The Word Eater, by Mary Amato
On the playground, Lerner Chanse listens with dread as Reba Silo, queen of MPOOE (Most Powerful One On Earth) gives Lerner the dare that will raise her from SLUG (Sorry Loser Under Ground) status to MPOOE. Lerner has to steal Mr. Droan’s grade book and change Bobby Nitz’s grade from a “D” to an “A.” Reba explains that if Lerner pulls off the dare, Bobby will be blamed for the grade change and get into big trouble. Lerner doesn’t want anything to do with this dare, but she can’t live the rest of her life at Cleveland Park Middle School as a SLUG, can she? Bobby, having overheard the dare, foils Lerner’s attempt at theft and steals Mr. Droan’s box of thumbtacks in the process. Bobby tears the “Mack’s Thumbtack” label off the thumbtack box and throws it down.
Just as the label flutters to the ground, the Lumbricus worm clan lowers its newly hatched clan member to the ground to eat it’s first bite of dirt. However, they manage to place the little worm on the label instead. The clan watches in horror as the little worm eats the words “Mack’s Thumbtacks” right off the label. All over the world, papers flutter to the ground as every single Mack’s brand thumbtack disappears.
The next day, the little worm get snatched by a crow and deposited on the science classroom window sill right next to Lerner’s desk. With the window slightly ajar, Lerner snatches up the tiny worm and sets it on the newspaper article she brought to class. She watches in fascination as the worm eats the words “Jay’s Star” from the article. The next day, the disappearance of the newly discovered “Jay’s Star” makes the front page.
Lerner quickly learns that every time the worm eats a word, the object that it represents disappears. At first, Lerner loves the power she feels as she experiments with Fip the worm and various words, but when the worm almost eats her best friend’s name and the word “oxygen,” she realizes that she must learn how to feed the Fip’s voracious appetite without causing a major catastrophe.
(Cautions: Mack’s Thumbtacks are made in a factory using child labor. Mack Industries also raises and trains Attackaterriers by inserting thumbtacks in their paws. Lerner’s babysitter watches soap operas; there’s a very brief mention of a steamy love scene using the words man, woman, and moaning. During class, Mr. Droan hides behind his grade book so he can read romance novels while his students do worksheets.)
