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There was a terrible mistake - Wayside School was built with one classroom on top of another, thirty stories high (The builder said he was sorry.) Maybe that's why all kinds of funny things happened at Wayside-especially on the thirteenth floor.
144 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1978
This isn't a review of Louis Sachar's Sideways Stories from Wayside School.
What this is the mysterious set of events that surrounded a particular copy of this book that I found in a little neighbourhood library in Baltimore. Or rather, a particular copy of this book that found me."Item not found in Catalog."
Odd, I thought. It bore all the marks of a well-loved library book: it had the unique barcode each and every tome had in the system; it had the stamps and seals of the library that held it; hell, it even had water stains and bite marks of toddlers past who mistook the book for a teat! I tried it again."Item not found in Catalog."
And again."Item not found in Catalog."
My eyes narrowed. Again."Item not found in Catalog."
I scoured each and every page looking for any hints of a joke. Was this some prank? Again."Item not found in Catalog."
I looked for the written number that used to identify these books before the barcode system was in place."Item not found in Catalog."
I tried the ISBN, the title, and even furiously typed in Louis Sachar in the database. I looked through each copy the entire library had in every branch throughout the city. I had to admit defeat."Item not found in Catalog."
The book I had in my hand did not exist.It didn't want to be sold.
It didn't want to be forgotten.
It wanted to be found...