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When You Reach Me Chapter 9 Summary

Things You Wish For

  • Mom calls in Miranda to keep time while she practices the flashcards with Richard. After a while, Miranda and Richard switch places.
  • Miranda's mom takes off her purple sweatshirt, and her hair bounces around her shoulders. This leads Miranda to think about her own hair – straight and brown, which she got from her "nonexistent" dad (9.4).
  • Miranda blames her dad for her hair, but doesn't hold any other hold grudges against him.
  • Meg, the heroine in the book Miranda is reading, is looking for her dad too. She travels to the planet Camazotz to save him.
  • Miranda guesses she doesn't want a dad because she has never had one before, and "A person can't miss something she never had" (9.6).
  • The three continue their practice. Miranda tells her mom she thinks she'll win. Mom warns her not to get her hopes up.
  • Hopes are up already. They've put a wish list on the fridge with things to buy on it, like a "trip to China" (9.20).
  • Richard and Miranda, though, have a secret plan for the money.