{"product_id":"do-not-become-alarmed-isbn-9780735216532","title":"Do Not Become Alarmed","description":"\u003cb\u003eThe moving and suspenseful new novel that Ann Patchett calls \"smart and thrilling and impossible to put down... the book that every reader longs for.\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e“This summer’s undoubtable smash hit… an addictive, heart-palpitating story.” —\u003ci\u003eMarie Claire\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe sun is shining, the sea is blue, the children have disappeared.\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e When Liv and Nora decide to take their husbands and children on a holiday cruise,\u003ci\u003e \u003c\/i\u003eeveryone is thrilled. The adults are lulled by the ship’s comfort and ease. The four\u003ci\u003e \u003c\/i\u003echildren—ages six to eleven—love the nonstop buffet and their newfound independence.\u003ci\u003e \u003c\/i\u003eBut when they all go ashore for an adventure in Central America, a series of minor\u003ci\u003e \u003c\/i\u003emisfortunes and miscalculations leads the families farther from the safety of the ship. One\u003ci\u003e \u003c\/i\u003eminute the children are there, and the next they’re gone.\u003ci\u003e \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003ci\u003e \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e The disintegration of the world the families knew—told from the perspectives of both the\u003ci\u003e \u003c\/i\u003eadults and the children—is both riveting and revealing. The parents, accustomed to\u003ci\u003e \u003c\/i\u003esecurity and control, turn on each other and blame themselves, while the seemingly\u003ci\u003e \u003c\/i\u003ehelpless children discover resources they never knew they possessed.\u003ci\u003e \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003ci\u003e \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003ci\u003eDo Not Become Alarmed \u003c\/i\u003eis a story about the protective force of innocence and the limits\u003ci\u003e \u003c\/i\u003eof parental power, and an insightful look at privileged illusions of safety. Celebrated for\u003ci\u003e \u003c\/i\u003eher spare and moving fiction, Maile Meloy has written a gripping novel about how\u003ci\u003e \u003c\/i\u003equickly what we count on can fall away, and the way a crisis shifts our perceptions of\u003ci\u003e \u003c\/i\u003ewhat matters most.“A very smart work of literary fiction… Meloy is such a deft writer that she keeps the adventure plot whizzing along even as she deepens our sense of the characters and the unfamiliar culture they have to navigate.”\u003ci\u003e \u003ci\u003e—\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/i\u003eFresh Air\u003ci\u003e, \u003ci\u003eNPR\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e“Meloy is a subtle and sophisticated writer…Meloy pokes around in some profound subject matter…[her] portrait of well-meaning but still ugly Americans resonates.” \u003ci\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003ci\u003e—New York Times\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e“[\u003ci\u003eDo Not Become Alarmed\u003c\/i\u003e has] characters that are fully rendered and original, and writing that is beautifully spare and understated...while feeding us high drama.” \u003ci\u003e—\u003ci\u003e\u003ci\u003eLos Angeles Review of Books\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e“[Meloy delivers] a wild, propulsive plot with tight prose and a constant current of suspense. It’s a thrilling novel, well constructed and hard to put down, a sharp reminder that the tide can take us anywhere, even when the water looks fine.” \u003ci\u003e—Los Angeles Times\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e“[For summer reading] I’ll want a book that’s thrilling and artful, a true page-turner that will leave me feeling smart, so I’ll read Maile Meloy’s \u003ci\u003eDo Not Become Alarmed\u003c\/i\u003e.” —Ann Patchett in \u003ci\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe Washington Post\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e“Meloy reels you into the story with her cool and fluid prose.” \u003ci\u003e—The Christian Science Monitor\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Our advice: Don’t read Maile Meloy’s new adrenaline-driven thriller of class, race, and disappeared children after dark… \u003ci\u003eDo Not Become Alarmed \u003c\/i\u003ewill keep you up all night, compelled by the book’s twisty plot and seductive, tightly wound suspense.” \u003ci\u003e—Elle\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e“This summer’s undoubtable smash hit… an addictive, heart-palpitating story.” \u003ci\u003e—Marie Claire\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e“If there is one must-read book this summer, this is it.” \u003ci\u003e—Real Simple\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e“Seen on pool loungers and beach towels from Nantucket to Santa Monica since the hardcover's debut in June, this thriller has become the page-turner of summer 2017.” —\u003ci\u003eForbes\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e“Enthralling and terrifying.” \u003ci\u003e—Town \u0026amp; Country\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\"Fast-paced [and] engrossing.\"\u003ci\u003e \u003ci\u003e—People Magazine\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e“A heart-racing tale.” \u003ci\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003ci\u003e—O, The Oprah Magazine\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/i\u003eStressful and yet still sexy, complete with jaw-droppingly beautiful imagery.”\u003ci\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003ci\u003e \u003ci\u003e–Glamour\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e“A taut, nervy thriller…Meloy has a keenly intuitive ear for family dynamics, first-world privilege, and all the ways that human nature can adapt to the unthinkable.” \u003ci\u003e—Entertainment Weekly\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“A marital reboot becomes a zip line to disaster in Maile Meloy’s holiday cruise-set thriller \u003ci\u003eDo Not Become Alarmed\u003c\/i\u003e, in which the children’s moral complexity outstrips that of their parents.” \u003ci\u003e—Vogue\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\"Seen on pool loungers and beach towels since June, this thriller has become the page-turner of summer 2017.\" –\u003ci\u003eForbes\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Meloy, whose short stories were the basis of last year’s indie film \u003ci\u003eCertain Women\u003c\/i\u003e, writes a tense book in her signature sparing prose, and may have the book of the summer on her hands.”\u003ci\u003e  \u003ci\u003e—Conde Nast Traveler\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e“The tension will keep your heart racing with every page, as you become increasingly invested in the uncertain fate of each narrator.” \u003ci\u003e—InStyle\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e“Glides along with a clarity that’s almost uncanny… readers of \u003ci\u003eDo Not Become Alarmed\u003c\/i\u003e get Meloy’s warmth and her even-tempered, protean imagination. Her view of human nature is almost Olympian in its refusal to take sides, in the consideration it affords to characters who would be mere bit players in a more conventional work. This novel is a bait and switch in the best possible sense. It promises readers easy-to-identify-with protagonists in a pair of mothers going through a parent’s worst nightmare. Then it presents them with so much more, a richer, broader palette of people to believe in and to understand.” \u003ci\u003e—Slate \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e“[A] smart, suspenseful page-turner.” \u003ci\u003e—\u003ci\u003eW Magazine\u003c\/i\u003e \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e“'Page-turner' would be an understatement.” \u003ci\u003e—\u003ci\u003eTravel \u0026amp; Leisure\u003c\/i\u003e \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e“This book is smarter than your average thriller.” \u003ci\u003e—Fodor's\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e“Nothing pairs better with summer than a suspense that will keep you guessing (especially when it involves a cruise ship). The pulse-inducing unputdownable tale about the disappearance of four children on a family cruise, \u003ci\u003eDo Not Become Alarmed\u003c\/i\u003e is a powerful suspense that will leave readers asking themselves if family truly keeps us safe.” \u003ci\u003e—\u003ci\u003eRedbook \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“This is one of those can’t-stop-turning-the-pages novels, which quickly reveals itself to be something more than a page-turner… [Meloy] writes with breathless tension yet lets her characters breathe; you believe these children and their desperate parents, and find yourself utterly entrenched in their fate.” \u003ci\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003ci\u003e—\u003c\/i\u003eSeattle Times\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e“An original, expansive story that is memorable and vibrant…Throughout all of this propulsive action, Meloy’s ability to write about children and teenagers shines on the page. Their authentic dialogue and observations produce illuminated pockets of insights and innocence amid the escalating chaos.” —\u003ci\u003eSan Francisco Chronicle\u003ci\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“[An] intelligent thriller [with] a dramatic high-stakes plot.” \u003ci\u003e—Newsday\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e“[A] fast-paced thriller.”\u003ci\u003e \u003ci\u003e—Houston Chronicle\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e“A suspenseful mystery.” \u003ci\u003e\u003ci\u003e—The St. Louis Post-Dispatch\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e“Ambitious…the deft plotting of this literary thriller unfolds like a journey through a maze in the dark.”\u003ci\u003e\u003ci\u003e \u003ci\u003e–Portland Press Herald\u003c\/i\u003e \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e“It features taut prose and timely explorations of privilege, race, and parenthood.” \u003ci\u003e\u003ci\u003e—San Diego Magazine\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e“Riveting…Meloy’s well-crafted, suspenseful tale…is amplified by issues of class and race.”\u003ci\u003e\u003ci\u003e \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003e–\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003ci\u003eTampa Bay Times\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e“Rapid and absorbing.”\u003ci\u003e \u003ci\u003e–Harvard Magazine\u003c\/i\u003e \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\"[A] well-written, suspenseful story… that makes for an irresistible summer read.”\u003ci\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003ci\u003e \u003ci\u003e—Deseret News\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\"In \u003ci\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003ci\u003eDo Not Become Alarmed\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/i\u003eMeloy has harnessed [her] gift for writing from diverse perspectives tenderly and intimately... this novel is a moral reckoning for our time, our culture, and our Cali-king-sized American dream.\"\u003ci\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003ci\u003e \u003ci\u003e—Southeast Review\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e“\u003ci\u003eDo Not Become Alarmed\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e is not only ripe with tension, it’s also a terrific character study.” \u003ci\u003e—\u003ci\u003eMyrtle Beach Online\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"[A] relentless new thriller...[Meloy has a] talent for crafting high-tension fiction that compels readers to turn the page.\" \u003ci\u003e—Paste Magazine\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“This is a book you won't be able to resist finishing in one sitting.” \u003ci\u003e—Bustle\u003c\/i\u003e \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Thrillers are having a moment right now, and \u003ci\u003eDo Not Become Alarmed\u003c\/i\u003e is at the top of our list... We didn’t know it was possible to be so moved and feel such intense suspense at the same time.” \u003ci\u003e—HelloGiggles\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e “For thriller fans, the novel by Maile Meloy is the perfect summer pick…so realistic and gripping.” \u003ci\u003e—Catapult \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e“[A] tale that will have you reading all night long...Meloy ratchets up the suspense until you’ll beg her to tell you what happens. She does, at the end of the book. Don’t skip ahead. You’ll be sorry if you do.”\u003cb\u003e \u003c\/b\u003e\u003ci\u003e–20somethingreads \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“A highly anticipated new book…Though it’s a thriller, it also addresses race, privilege, the uncertainty modern parents feel in raising the ‘perfect’ child, and what it matters most in life.” \u003cb\u003e–\u003c\/b\u003e\u003ci\u003eNerdHQ \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e“The plot unfolds with terrifying realism… This writer can apparently do it all—New Yorker stories, children's books, award-winning literary novels, and now, a tautly plotted and culturally savvy emotional thriller. Do not start this book after dinner or you will almost certainly be up all night.” —\u003ci\u003e\u003ci\u003eKirkus Reviews, \u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/i\u003estarred review\u003ci\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e“Ominous, addictive… In crafting this high-stakes page-turner, Meloy excels as a master of suspense.” —\u003ci\u003e\u003ci\u003ePublishers Weekly\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e“It's Meloy's razor-sharp execution that makes the book unforgettable. Spellbinding, terrifying and keenly observed, this one checks all our boxes for a can't-put-it-down, addictive read.” \u003ci\u003e\u003ci\u003e–BookPage \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e“A taut, gripping thriller…[an] entertaining examination of privileged, modern families.” —\u003ci\u003e\u003ci\u003eLibrary Journal\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e“[A] propulsive drama…infusing literary fiction with criminality and terror in a mode similar to that of Ann Patchett and Hannah Tinti, Meloy compounds the suspense in this gripping and incisive tale by orchestrating a profoundly wrenching shift in perspective, and morality, as well-meaning tourists face the dark realities of a complex place they viewed merely as a playground. Meloy’s commanding, heart-revving, and thought-provoking novel has enormous power and appeal.” —\u003ci\u003eBooklist\u003c\/i\u003e, starred review\u003ci\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e“Meloy’s writing is literary but also page-turnery (my highest compliment), and \u003ci\u003eDo Not Become Alarmed\u003c\/i\u003e, about a vacation gone awry, promises to be both.” \u003ci\u003e\u003ci\u003e–Parnassus Musing\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\"Gripping...[\u003ci\u003eDo Not Become Alarmed\u003c\/i\u003e] is one of those books that you will stay up late to read.\" –Emma Straub, author of \u003ci\u003eModern Lovers\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eThe Vacationers\u003c\/i\u003e on PBS NewsHour\u003ci\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"This is the book that every reader longs for: smart and thrilling and impossible to put down. Read it once at breakneck speed to find out what happens next, and then read it slowly to marvel at the perfect prose and the masterwork of a plot. It is an alarmingly good novel.\"\u003ci\u003e —\u003c\/i\u003eAnn Patchett, author of \u003ci\u003eCommonwealth, State of Wonder, \u003c\/i\u003eand \u003ci\u003eBel Canto\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"Here is that perfect combination of a luminous writer and a big, page-turning story. This hugely suspenseful novel will speak to anyone who has ever felt responsible for keeping a loved one safe, whether it was a child, a partner, a parent, or a friend. Meloy's characters—the adults and the children—feel to me like real, living people I'll never forget.\" —Helen Fielding, author of \u003ci\u003eBridget Jones's Diary\u003c\/i\u003eMaile Meloy is the author of the novels \u003ci\u003eLiars and Saints \u003c\/i\u003eand \u003ci\u003eA Family Daughter\u003c\/i\u003e, the short-story collections \u003ci\u003eHalf in Love\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eBoth Ways Is the Only Way I Want It \u003c\/i\u003e(named one of the 10 Best Books of 2009 by \u003ci\u003eThe New York Times Book Review\u003c\/i\u003e), and a bestselling middle-grade trilogy. Her fiction has won the \u003ci\u003eParis Review\u003c\/i\u003e's Aga Khan Prize for Fiction, the PEN\/Malamud Award, and the Rosenthal Award from the American Academy of Arts and Letters. The recipient of a Guggenheim Fellowship, Meloy was shortlisted for the UK's Orange Prize and chosen as one of \u003ci\u003eGranta\u003c\/i\u003e's Best Young American Novelists.\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eChapter 7.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe kids were engrossed in a complicated game with the three inner tubes, making a kind of raft that they could stand on. It required a great deal of concentration. Hector was the master of the\u003cbr\u003e game, and he kept everyone involved. He didn’t leave Sebastian and June out, or cut them any slack just because they were little. Penny admired that in him.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e He tossed his wet hair off his face. If Hector had been in a band, Penny’s friends would have fainted over him. And he \u003ci\u003ecould \u003c\/i\u003ebe in a band. He played guitar that well.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e He was good at building a structure, too, like her father was. He gave directions, saying, “Hold there. Now, Penny, you sit there. Okay, now you can stand up there. Now Penny, too.” He kept the whole three-ring raft stable. She loved hearing him say her name. His stomach was tan and slick above his pink-and-green checked shorts.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e Every few minutes, someone would slip or step in the wrong place and everyone would go crashing into the water, screaming with delight, the inner tubes flying. Hector would make sure everyone was safe and afloat, and then they would start rebuilding.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e They were so focused that they didn’t notice when the tide changed. It must have paused when they were first in the water. Then it reversed, and began to flow inland. No one noticed that the water from the sea was pushing them upstream, slowly at first, and then with surprising force.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e When they finally looked up, waterlogged, each with an arm slung over a tube and legs treading the silty water, they were in a different place. There was no beach. There were no mothers on towels. The river was starting to narrow. It was overhung with trees.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e Penny squinted against the sun. She was hanging on to an inner tube with Isabel, and had one arm over the smaller tube June and Sebastian were on. Her fingertips were pruned. She felt her little brother’s arm slide against hers. Hector and Marcus were on the third tube. Birds sang, and insects buzzed in the trees, but there were no human sounds.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e “What do we do?” she asked.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e They all looked to Hector, their leader. He frowned. Then he said, “We hold on and kick back.” He rolled his long body over and started to kick.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e They tried, all six of them, to propel themselves back toward the beach. But it was pointless, the tidal current was too strong. The little ones spluttered, water in their faces.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e “Stop!” Hector commanded.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e The song of insects and birds returned. On they floated, with the muscle of the river.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e “Will they come find us?” Sebastian asked, in a small voice.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e “Of course they will,” Penny said. And really, what was keeping them? The jungle on the bank looked impenetrable, but their mothers would find a way.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e “Should we shout?” Marcus asked.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e Together they cried, \u003ci\u003e“Mom,” “Mommy,” “Mami,” \u003c\/i\u003ein one shrill, beseeching voice. Then they stopped, as if with the swipe of a conductor’s wand, and waited in the silence. There was no response. The river swirled around them.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e “I have to pee,” June said.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e “Just go in the water,” her brother said.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e “I can’t.”\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e “Why not?”\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e “I just can’t. What about those fish that swim up the pee, inside you?”\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e “That’s in the Amazon,” Marcus said.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e “Why couldn’t they be here?” June asked.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e “Because the Amazon doesn’t connect to here,” he said.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e Penny already had peed, and hoped those fish really weren’t in the water. On the left bank, there was a tiny sloping place. They all kicked to it and clambered out.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e It felt good to be on solid ground. As soon as they stood up, it seemed clear that they should wait here, rather than traveling ever farther away from their mothers. It had been smart to get out.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e Penny helped June find a place to peel down her wet bathing suit, behind a tree. The trees were like something out of fairy tales: thick, twisted, hung with vines. June peed into the damp ground, looking up.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e “Are you scared, Penny?” she asked.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e “No,” Penny lied.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e “Because they’re going to find us?”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “Yes,” Penny said. She helped June pull up her swimsuit straps and felt very grown-up. Isabel might be the oldest girl, but Penny was the one June knew and trusted. Her mother had told her to keep an eye on Sebastian and she had, but she hadn’t known this would happen.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e “I’m hungry,” June said.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e “We can go back to the buffet on the ship,” Penny said. “When they find us.”\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e They rejoined the group, and Hector announced, “I’m going to swim back.”\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e “You can’t swim against the river,” Marcus said. \u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e “I can,” he said. “If I stay to the sides. Where the water goes the other direction.”\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e Penny had been whitewater rafting with her grandparents. “You mean in the eddies,” she said.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e Isabel said something protesting.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e “I’ll come back for you,” Hector said. He waded out, lowered his body in near the bank, and started swimming. He was very strong. His arms slashed through the water. They watched in silence as he disappeared around a bend. Then they were alone.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “We should be on the other side of the river,” Marcus said.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e “We can’t get up that bank,” Penny said.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e They studied the other side of the river and the steep mud bank. And then the bank moved. At least it seemed to move. There were tangled roots, and a section of the mottled mud was sliding.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e “Oh!” Penny said.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e Isabel said something under her breath.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e It was not mud sliding, but an enormous crocodile, sunning itself on the bank. It had moved its big sinister head, split by a row of teeth, but now it settled again, motionless.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIsabel put a hand over her mouth.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Hector will be okay,” Marcus said.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eSebastian and June weren’t paying attention. They had started making a small mud castle in the soft ground. No one said anything more to alarm them. Penny imagined her mother picking her way through the trees on the opposite bank and coming across that monster. They had to get back before that happened. But there was no reason crocodiles wouldn’t be on this side of the river, too. Penny stepped backward. She wanted to get away from the water, away from the muddy banks.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003eIsabel put a hand over her mouth.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e “Hector will be okay,” Marcus said.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e Sebastian and June weren’t paying attention. They had started making a small mud castle in the soft ground. No one said anything more to alarm them. Penny imagined her mother picking her way through the trees on the opposite bank and coming across that monster. They had to get back before that happened. But there was no reason crocodiles wouldn’t be on this side of the river, too. Penny stepped backward. She wanted to get away from the water, away from the muddy banks.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e In the trees behind them, they heard an engine noise, and turned.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e “There’s a road!” Penny said. She started toward it.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e “We have to stay here,” Isabel said. “And wait for Hector.”\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e “We should find the road,” Penny said.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e They looked at each other. \u003ci\u003eA battle of wills. \u003c\/i\u003ePenny had read the phrase in books and knew that this was what it meant. Isabel was older. But Penny was smarter. She could not say in front of the little ones that they might be eaten by a crocodile if they stayed here, but she beamed the argument into Isabel’s eyes.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e “I’m hungry,” Sebastian said.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e “Me too,” June said.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e Penny thought of how her mother would panic when she saw they were gone. Sebastian needed food or his blood sugar would drop, but he also needed insulin or his blood sugar might go too high. And he didn’t have his pump.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e Marcus said they should hang the inner tubes on a branch, to show where they had left the river. Isabel clearly wasn’t happy about the plan, but she didn’t want to stay alone, so the five of them set off into the dense forest. The crocodile on the other bank hadn’t moved again. Hector would be fine, Penny told herself.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e There was no trail, and it was painful, climbing barefoot over roots and fallen trees. Beneath the undergrowth, things scuttled away. Penny saw ants marching in a column, carrying green pieces of leaves over their heads like sails. She took Sebastian’s hand, a thing he would not usually tolerate.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e They stumbled out into a clearing, where a Jeep was parked. Two men sat on the ground drinking bottles of Coke. They stared as if the children were fairies, materialized from the woods.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e “Say something Spanish,” Penny whispered to Isabel.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e “No,” Isabel whispered back.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e “Hola!” Penny called.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e The men just stared. There were two shovels on the ground and their clothes were dirty.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e “Can I have a Coke?” Sebastian whispered to Penny.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e The door of the Jeep opened, and a woman got out. She had strong brown arms, and she wore a beige tank top and cargo pants. Penny thought she looked like the girl action figure that goes with the toy Jeep. The woman asked them a question in too-fast Spanish.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e Isabel didn’t answer.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e Penny said, “We’re Americans.” That seemed important to say.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e “How long you stand here?” the woman asked in English.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e “We just got here,” Penny said. “We walked from the river.”\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e “Why?”\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e “We were looking for a road.”\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e “Is no road,” the woman said.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e “We heard an engine,” Penny said, looking pointedly at the Jeep.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e “Where are your parents?”\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e “At the big beach, down the river,” Penny said. “We came from the ship, a big cruise ship, but then we had a car accident. We were swimming. Mi hermano es diabético.” She’d been taught that sentence before they left, for emergencies.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e Sebastian leaned into her. “Can I have a Coke?” he asked, louder than before.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e The woman in the tank top frowned, then reached into the Jeep, brought out a bottle, and twisted off the top. Sebastian ran forward to grab it, then ran back to Penny’s side and drank. She wished her mother were here. If Sebastian was low, the Coke would be good, but if he was high, it could make him feel worse.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e “Will you give us a ride?” Penny asked.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e They were not supposed to get in cars with strangers, but there were five of them. And they were \u003ci\u003easking \u003c\/i\u003efor a ride. That seemed to make it safer. And the driver was a woman. You were supposed to ask a woman for help, if you got in trouble. Preferably a mother, but this was who they had. And maybe she was a mother. Although Penny doubted it.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e “Okay,” the woman said, waving toward the Jeep.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e Penny and Sebastian got in front together. The Jeep had an open top. Isabel looked toward the river and seemed like she might run, then got in the back seat with Marcus and June. The two men with the shovels crouched in the cargo area behind them. The woman reversed the Jeep.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e Penny pulled the seatbelt over Sebastian’s bare chest and buckled it over herself, too. “Are you okay?” she asked him.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e “I’m a little sleepy.”\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e “You should stay awake.”\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e “Okay.”\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e His blond hair was limp and damp on his forehead. Penny pushed it off his face.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e “I have to poop,” June said, in the back seat.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e “Hold it,” her brother said.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e Penny looked back and saw June with her hands clamped on the crotch of her blue swimsuit, Marcus looking anxious beside her.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e When she looked out the windshield again, they didn’t seem to be going in the right direction. “We’re going back to that beach, right?” Penny asked.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e The woman nodded.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e “I don’t think this is the right way.”\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e “We call them,” the woman said.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e “But their cell phones don’t work here.”\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e “We call the ship.”\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e “But they aren’t at the ship.”\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e The Jeep was driving down a paved road among trees, just like the one where the tire had blown up. That seemed like a long time ago now. \u003ci\u003eWould \u003c\/i\u003eher mother have gone back to the ship?\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e “I really have to poop,” June said.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e “Keep holding it,” her brother said.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e “I am!”\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e The Jeep stopped at a place where another road crossed, and the two men hopped out of the back, leaving the shovels. The woman waved to them. Then the Jeep was climbing a mountain, and a few houses appeared on the side of the road. The road wound and twisted and then a man on a tall white horse was riding toward them. The Jeep slowed. Penny thought she might be imagining the horse, it was so white and bright. But then June whispered, “He’s \u003ci\u003ebeautiful\u003c\/i\u003e,” and Penny knew that the others could see it, too.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e The Jeep stopped, and the man on the horse looked down at them. He had dark, frowning eyebrows, and he spoke with the woman in Spanish. It was all too fast to understand. Penny looked to Isabel in the back seat for a translation, but Isabel ducked her chin toward her yellow bikini as if trying not to be seen.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e The horse snorted. It had soft nostrils, gray and pink. The man on the horse smiled. His teeth were white and straight. “Welcome,” he said.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e “We need insulin,” Penny told him. She felt blinded by embarrassment and confusion, the heat rising to her face. “Insulina. My brother is diabético. Also we need a bathroom.”\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e “I have to poop!” June said.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e “Pues, vámonos,” the man said, turning the horse with the reins, and the Jeep started up the mountain again.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Riverhead Books","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46304919650533,"sku":"NP9780735216532","price":16.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1842\/7735\/files\/9780735216532.jpg?v=1767725422","url":"https:\/\/k12savings.com\/products\/do-not-become-alarmed-isbn-9780735216532","provider":"K12savings","version":"1.0","type":"link"}