Sophie Breaks the Code (Faithgirlz!) - Softcover

Rue, Nancy

3.84

92 ratings by Goodreads

9780310710226: Sophie Breaks the Code (Faithgirlz!)

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0310710227 ISBN 13: 9780310710226

Publisher: Zonderkidz, 2005

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Sophie's learning about medieval codes of honor in seventh grade honors class---and in life. Sophie's shaved her head to empathize with a gravely ill friend, but negative assumptions and cruel teasing have her trying to deflect the attention with humor---and wisecracking always seems to land her in trouble! In the meantime, Sophie takes action to prevent another of the Pops' mean schemes---but to do so, she lies about her friends and loses them as a result. When she finally understands the true intention of a code of honor, Sophie learns another absolute truth: God expects us to be completely honest---especially with ourselves. But if we fail, He forgives us. When Sophie comes clean, her best friends come around. She thwarts the Pops and gains the respect of her teachers, too.

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About the Author:

Nancy Rue has written over 100 books for girls, is the editor of the Faithgirlz Bible, and is a popular speaker and radio guest with her expertise in tween and teen issues. She and husband Jim have raised a daughter of their own and now live in Tennessee.

www.zonderkidz.com Sophie Breaks the Code Copyright 2005 by Nancy Rue This is a work of fiction. The characters, incidents, and dialogue are products of the author's imagination and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual events or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental. Requests for information should be addressed to: Zonderkidz, 5300 Patterson Ave. SE Grand Rapids, Michigan 49530 Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Rue, Nancy N. Sophie breaks the code / by Nancy Rue. p. cm.--(Faithgirlz) Summary: When Sophie's efforts to protect her friends from a group of meanspirited popular girls lead to misunderstandings at home and at school, she turns to Jesus for help. ISBN 10: 0-310-71022-7 ISBN 13: 978-0-310-71022-6 [1. Bullies---Fiction. 2. Conduct of life---Fiction. 3. Imagination---Fiction. 4. Middle schools---Fiction. 5. Schools---Fiction. 6. Christian life---Fiction. 7. Virginia---Fiction.] I. Title. II. Series. PZ7.R88515Sjd 2005 [Fic]--dc22 2005004187 All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means---electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, or any other---except for brief quotations in printed reviews, without the prior permission of the publisher. Zonderkidz is a trademark of Zondervan. Published in association with the literary agency of Alive Communications, Inc., 7680 Goddard Street, Suite 200, Colorado Springs, CO 80920. Photography: Synergy Photographic/Brad Lampe Illustrations: Grace Chen Design and Illustration Art direction: Merit Alderink Interior design: Susan Ambs Printed in the United States of America 05 06 07 08 09/DCI/5 4 3 2 1 So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal. ---2 Corinthians 4:18 Sophie LaCroix groaned out loud in the hallway of Great Marsh Middle School. 'Can I just say I loathe PE class?' she said. 'Is loathe a Fiona word?' Kitty said as she linked her arm through Sophie's. She giggled, the way she did at the end of almost every sentence. 'What's it mean?' said Maggie, who hardly ever giggled. Fiona pushed aside the stubborn strip of golden-brown hair that was always falling over one eye and continued to lead the way down the hall toward the PE locker room. 'It means 'hate,'' she said. 'Only it sounds smarter,' said Darbie in her Irish accent. She gave a firm nod, making her own reddish bangs dance on her forehead. 'I don't feel very smart in this class,' Sophie said. 'Coach Yates is always yelling at me---and every time I try to explain something to her, my voice comes out all squeaky.' The Corn Flakes grinned at each other. 'Your voice always comes out all squeaky,' Maggie said in her that's-a-fact way. 'That's just you, Soph,' Fiona said. 'You're just you, and we're all just us.' Sophie managed a little bit of a smile. Just being them was what made them the Corn Flakes. Other people might think they were ditzy and flaky and say the things they did were corny. But the Corn Flakes knew better. 'Hey, Cue Ball!' somebody yelled. Sophie felt her smile snap away. 'Get Kitty into the locker room!' Darbie said. Willoughby and Fiona unlatched Kitty from Sophie, and Maggie shoved the three of them through the door with Darbie on their heels, just as Sophie felt her quilted hat being plucked off her head. She grabbed at her glasses so they wouldn't go too. 'Catch, Eddie!' Colton Messik cried. Sophie saw Eddie Wornom's belly bulge out from under his shirt as he jumped up and caught Sophie's hat. Ewww, she thought. Eddie hurled it at Tod Ravelli, whose face came to its usual point as he slamdunked the hat into the trash can. 'Score!' Colton's grin seemed to spread from one stuck-out ear to the other. 'Hey, Cue Ball,' he said to Sophie. 'You're bald!' Like you haven't told me that a bazillion times, Sophie thought. She waited until the boys had shoved each other into their locker room before she went calmly to the trash can and fished out her hat. At least they didn't get to Kitty, she told herself as she pushed it down over her shaved head. That's all that matters. After all, she couldn't expect Fruit Loops like them to understand how a Corn Flake could part with all her hair to keep a sick friend from being the only girl in the whole school who was bald. When Sophie got to her locker, the other Corn Flakes were almost changed into their PE clothes. Willoughby slung her arm around Sophie's shoulder and pressed their cheeks together, her almost-dark curls tickling Sophie's face. She was the only one of them who was short enough to do that---and even she was a few inches taller than tiny Sophie. 'You're the best,' she said in her bouncy voice. 'Trash can again?' Fiona said. Sophie rolled her eyes. Maggie shook her head at Kitty, so hard that her Cuban-dark hair splashed against her cheeks. 'Boys are just lame.' There was a grunt from a few lockers down. Julia Cummings, the tall leader of the Corn Pops, tossed back her auburn hair. 'Someday you'll grow up and change your mind,' Julia said. She smirked at Anne-Stuart, one of her fellow 'popular' girls, who gave the usual juicy sniff. She was pale and thin, and Sophie had never known her not to need a Kleenex. 'Grow up?' said chubby-cheeked Corn Pop B.J. 'I don't think so.' A girl with more-blonde-than-red hair trailing down her back laughed---way loud---and looked at Julia like a puppy waiting for a treat. She was Cassandra Combs, the newest Corn Pop wannabe. Sophie hoped the Pops would leave, but they just went back to putting on lip gloss. Sophie went into slow motion as she turned to the locker she and Kitty shared, dialing each number on the lock with precise care. 'You're gonna be late one of these days,' Maggie said. Willoughby went into the arm motions for a cheer. 'Class won't be so bad today, Soph. All we're doing is running the track, and if you keep going, Coach Yates won't yell at you.' 'Coach Hates,' Fiona put in. Sophie kept her eyes away from them. 'It takes me longer because I'm helping Kitty,' she said. Kitty peeled off her bright pink T-shirt, revealing the tiny 'port hole' in her chest just above her bra. Kitty had leukemia, and the hole was where a tiny tube had been inserted so the doctors could give her the chemotherapy medicine---which hopefully would stop her disease---through the tube instead of having to give her shots. Sophie crowded in close until Kitty pulled on the white tee with GMMS---for Great Marsh Middle School---sprawled across the front in the red and blue school colors. 'Thanks, Sophie,' Kitty whispered as she slipped off the quilted hat that matched Sophie's. Sophie replaced it at lightning speed with a red bandanna. Only when Kitty's bald head was covered did Sophie step back. So far most of the Corn Pops hadn't seen the hole or gotten a closeup view of Kitty's head, and Sophie wanted to keep it that way. Even though chemotherapy had made all Kitty's hair fall out, Sophie and the Corn Flakes thought Kitty's naked head made her blue eyes seem bigger and bluer than ever and her tiny nose look even more like a piece of fine china. But Sophie knew there would be no end to the Corn Pops' blurting out things like: 'I wouldn't even come to school if I looked like that!' Just as she always did, Sophie whipped off her own cap like a knight removing his armored helmet at the end of a tournament, revealing her peach-fuzzed head before she tied on her bandanna. Kitty giggled. 'You're so brave, Sophie.' 'They can't hurt me,' Sophie said. 'Besides, it's only hair.' 'Or lack of,' Fiona said. She stood up from tying her tennis shoe. 'You coming?' 'I'm not ready yet,' Sophie said. 'I was helping Ki---' 'You were foostering about, is what you were doing,' Darbie said. Maggie gave a matter-of-fact nod.

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