Frabjous Day
Everyone at our lunch table was silent; our small world had been rocked to the core. Derrick, president of the computer chess club stared at his lunch tray as if it held some sort of threatening, inedible concoction from another planet. Laurel, the leader of my literary discussion group, was pale, looking as though she were coming down with some nasty illness. We had just learned that Frabjous Day, the best and only bookstore in our small town might have to close. Business was just too slow. (The charming name, of course, was from Lewis Carroll's nonsense poem "Jabberwocky.") People were purchasing books online or downloading them to their e-readers. No one seemed interested in a real bookstore anymore. This impacted us not only because our groups met at Frabjous Day, but also because we believed that the bookstore added value to life and the community.
"We need to save Frabjous Day, and we have to get all our classmates involved in the effort," Laurel said, breaking the painful silence. She was right, but the obstacles in our way made climbing Mt. Everest look like a walk in the park. We represented just a few people at our school, and we had no idea how to reach everyone.
"My brother is always quoting his basketball coach," Derrick said, "One word that keeps coming up is 'strategy.' Maybe that's what we need: a unique strategy to get everyone to recognize the value of Frabjous Day and become involved in the store."
I admired the idea immediately. Come to think of it, my literary group had recently read a classical book on strategy called The Book of Five Rings. It was written in the 1600s by a Japanese swordsman, and it describes the necessity of discipline, perception, and outthinking your opponent. I remembered a quote about there being more than one path to the mountaintop, which seemed appropriate.
After several days, we had developed a plan. First we talked with our principal and then with the owner of Frabjous Day. Finally, we set up a big display at school under the banner STRATEGIES FOR SUCCESS. We exhibited books like the Five Rings and a book written by a championship-winning basketball coach. We had a book of political writings by Gandhi and another on effective environmental conservation. I personally selected biographies of successful people, including a biography on a fabulously successful actress. We had a big sign that read: "Build strategies for succeeding at what you love! Visit Frabjous Day this afternoon after school. You'll learn a lot and enjoy free sandwiches and cookies." Laurel thought of that last part because, after all, food always brings people together.
Crowds of students turned up that afternoon. We knew we needed them to actively commit to saving the store. Derrick, a master at chess strategy, devised a personalized group approach for the athletes. He showed students how to play a computerized strategy game, explaining how to use the idea on a personal or athletic level. Under a sign reading "Have a blind date with a book," Laurel set up a display of books covered in brown paper, with a brief handwritten description of the contents that was purposefully vague, yet very enticing. I invited a TV personality who grew up in our town. Everyone wanted to meet a real celebrity! Even better, people got excited about helping each other and the bookstore.
Our local librarian, Mr. Chung, contributed the best idea of all. His college roommate had been the now famous guitarist and singer Joel J. Mr. Chung and Joel were also best friends with Cecily Armstrong, whose latest mystery novel was on the best-seller list. Mr. Chung printed out raffle tickets to be given with each book sold. At the end of the year, some lucky winner would have his or her name in an original Joel J song lyric. Another lucky winner would be a character in Ms. Armstrong's next novel. The raffle was a huge success. There was no doubt that Frabjous Day was going to have many frabjous days ahead.
What is the theme of the story? How is it revealed by the actions of the characters? Use details from the story to support your response.