Beautiful Creatures by Kami Garcia & Margie Stohl
9.02 A Hole in the Sky
Written by Krystal

When Ethan arrived home from basketball practice he knew he was in trouble. Amma had let his food get cold, which she never did when she was happy, and when he entered the house she was sitting there waiting; silently doing her crossword puzzle with an extremely sharp number two pencil in hand. As he shoveled the food into his mouth Amma finally spoke about his tardiness at school, threatening him with nine across. Walking to her side, Ethan gave her a hug, instantly softening her up. It was then that Ethan filled Amma in on the new girl. But in a small town like Gatlin everyone knew about the new girl, including Amma. The girls name was Lena Duchannes and Ethan nearly choked with surprise.

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Memorable Quotes:

Ethan’s Father: “What did you do to Amma?”
Ethan: “I was late for school.”
He studied my face. I studied his.
Ethan’s Father: “Number 2?”
Ethan: I nodded.
Ethan’s Father: “Sharp?”
Ethan: “Started out sharp and then she sharpened it.” (Page 27)

Ethan: “So she’s automatically a freak, why? Because she doesn’t have on the uniform, blonde hair and a short skirt?” (Page 33)

Lena: “It’s one of my favorite books.”
Ethan: She just said it, like it wasn’t weird . Now I was staring. (Page 34)

Ethan: Sixteen moons, sixteen years
Sound of thunder in your ears
Sixteen miles before she nears
Sixteen seeks what sixteen fears…

Ethan: No. It couldn’t be. Not her. (Page 39)

Questions for discussion:

What do you think is keeping the Wates in Gatlin? Why does his father spend all his time in the study?

What do you think the number 156 means, the number on the back of Lena’s hand?

What do you think the link is between Lena, the Sixteen Moons song and Ethan’s dreams?

Did something or someone in this chapter take you by surprise?

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