But now and then, beneath the outer numbness, something stirred, like a living pain waiting for the anesthetic to wear away.

The sixth grade began to find out that April had a way of making life interesting. For instance, when she raised her hand in class, her answer wasn't always what the teacher wanted, but it was almost certain to be fascinating. And when it came to guts — whether it was hanging by your heels from the highest bar, or putting a stinkbug on the principal's desk — you could count on April to do it first and best.

"But they're not really paper dolls," Melanie said. "And I don't really play with them, not like moving them around and dressing them up and everything. They're just sort of a record of a game I play. I make up a family and then I find people who look like them in magazines and catalogues, just so I'll remember them better."