutting it. Your dad says she’s a great mother.

I don’t need a mother, Margaret said. I have Dad.

Well, it’s true that you two have done fine on your own all these years. I guess you don’t miss your mom, seeing as she died so soon after you were born. Tad fed the line through the hole in the lure and tied it. Then he put it back in the box and picked up another one. But mothers can do a lot of things fathers can’t, he said. And what about those little girls? Your dad says they’re crazy about you.

They’re babies.

Tad laughed. Seems to me that’s the way you started out, and you didn’t turn out so bad, he said, nudging her with his elbow. Might be nice having three younger sisters to boss around. You can make them clean your room, and do your homework, and stuff.

I like it just Dad and me, Margaret said stubbornly.

She heard Gran’s quick steps coming back down the hall toward them. Gran always moved quickly, whether she was working in the garden or hanging out the wash. She did everything with brisk, efficient motions, like a bird. The screen door burst open, and she came bustling out onto the porch behind them. I told you it wouldn’t take long. Gran put the picnic basket down and looked at them expectantly. Are you two ready? Tad looked up at her over Margaret’s head. We’ve been talking about Matt and Wendy, he told her. Margaret’s worried they might be planning on getting married.

Oh, but lovey. Gran sank down on the other side of Margaret and put her arm around her shoulders. Think of what fun it would be if they did. Wendy’s a lovely woman, who loves you and your father very much. You’d have the little girls to play with and share things with. . . . Think of what a big, happy family you’d have.

We already have a happy family, Margaret said, not looking at her.

Of course we do. Gran gave her shoulders a little shake. And if your father and Wendy get married, it will just be a bit bigger.

Margaret says she likes it just her and Matt, said Tad.

Yes . . . Well, there are a lot worse things than having to share someone you love, Gran said firmly. She took her arm from around Margaret and straightened up with resolve. Besides, there’s nothing you or Tad or I can do about it. And don’t you worry. No matter what happens, Tad and I will be here to help hold you up. Won’t we, Tad?

Like bookends, he said cheerfully.

It felt good being sandwiched between the two of them—Gran so small and quick on one side, Tad so tall and calm on the other. Margaret knew they would be there to help her, because they’d always been there. But she didn’t care what Gran said about there being worse things than sharing someone you loved. She couldn’t imagine anything worse than having to share her dad.

You can’t be bookends, she said sourly. You’re uneven.

Gran and Tad laughed. Then Gran said to Tad, This is all your fault, you know.

My fault?

Look at her. They both leaned in from either side and peered into Margaret’s face. She frowned even harder and stared straight ahead, as if there was something very important out in the yard she had to keep her eyes on.

"She doesn’t get those frown lines from my side of the family," said Gran.

Hmm, I guess you’re right. The tip of Tad’s nose was so close, it was almost touching Margaret’s cheek. It was all she could do not to reach up and scratch. My great-aunt Lucy used to grow corn in her furrows, he said. Looks like Margaret could give her a bit of competition. But what about this? She tried not to squirm as he ran his finger firmly down her spine, but she couldn’t help it. This is a Hanson stubborn streak if I’ve ever seen one.

She knew they were trying to make her

Reviews for Falling into Place

[mtlkch-1 · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

The narrator was irritating, and I wasn't surprised by who it was like the book description said I would be.

[heatherlinc · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Amy Zhang has written an impressive, gritty debut especially when you consider that she wrote this book whilst still at secondary school. I loved her style of writing, it was beautiful and quite lyrical at times, but "Falling into Place" won't appeal to everyone. The story is told in fragmented pieces, before and after Liz tried to commit suicide. None of the characters are likeable, however, they are believable with flaws and insecurities, and somehow this book works. Well done, Amy! I look forward to following your career as an author.

[olegalca · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Unusual writing style that I couldn't get into but others probably loved it! Author is a teenager so I'll be looking forward to more books from her in the future!

[carebear36 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I received an ARC of this book from Epic Reads in exchange for an honest review.My first thought is that this book is very good for having been written by a high school student, but really this book is very good for anybody to have written. Zhang has an amazing talent for words. It is tragically poetic and hauntingly beautiful. Despite the seemingly slow pace, the book really grabs you and refuses to let go. I loved getting into the heads of each character and especially enjoyed the unique narrator.The one downside of this book is that reading through it rarely left me feeling very good about life. It's a tale of deep depression and everything going wrong, but there isn't much to balance out the negative besides a few fleeing glimmers of hope from time to time. I think the reader has to get into the right mindset before reading.However, overall I loved this book. I enjoyed how each chapter revealed a new secret and it gave a unique perspective into the mental states of high school students.

[bnbookgirl · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I enjoyed the story but am quite confused as to who the narrator was. I liked the story told by the viewpoint of different students. I also liked the time line of the car crash. Those two parts of the novel I found quite intriguing. There were some very well written characters in this book. It is definitely for a bit more mature reader, but this is a story that many young adults will find interesting.

[melanielost · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Beautiful book.

[perednia_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Liz Emerson doesn't care that she is beautiful, well-off, popular and has a boyfriend the other girls envy. The sham of how her life appears on the surface is brilliantly depicted in the debut novel by Amy Zhang, herself a teenager, in a nihilistic story of a girl who has had enough and is determined to kill herself.Drinking, drug use, casual hooking up, debilitating bullying, Liz and her circle do it all. Liz and her boyfriend are cruel and unfaithful to each other. She does horrible things to her friends, who stand by her even though they carry the wounds of those things. There is one boy who still cares about Liz despite the horrible thing she did to him. Her mother is never around; she's trekking around the world for work since Liz's father died years ago and can afford to buy a very fancy car for her daughter to deliberately drive off the road.There is no suspense that Liz will drive that car off the road. There is suspense in what happens afterward and parts of the story are not revealed until the very final pages.It is a horribly sad world these teens live in. Their hope was killed in them long ago. Moments of happiness are depicted mainly because their absence is another way to show what a horribly sad world these teens live in.Zhang keeps the story flowing with frequent time jumps and short bursts of story. There is the addition of a mystery narrator who occasionally comments on Liz's life ever since her father accidentally died in front of her when she was very young. It's a great touch because it is a way to show what Liz used to be like, as well as a way to look beyond the unrelenting depression of the teens' outlook.The author is so good at building that depressing world that a moment when that black fog lifts feels shoehorned in. Except for that, however, Falling into Place shows Zhang's adept strength at characterization and storytelling. This should not be her only work of fiction, but should be only the beginning.

[darkfaerietales_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Review courtesy of Dark Faerie TalesQuick & Dirty: Falling Into Place was a extremely heart-wrenching novel about forgiveness, friendship, and looking beyond people’s images.Opening Sentence: First law.The Review:Liz Emerson is popular. She’s the top of the social pyramid in her small town of Meridan. She’s loved and looked up to by some, hated by others. She has made some people’s lives, but more often she has broke them. And from the outside she seems fine. She goes to parties, she gets decent grades, she has a boyfriend. So when Liz Emerson crashes into a tree and is teetering on the brink of death, no one suspects she was trying to commit suicide. This is a deeply emotional story of a girl losing her grip on living and how she went from a happy, innocent child to this broken teen.Last year, I read The Fault in Our Stars. I really didn’t think that a novel could get any more depressing. Well, bingo — I found one with two times the sadness factor. Usually when I’m reviewing a book I leave notes in them for possible “memorable scenes” for the reviews. This book, I must have highlighted 10, 20 scenes on my nook that really impacted me, because wisdom filled passages were everywhere in this story. I couldn’t keep from being drawn in by the novel. I loved the writing style — simple, but packing plenty of meaning into each carefully chosen word. It wasn’t a typical contemporary, without a romance. There was a love interest but you saw very little of the main character and him together and never surely find out if they end up together or not.The chapters in this story were in three forms. One of them was after Liz Emerson got into the car crash. Another was scenes from Liz’s past, her recent past and childhood. And finally, there were chapters from some mysterious point of view that I couldn’t figure out. I didn’t know who it was!! I couldn’t catch a hint!! I kept thinking it might be her father, who died when Liz was small when he fell off a roof, but nope. I was horribly wrong. It took until the very last chapter for me to finally realize and there was a big “oh…” moment in which I cursed by inability to see the clues unfold. Sad to say, I’m not Sherlock. Anyway, these mixed point of views were very helpful in giving us a full view of how Liz’s story unfolded and I liked being able to see the process of how she became so hurt inside to commit suicide.Some people on Goodreads say that they didn’t like the main character, Liz. It’s true. She did some horrible things. But I think that being on the journey with her, it was hard for me to be mad, after watching her life unfold. I felt connected with her, and I cried with her and smiled with her. I understood her feelings, though our lives are very different, and I was so upset with the sheer amount of pain in her life. She felt responsible for so many things starting with a particular incident. In many ways, she was responsible, creating ripples that ended in a splash. Her friends also had trouble in their lives. One, Kennie, had an abortion and the emotional horror of that was exhausting and still plagued her. The other, Julia, is addicted to drugs. She can’t admit to herself, she tries to block it out, but nevertheless it stays.This book was such a journey. Your emotions are caught on a rocky path and stay there the whole book, swaying from happiness to sadness to feeling as depressed as Liz. And it all leads up to the inevitable end: will Lis survive? Will Liam get his girl? I loved all the characters in this book no matter what horrible deeds they did. I also adored the way Newton’s laws were worked into the story, how they wove in and out drawing the pages together. Every part of this book was full of feeling and meaning, never a dull moment. Let me make this clear. Someone looking for a light, fluffy contemporary with a romance is not looking for this book. It’s deep, thought-provoking, but not fluffy in the slightest. To people looking for cute, read Anna and the French Kiss, but not this book. If you open this up be prepared to be crying most of the novel!!Notable Scene:They had acceleration, she, Kennie, and Julia. They had mass. They goaded and mocked and multiplied each other, so they had force. They were the catalysts, the fingers that tipped the first domino. They started things that grew into other things that were much greater than themselves.A touch, a nudge in the wrong direction, and everyone fell down.FTC Advisory: Greenwillow Books/HarperCollins provided me with a copy of Falling Into Place. No goody bags, sponsorships, “material connections,” or bribes were exchanged for my review.

[edgoldberg · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

It is amazing to me that anyone can write a book; that they have ideas that they can verbalize for 200 pages and make people want to read them. The fact that a high school student can write a book, and a good one at that, is even more amazing to me. But Amy Zhang did it with Falling Into Place.Liz Emerson is a high school junior when she plows her mother’s Mercedes into a tree at high speed—on purpose. Unfortunately the attempted suicide failed, at first. A boy who has loved her from afar since 5th grade, Liam, saw the wreckage on the side of the road and called 911. The paramedics come and transport her to the hospital. There is extensive bodily damage, as you can imagine, and several surgeries are required. It is touch and go.What Zhang did with this book is delve into why Liz is what she is–a bully, an in-crowd bully. No one is immune to her barbs and her influence, even her best friends Julia and Kennie. The chapters go back and forth in time. There’s a chapter “55 Days Before Liz Emerson Crashed Her Car” and then “5 Days…” and then “45 Days…” There are chapters after the accident. There is an unknown narrator in some chapters marked “Snapshot”. However, it works.Zhang clearly delineates between the kids who truly care about Liz (Liam, Julia and Kennie) and status seeking friend wannabees who visibly weep, congregate at the hospital and talk about how wonderful Liz is. Liz is a real person who sees what she is, wants to change but can’t. She wants to make amends but doesn’t know how. The parents in Falling Into Place do not come off well in this book. They are absent, unobservant, domineering and the impact on their children is evident.Readers will like the people they’re supposed to like (Liz being among these) and dislike those they were meant to dislike.If Zhang can write a book like Falling Into Place as a high schooler, imagine what she’ll write as she matures and hones her craft. Read this so you can say you knew her when (and because it’s worth reading!).

[brainannex · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Could do with a bit of editing, but a nice mix of If I Stay and Thirteen Reasons Why.

[brandileigh2003 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Okay, so first off. The jumps in time, the different characters that are focused on, and the point of view are all pretty non-traditional for this one. It messed with my head and I was confused if the "I" in the book was her spirit/conscious/a ghost, and maybe that's part of the mystery that drives the story. While it gripped me and I just had to figure out how all these pieces fit together, I can certainly understand where it will turn off some readers. So that out of the way, I think that this wasn't originally on my radar because it had a different synopsis, and at first it didn't necessarily catch my attention. But then I read about the suicide attempt and the interpersonal questions of how we effect each other and the relationships that is posted above got my attention so when I was sent this one, I decided to give it a read. Liz is also a hard person to like, I was okay with her in ways I could forgive until the Melody incident and even though she was so young and there was peer pressure it just seemed like the iceberg started to crack there. I know that it also sets up a foreshadowing and lets us see inside her mind at the moment, and see the struggle that was there. Oh and the physics aspect didn't do anything for me, constantly with the newton's laws. I wasn't pleased with the epilogue but the ending before that fit the book. I imagine though that more people would be displeased because it would be more of an open ending. Bottom Line: Unique perspective and timeline.

[jmchshannon · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Falling Into Place is a novel that one must experience for oneself. To try to explain its intensity and its gut-wrenching drama is a task in futility. A reviewer just cannot do the story justice.One can safely say that Falling Into Place is a novel that every parent of teenagers should read. Its depiction of teens crying out for help is downright terrifying. These cries for help are even scarier because they are nonverbal to the extreme. Asking for help to Liz and her friends is possibly the worst thing they could do, so they don’t. Instead, they let their behavior provide clues. The only caveat to this is that one must be paying attention to read those clues and see them for what they are rather than typical teenage rebellion.Falling Into Place presents a fairly grim glimpse into high school dynamics and may frighten parents even more than Liz’s cry for help. For, it shows teens in all their self-absorbed, self-destructive, and mean glory. Liz and her friends may be at the upper echelon of the school, but the things they do to get there are simply horrifying. Yet, they are things that occur throughout high schools all over the world. There is a reason why people do not think upon their high school years very fondly, and Falling Into Place drives home that point.Liz’s story is chilling, touching, terrifying, and heart-breaking all at the same time. Ms. Zhang’s unusual narrator choice gives special insight into everything that occurs, both past and present, and makes Liz’s transformation into the girl she is now that much more upsetting. Falling Into Place is a novel one can easily digest in one sitting, but the lessons to be learned require time to digest. As such, it is a novel worth savoring and time spent reflecting. Because it is such a powerful story, to do so is anything but a hardship.

[mirandalg14 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Thanks to Edelweiss and Greenwillow Books for access to this title.

4.5 stars.

This was such a great look at the other side of bullying - a look at what happens to the person doing the bullying. I know this is not always the case because there are those out there who just enjoy hurting others, but in this instance it was interesting to see how she just sort of fell into it and started to hate herself for it. To me it was a realistic view of how a person can feel worthless, even if the world sees them as a "popular" person.

I usually hate a book that doesn't have a linear flow, but I found myself loving that aspect of this story more and more the farther I read. I especially liked the slow revelations of everyone's characters and secrets.

A perfect read for those who loved If I Stay, and I will be sure to keep it in mind as everyone comes in for the book now that there is a movie. This is definitely for older teens as it includes sexuality, language, and drug use.

[msbaba · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Terrific, honest, amazingly well written--recommended for young adults and their parentsReading “Falling into Place,” by Amy Zhang, was a riveting and heart-rending experience. I’m sure it is destined to be a best seller among young adults. But how about their parents and grandparents? Can they get anything good out of this book? Can a debut teenage author teach them anything they don’t already know? Absolutely! I learned a great deal of value from this book and I enthusiastically recommend it. But why should an adult read it? Personally, I believe that we learn best through experience and this book allowed me to experience a contemporary, wholly authentic teen world and feel what it would be like to have to live in that type of environment. It’s a world where dangerous alcohol and drug abuse are common, where kids are at the mercy of their raging hormones everyday, where popular bullies keep everyone in strict social castes, where breaking the rules means utter humiliation and becoming a pariah, where abortions are managed away from parental knowledge, where rapes are tolerated and assumed to be the victim’s fault, and where parents and teachers are clueless about what’s happening right under their noses. It’s a world with psychological and emotional landmines everywhere. Kids learn to negotiate this dangerous world by playing a role—a role that is governed by unforgiving, shifting, and cutthroat rules. Many feel they need to wear a mask and “stay in character” all the time just to fit in, escape the harassment, and survive without committing social suicide along the way. How can anyone growing up in that environment get a chance to discover who they really are? Many of these kids are terrified to divulge their deepest and innermost thoughts to anyone…even themselves. This book tells the story of Liz Emerson, the most popular girl in her junior class at high school. She’s also an emotional bully. She wasn’t always that way. She used to be the type of fragile child who had an excess of empathy, but that all ended in fifth grade when she witnessed another fragile girl being emotionally bullied in a horrific way. Liz knew she could never survive if that happened to her. So, she figured the only way to insure that she’d escape being the victim of a bully was to become the bully herself. She learned to hide her empathy away and live the life of a fraud. “Some nights, Liz looked back and counted the bodies, all those lives she had ruined simply by existing. So she chose to stop existing.” Yes, this book is about a teen who attempts suicide—in this case by running her car off a cliff. Liz grew up to be a teen who “was never careful with her life or anyone else’s.” Within her psychological core, she developed “a coldness, a deep cruelty, and a willingness to destroy anyone and everyone,” even herself in the end. She took on an impossible role for herself as unbreakable. She was a teen spiraling out of control, breaking apart at the seams, sinking into a deep clinical depression, and all the time she was wearing the mask of the unbreakable popular girl. There was one boy, mature beyond his years, who understood and loved Liz and was aware of her hidden vulnerability. He should have hated her; after all, she posted an incredibly embarrassing video of him on Facebook that made him the laughingstock of the entire high school. But long ago, he got over it and forgave her. He recognized that Liz’ problem was that she was afraid of being herself…of being breakable. There is so much to recommend this beautifully written and deeply honest book! In particular, I’d like to see teens and parents read it together and discuss it.