Glitter
Liberty’s family is super-rich but when her dad loses his job, she has to learn that not all that glitters is gold…A sparkling novel from the author of SHINE.Liberty Parfitt is sure there’s more to life than getting good exam results and earning lots of money. Unfortunately her super-rich, workaholic dad doesn’t agree - he thinks Liberty’s passion for music is a total waste of time. But when Dad loses his job and falls into a deep depression, Liberty’s talent may be the one thing that can save him.The second novel from Kate Maryon - a sparkling voice for tween girls.
Читать Glitter онлайн беплатно
Glitter
Kate Maryon
HarperCollins Children’s Books A division of HarperCollinsPublishers Ltd. 1 London Bridge Street London SE1 9GF
First published in Great Britain by HarperCollins Children’s Books 2010
Text copyright © Kate Maryon 2010
The author asserts the moral right to be identified as the author of this work.
All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and read the text of this ebook on screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, downloaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins ebooks
HarperCollinsPublishers has made every reasonable effort to ensure that any picture content and written content in this ebook has been included or removed in accordance with the contractual and technological constraints in operation at the time of publication
Source ISBN: 9780007326280
Ebook Edition © JULY 2010 ISBN: 9780007411009 Version: 2017-09-27
For Daniel, Carole, Heather, Louisa, Ruth, James, Sophia, Mala and Joti. For your mummies who now glitter with the stars in the sky – they loved you so much and were so sad to leave you.
For Jonny, Amida and all the other dads who did and continue to do their wonderful best.
For Jayne and Jan who will for ever glitter in my eyes – thank you for so much.
Table of Contents
Chapter 1: failure is not an option…
Chapter 2: humming might be dangerous…
Chapter 3: a glittering success…
Chapter 4: everything is really all my fault…
Chapter 5: I don’t even know where to begin…
Chapter 6: welcum to the dump…
Chapter 9: like Pride and Prejudice and stuff…
Chapter 10: err, sorry, daddy…
Chapter 11: my whole insides are trembling…
Chapter 12: don’t forget the old folk…
Chapter 13: the rest is a blur…
Chapter 14: if you’re going to run wild…
Chapter 15: today is my birthday…
Chapter 16: I’m so sorry Liberty…
Chapter 17: for my new best friend…
Chapter 18: it’s dark here, really dark…
Chapter 19: and then he’s gone…
Chapter 20: she pulls away from me and gasps…
Chapter 22: why didn’t l get it before…?
Chapter 24: and now I’m confused…
Chapter 25: I’m not feeling fine…
Chapter 26: you could have been anything…
Chapter 27: I’m getting warmer…
Chapter 28: the sound of two violins…
Chapter 29: and then you came along…
Chapter 30: I squeeze his hand…
Chapter 31: if you want to come, that is…
Chapter 32: bugsy is brilliant…
My dad is so obsessed with success that every time I’m home from school, for a weekend or for the holidays, he just can’t resist reminding me of the Parfitt family motto. “Remember, Liberty,” he booms, while he’s checking over my school work or reading my report, “that failure is not an option for a Parfitt.” And what annoys me most is that he always says it as if I’ve never even heard it before. He always says it as if it’s never been drummed into my head a thousand million times. He always says it as if I don’t already know that I’m the biggest failure the Parfitt family has ever had the disappointment of knowing. And what makes things worse is that as hard as I try not to let his stupid motto bother me, it does. I just can’t help it and every time he says it something deep inside me shrivels up and hides.
At my brother’s parents’ evening, his housemaster said to my dad, “Sebastian has a glittering career ahead of him, Mr Parfitt, he’s a real credit to you, sir. He’s brilliant at everything, an A* student from head to toe and there are top-secret whispers being passed around that he’s going to be made next year’s head boy.”
You could almost see the gift-wrapped packages of love leaping out of my dad’s heart and landing like glitter on my successful brother’s smile.
My parents’ evening wasn’t quite so glittering. My dad had to cancel this extremely important business meeting to drive all the way from London, to our school in Somerset, where the news that hit his ears did not make him smile. “She’s a lovely girl, Mr Parfitt,” my housemistress said, “kind, sweet and helpful, but she struggles with her academic studies. Liberty has more of a natural inclination towards her musical studies and I have to say she really appears to have a talent for it, sir. If she were to be encouraged a little more in this area she may well—”
“Music!” my dad blasted when the parents’ evening was over. “Music, Liberty! You’re unbelievable! I made it perfectly clear to you when you were small how I felt about you pursuing an interest in music and the same remains today. It was music that ruined your mother’s life and I won’t have it ruin yours. My own mother was stupid enough to let me follow my dreams when I was at school and nothing good ever came of it. I should have listened to my father and gone into business from the start, that’s where the security is, Liberty, you mark my words. But no, my dominating mother stuck her nose in and interfered as usual. So, I want you to listen to me good and listen to me hard. You will do as you’re told and follow a sensible career, one that won’t let you down or get you into trouble. You’re going to be twelve years old soon and it’s about time you put your head down and pulled your socks up. I don’t pay a fortune in fees for you to be at one of the best schools in the country so you can mess about. I’m paying for you to get ahead in life and make something of yourself. I want to see an improvement, Liberty, and I want to see it fast. Do I make myself clear?”
