Rachel Burgin

Dear Stephanie S. Tolan,

Your book Listen! told me to expect the unexpected. The story made me a better person by knowing that anything can happen. I know that your book has changed a lot of other people's lives also.

There has been many times in my life where I thought I knew what would happen, but then it brought me down when it didn't happen. Like this one time at a Cedar Falls basketball tournament we thought we could beat these third graders, we were fifth graders, and it was almost the championship game, only one more game left to our first win and they smoked us. They were small and fast, we just didn't expect the unexpected.

I can relate to Charley when her mom died in a car crash because when I was littler my great grandma Steere died. I really didn't expect that either. My grandma Gosse wasn't the same because that was her mom, but my family and I helped her through it. She had a broken heart for a long time. I felt really bad. When the dog got heart worms I was so shocked I about cried. I can't believe that dogs can really die from any kinds of worms in their bodies. I wonder why that happens to dogs. I hope my dog doesn't get worms.

Another time when I was about two years old, I can't believe I can still remember that far back, I was standing in front of my uncle Tom and he was smoking and then all of a sudden the end of his cigarette fell off and stuck to my back I started to scream and everybody thought that I got stung by a bee. I still have that scare on my back. I thank you for writing the book because it made me brave and a person who knows that anything can happen.

Yours Truly,
Rachel Burgin