Andie Beth Steps

Shearouse Alexuk Jan

Description

All fifteen-year-old Andie Beth Nettles wants to do is play basketball and softball, attend the US Naval Academy, and fly jets. Her life is turned upside down, however, when she must adjust to a new school, friends, and lifestyle. Restrictions, Secret Service agents, and limited freedom all contribute to tension between her and her parents. Andie Beth: Steps, although fiction, can be adapted to book clubs, parent-teen conferences, workshops, retreats, and vacation Bible schools.Andie Beth Nettles reminds me of Holden Caulfield in Catcher in the Rye. Judy Radiker Brenner, Crossville, TennesseeAfter reading the first draft of this book, I always knew it would be published some day.Traci Laine, Virginia City, Nevada

Informations

• Publié par: Inspiring Voices
• Date de parution: 13 septembre 2013
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9781462407323
• Langue: English

Extrait

Copyright © 2011, 2013 Jan Shearouse Alexuk.
 
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the publisher except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.
 
Inspiring Voices books may be ordered through booksellers or by contacting:
 
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Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.
 
Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Thinkstock are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.
 
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ISBN: 978-1-4624-0731-6 (sc)
ISBN: 978-1-4624-0732-3 (e)
 
Library of Congress Control Number: 2013915611
 
 
Inspiring Voices rev. date: 9/10/2013

Contents
Dedication Page
Thank You Page
Prologue
Chapter 1   Election Night
Chapter 2   Transition
Chapter 3   Christmas Part 1
Chapter 4   Christmas Part 2
Chapter 5   The Accident Part 1
Chapter 6   The Accident Part 2
Chapter 7   Last Day at St. Martins Part 1
Chapter 8   Last Day at St. Martins Part 2
Chapter 9   Inauguration Day Part 1
Chapter 10   Inauguration Day Part 2
Chapter 11   First Day at Brockton Part 1
Chapter 12   First Day at Brockton Part 2
Chapter 13   First Day at Brockton Part 2
Chapter 14   Ryan
Chapter 15   The Reception
Chapter 16   Camp David
Chapter 17   The Introduction
Chapter 18   Test Results
Chapter 19   The Shopping Trip
Chapter 20   Happy Birthday
Chapter 21   The Party
Chapter 22   Mama’s Crisis
Chapter 23   The Haircut

 
 
 
 
Andie Beth Steps is a work of fiction. However, it deals with problems and situations faced by modern families. It can be adapted for use in book clubs, parent-teen workshops, weekend seminars, and Vacation Bible School. To learn more about Andie Beth Steps and how to use it in your church or organization, contact the author at: [e-mail] or on Facebook at Andie Beth Nettles.

Dedication Page
This book is dedicated to my mother Amelia, my best friend Elaine, my friends Patricia and Traci who are the four women who believed in me as a writer.

Thank You Page
There are many people I would like to thank for their assistance on this book. First are the daughters of Presidents beginning with Luci Baines Johnson and continuing through Malia and Sasha Obama. Each daughter has brought her own unique style, personality, and challenges to their role.
I first knew I would be a writer when the late Beverly Wolfe Chickering, my third grade teacher at Fern Creek Elementary School in Orlando, Florida wrote the words: “Good Imagination” A- on a short story I had written. She had no idea at the time what an impact these words would have on my future career choice. English teachers: Janet Smith and Lenora Schermerhorn at Edgewater High School were also encou0ragers as well as the late Dr. Steve Yates my public relations professor at the University of South Florida.
In recent years my best friend Elaine Bryant asked me the question: “If you’re a writer, what have you written lately?” This question prompted me to finally write the first draft of “Andie Beth Steps.” Traci Laine worked with me to help fine tune plot issues, and Patricia Starling was “the swift kick in the rear” when I didn’t publish the book on its’ initial schedule.
Special thanks to my early readers: Patricia Starling, Traci Laine, Sharon and Marilyn Dyess, Melissa Morgan, and Whitney Miller. Their input gave me insight in to what will need to be covered in Andie Beth II.
Finally thanks to my mother for her gift of creativity which I was fortunate to inherit, and to God for giving her creativity so I could inherit it.
Thanks to the staff at Inspiring Voices for their assisistance.

Prologue
Andie Beth Nettles is a fifteen year old girl who has many nicknames. Throughout the book she is called by the following names: Andie Beth, A.B., Buzzie, Buzzard, Miss Nettles, Andie B., Andie Beth Nettles, Hyper I, Bumble and Beth. All references throughout the book refer to the same person.

Chapter 1
Election Night
“R achel, are you out there?”
I’m not getting an answer. Let me try again.
“Rachel, ARE YOU OUT THERE?”
When I type in caps, I get her attention. Rachel is my best friend, and I’m checking to see if she is on Facebook®. Rachel’s photo says she’s online. Come on, Rachel answer me before I get caught.
It is election night, and I’m stuck studying for a world history mid-term tomorrow. My parents could have gotten me out of it, but not Mr. and Mrs. Perfect. After all, Andie Beth, how would it look if you skipped the test when all your friends had to take it after I preached education, education, education throughout my campaign?
Oh, by the way, did I mention his campaign was for President of the United States. I hope he loses. Publicly, I smile a lot for the press while hissing under my breath every time he gives a speech. It is election night and instead of being downstairs watching election returns, I’m stuck in my third floor bedroom supposedly studying for the history test.
I HATE HISTORY! Who cares about ancient civilizations? I don’t care what the Romans did. All these Caesars’ have me confused. Names and dates, names and dates is all Mrs. Morgan, my world history teacher, cares about.
Before you think I’m weird or something, let me tell you, I don’t want to be downstairs with all the “La De Da” people involved in Daddy’s campaign. If one more person asks me how I feel about the possibility of Daddy becoming President, I will strangle them. If Mama whispers in my ear one more time to remember my manners, I may strangle her.
I can see the headline now: Future First Lady Murdered by Daughter . How would dear old Daddy react then? Please, God, let the man lose! Surely, people out there aren’t fooled by this guy.
“Rachel, where are YOU?”
She’s with her parents watching the returns. Her dad is running for senator again. He’s been in the senate since she was four years old, and we became friends when Daddy was elected when I was eight. She lives in Washington, D.C. but her family has an apartment in Baton Rouge.
We have to go to family political events like parades, parish fairs, and fundraisers together, and became friends that way. We text on the phone and Facebook® and see each other whenever she is in town. Baton Rouge is only an hour and a half away so she stays here a lot. We are sort of like sisters. Mama calls her, her other daughter. If the truth be known, Mama would rather have Rachel as a daughter. Around adults Rachel is everything I’m not. She plays the game well and is the perfect example of what a young lady should be. Behind closed doors she cuts loose like the rest of us. She even had her belly button pierced without her parents knowing about it and sticks a band aid on it sometimes to cover it up. Of course, Rachel would never expose her belly button in public. Not prim and proper Rachel.
Mama thinks that Rachel is a good influence on me, which is why she lets her stay here.
“Rachel is a straight A student, Andie Beth. You could be too if you would just apply yourself. Mrs. Le Brun says that Rachel comes home from school and dives into her homework. You could learn a lot from your friend.”
I roll my eyes and answer the required “Yes, Mama.”
Again Mama is clueless. Rachel hangs out with me because I live my life the way I want to live it.
“A.B. what is it about your mother?”
“What do you mean?”
“My mom thinks your mother is Superwoman.”
“Earth to Rachel. It’s because Mama is a guidance counselor. Everyone at school thinks it must be great to have such an understanding Mother. All I hear all day is how your mother can really relate to us, and how she is so cool. In other words Rach old buddy, old pal, your mom has fallen under the Lynn Nettles Spell.”
“Well, if it means we can hang out together what difference does it make?”
Our family didn’t move to Washington when Daddy was elected to the Senate. Mama liked her job as a guidance counselor at my high school, and didn’t want to quit work. She didn’t resign until school ended last year to campaign with Daddy. I had to put up with being in the same school with her for my freshman year. Then my brother Trey graduated.
He is a basketball player. Daddy wanted him to play for Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge, where Daddy played football a long time ago. Mama said she was staying here for the good of the children. I think it was her routine she was worried about, but it sounded better to everyone the other way. It makes her appear like the martyr that she pretends to be.
Daddy has a small apartment that he rents in Washington, and comes home almost every weekend. When Congress isn’t in session, he’s here all the time, and that’s when the sparks fly. My parents are hard enough to take one-on-one, but when it is both of them against you, forget it.
“Andie Beth did you do your homework? Andie Beth clean up your room. Andie Beth you know the rules.”
Andie Beth this and Andie Beth that, that’s all I hear with both of them around. Now it’s not that easy. My best tactic is avoidance. I avoid talking to both o