The Perfect Score

Mrs. Woods has Trevor read and write a report about things that were invented by mistake. Trevor plans to skim the page and write quickly, but he ends up fascinated by how many useful things were discovered by accident. Mrs. Woods extends the assignment so that Trevor can work on it during class time and write a more thorough report, telling him to think about whether he wants to be the type of person who wastes his life or the kind who achieves something. The choice is his, despite what other people might tell him, and for the rest of the day, the question of whether he wants to be “a waster or an achiever” rings in Trevor’s head (131).

At the library, Gavin’s group decides to throw a party and invite a bunch of children to reopen the children’s room when it’s ready. While Scott reads and the girls plan, Gavin is assigned to paint another picture on the wall in the reading nook. While he works, Mrs. Magenta signs him up for a library card and checks him out an audiobook of