Author Description

When Samuel and Greg find a huge lump of something strange on the beach, they soon find themselves the center of attention, a thing Samuel hates. He doesn't want people noticing him and giving him 'the pity thing' because of what's happened to his family. He wishes they'd never found the lump, especially when he learns that their science project for next term is to come up with a hypothesis of what the 'lump' might have been. And he and Greg have to choose a girl to join their group. Gross! Something makes Samuel choose the red-headed Lucy. Perhaps that's because she doesn't act scared when he hisses at her like the other girls do. But Samuel knows that no matter how hard he works on their project, his mother won't come to show day. She hasn't been out of the house for months. As show day approaches, Samuel longs for something far more important than first prize.