Small as an Elephant - Jennifer Richard Jacobson [63]
Lydia seemed to sense it, too. She ran her trunk along his face one last time.
Jack smiled, cupped his hands gently around the tip of her trunk, and let out a gentle puff of air.
I want to express my sincerest gratitude for those who supported my journey as I wrote about Jack’s. I received invaluable feedback from my trusted readers: Holly Jacobson, Jacqueline Davies, Dana Walrath, Mary Atkinson, Jane Kurtz, Nancy Werlin, Joanne Stanbridge, Jacqueline Briggs Martin, Franny Billingsley, Toni Buzzeo, and the insightful Barry Goldblatt, who also happens to be my agent. I received technical information from Erik Jacobson, John Jacobson, Mae Corrion from Jesup Memorial Library, and Lindsay McGuire of Left Bank Books. Thank you all!
Special thanks, too, to the folks that housed me (and answered all my questions) as I re-created Jack’s journey along the coast of Maine: Liz Laverack and John, Sam, and Peter Jacobson, and Nancy and Don Buckingham.
Finally, I want to thank the extraordinary people at Candlewick Press: Liz Bicknell, Katharine Gehron, Maggie Deslaurier, Emily Crehan, Hannah Mahoney, Teri Keough, Kate Cunningham (who designed the gorgeous cover), Sharon Hancock, and Susan Batcheller, but most important, with unabashed adoration, my editor, Kaylan Adair, whose incredible knowledge of story and mindful attention to detail helped guide every word on these pages. Kaylan simultaneously supports and challenges her authors — a talent every writer admires, and one for which this writer will forever be grateful.
JENNIFER RICHARD JACOBSON is a writer, teacher, educational consultant, editor, and speaker. She writes in many genres, from children’s fiction to adult nonfiction. Among her books for younger readers are the Andy Shane early chapter books, illustrated by Abby Carter, and the young adult novels Stained and The Complete History of Why I Hate Her. About Small as an Elephant, she says, “I struggled to figure out how Jack, an abandoned boy, would survive — not in the wilderness, but in civilization. I physically traced Jack’s route (every place he visited actually exists) and tried to imagine what the journey would be like for an eleven-year-old, entirely on his own, and with a big secret to keep.” Jennifer Richard Jacobson lives in Cumberland, Maine.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either products of the author’s imagination or, if real, are used fictitiously.
Copyright © 2011 by Jennifer Richard Jacobson
Cover photograph copyright © 2011 by Elizabeth Soule; toy elephant manufactured by Schleich. Schleich as well as the Schleich-Logo are registered trademarks of Schleich GmbH, Germany. Schleich GmbH is not responsible for design of image.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, transmitted, or stored in an information retrieval system in any form or by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, taping, and recording, without prior written permission from the publisher.
First electronic edition 2011
Excerpt from The Magician’s Elephant (page 254) copyright © 2009 by Kate DiCamillo. Reproduced by permission of the publisher, Candlewick Press, Somerville, MA.
The Library of Congress has cataloged the hardcover edition as follows:
Jacobson, Jennifer, date.
Small as an elephant / Jennifer Richard Jacobson. — 1st U.S. ed.
p. cm.
Summary: Abandoned by his mother in an Acadia National Park campground, Jack tries to make his way back to Boston before anyone figures out what is going on, with only a small toy elephant for company.
ISBN 978-0-7636-4155-9 (hardcover)
[1. Abandoned children — Fiction. 2. Mothers and sons — Fiction. 3. Self-reliance — Fiction. 4. Adventure and adventurers — Fiction. 5. Survival — Fiction. 6. New England — Fiction.] I. Title.
PZ7.J1529Sm 2011
[Fic] — dc22 2010039175
ISBN 978-0-7636-5456-6 (electronic)
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Table of Contents
Cover
Title Page
Dedication