Sister
- Since we're onto Part 3 of this book and it's titled "Sister," we've got an inkling we're going to hear a lot about Sal. And we're right. But don't go thinking that it'll be all rainbows and roses because right now Billy is seriously peeved at his little sis. Apparently she's crying like nobody's business (though maybe everybody's business is a more accurate term when it comes to sob fests).
- The narrator backs up a bit to give us the full scoop: Sal and Billy have a babysitter named Gabby taking care of them for the night while Mama and Papa are in Chicago. The cool thing is that there's an art gallery there showing Papa's assemblages—they're even throwing him a party—but the not-so-cool thing is that Sal's been pretty upset about Mama and Papa being gone. But she, Billy, and Gabby still have big plans to trek through the snow to a restaurant called Ruby's Cupboard.
- Honestly, Billy's night had already been a bit of a bummer before the waterworks started. You see, the sleepover he was going to have with Ned had to be cancelled because Ned's sick. To boot, he and Ned had big plans to pull their first all-nighter ever. Billy figures he can stay up all night on his own instead, and that'll still be pretty rad.
- So after all that drama going down, Sal crying like crazy when their parents left was the last straw for Billy. And that's why he's hating on his sister so much right now. But there's happiness on the horizon, folks, because she's finally calmed down and they're off to get some grub. Nom nom nom.