The School Story

Chapters 16 through 18 increase the stakes by deepening the external conflict the girls face with the publishing company, both through Letha’s involvement and through questions of legality. The themes of The Power of Positive Thinking and Perseverance and Honesty Versus Deceit are developed as the characters navigate difficult and challenging interactions. 

Chapter 16 finally unveils Letha’s role as a central antagonist after foreshadowing the troubles she’d bring since the seventh chapter. The conflict with Letha begins when the girls receive a message on their pager from a number that doesn’t belong to Hannah’s mom but comes from the same office. Upon finding out that Letha has commandeered Natalie’s manuscript from Hannah, Natalie and Zoe seek advice from Ms. Clayton. Using poker as a metaphor for complex games, Ms. Clayton advises Zoe to “play some poker” (124). However, Zoe’s first attempt at playing poker nearly costs Natalie the entire book deal. Letha becomes enraged at Zoe’s attempt to negotiate editors, expressing that, “[Zee Zee Reisman] better go and shake her author by the shoulders and get her to wake up” (127). Letha declares that “[u]nless I get an apology, we will not publish that book” (128).

She also nearly fires Hannah because she suspects at first that Hannah had made a secret deal with the author and agent. Hannah worries that “[t]his could delay publication of the book for at least six months, maybe more—maybe forever” (129). Hannah is also sad because “This is what an editor like me hopes for—a new writer with a strong first book who has the promise of developing into something more. That's how an editor gets noticed in this business” (131). Letha’s insistence at taking on The Cheater as her own project not only increases the stakes for Natalie, Zoe, and Hannah but also reveals that Letha “[feels] like she has to keep grabbing more and more for herself” (132), characterizing Letha as selfish, ambitious, and stubborn. 

Letha’s volatile temper and stubbornness are challenged in Chapter 17, however, as Zoe continues to play poker with the publishing company. Zoe’s bold perseverance leads her to send Natalie’s manuscript, along with a cover letter explaining the situation with Letha, to the president of the company, Tom Morton. After the president’s secretary advocates for the book, Tom takes it upon himself to determine the publishability of the manuscript and assign it to Hannah. The success of Zoe’s daring move helps develop The Power of Perseverance theme. However, unbeknownst to Letha, Hannah has been sent a copy of Tom’s email telling Letha to assign the book to Hannah.

This moment is the peak of the tension with Letha, as Hannah understands that Letha has the power to ruin Hannah’s career. The theme of Honesty Versus Deceit is expanded when Letha storms into Hannah’s office after her meeting with Tom Morton. Hannah is so afraid of Letha’s temper that she “tried to keep the right mixture of surprise, confusion, and obedient acceptance in her voice and gestures” (142) to appease Letha and not stoke the flame. Hannah pretends to not be aware that she’s been given The Cheater as an assignment to avoid unnecessary conflict. This deceit on Hannah’s part comes from a place of self-preservation, showing that honesty is not always the wisest route to take. 

Finally, with the matter of the editors resolved, Chapter 18 delves into a different kind of conflict, introducing the problems with legality the girls face when they receive a contract in the mail. Ms. Clayton advises the girls to speak to a lawyer since she doesn’t believe the girls can legally sign the document as minors. Zoe, despite wanting to keep her parents uninvolved, recruits her father to look over the contract. Mr. Reismann, after getting over his initial disbelief about the girls’ accomplishments, informs the girls that they “should be able to sign the this contract and have it be legally binding—provided, of course, that you each have a parent sign an affidavit that says you are entering into the agreement with their full knowledge and consent” (153).

This heightens the stakes for Natalie because she has spent the entire book trying to conceal her identity as The Cheater’s author from her only living parent. This conflict is quickly resolved, however, when Mr. Reisman asks if Natalie has any close relatives. Natalie suggests her uncle, who qualifies as “an adult [with her] best interest in mind” (154). They manage to contact Natalie’s uncle, and he agrees to sign the affidavit. 

Chapter 18 also revisits Ms. Clayton’s side of the plan. After learning all about Zoe and Natalie’s plan, Mr. Reisman calls Ms. Clayton to speak to her about her involvement. Ms. Clayton’s “heart started pounding” because Mr. Reisman “didn’t sound mad, but it wasn’t really a friendly tone either” (158). Ms. Clayton believes she is about to face consequences for her involvement in Zoe and Natalie’s plan, but Mr. Reisman ends up commending her for being “very courageous” and thanking her for teaching the girls “[r]eal stuff in the real world” (160).

Mr. Reisman ends the call by remarking that “[k]ids need teachers who aren’t afraid of life, don’t you think?” (161). Mr. Reisman’s call to Ms. Clayton validates Ms. Clayton’s emotions about her involvement in the plan. Ms. Clayton worried about being labeled a coward when she took the role of adviser, so Mr. Reisman’s call is significant to Ms. Clayton’s character development. These chapters end with resolutions for three major external conflicts: Letha’s involvement, signing the contract, and Ms. Clayton’s fear.