"Not very much I guess. Why?" That was the first thing Melanie said when April asked her if she knew anything about Gypsies. April didn't answer. A minute or so later Melanie waved her hand in front of April's eyes and said, "Hey, anybody home? Come back to earth." Still no answer. April just went on staring into space. . . . So when it took a long time for April to say why she asked the Gypsy question, it didn't surprise Melanie all that much. She knew that when April's blue eyes got that spacey look it usually meant that she was on to something new and exciting, and if you waited long enough, you were sure to hear all about it. So Melanie waited. While she waited, she had time to sit up, scratch the mosquito bite on her ankle, make a face at herself in the mirror on April's dressing table, and flop back down again. Finally April sighed and said, "Oh, I don't know. It's just what you said about it not being the same. Going back and doing the same things over and over. You know, all that Egyptian stuff. And just the other day I was reading this magazine that had all this great stuff about Gypsies. I was just thinking how maybe we could. . ." She sat up, shoved back a straggle of blond hair, grinned at Melanie, and went on, "I was thinking that maybe we could try being Gypsies for a change." Excerpted from The Gypsy Game by Zilpha Keatley Snyder All rights reserved by the original copyright owners. Excerpts are provided for display purposes only and may not be reproduced, reprinted or distributed without the written permission of the publisher.
