The One and Only Ivan Read Online Free PDF Page B

brings her every night without fail.
    George doesn’t always bring me treats. Stella’s his favorite, but I don’t mind. She’s my favorite too.
    Stella sees that George’s pocket is empty. She gives George a frustrated nudge with her trunk, and Julia giggles.
    Stella moves to George’s left pocket and discovers a carrot. Nimbly she removes it.
    Mack walks past. “Toilet’s plugged up in the men’s bathroom,” he says. “Big mess.”
    â€œI’ll take care of it.” George sighs.
    Mack turns to leave. “Um, before you go, Mack,” George says, “you might want to take a look at Stella’s foot. I think it’s infected again.”
    â€œDarn thing never does heal up right.” Mack rubs his eyes. “I’ll keep an eye on it. Money’s tight, though. Can’t be calling the vet every time she sneezes.”
    George strokes Stella’s trunk. She inspects his pockets one more time, just in case.
    â€œSorry, girl,” George says, as he watches Mack walk away.

elephant jokes
    â€œIvan? Bob?”
    I blink. The dawn sky is a smudge of gray flecked with pink, like a picture drawn with two crayons. I can just make out Ruby in the shadows, waving hello with her trunk.
    â€œAre you awake?” Ruby asks.
    â€œWe are now,” says Bob.
    â€œAunt Stella’s still asleep and I don’t want to wake her ’cause she said her foot was hurting but I’m really, really”—Ruby pauses for a breath—“really bored.”
    Bob opens one eye. “You know what I do when I’m bored?”
    â€œWhat?” Ruby asks eagerly.
    Bob closes his eye. “I sleep.”
    â€œIt’s a little early, Ruby,” I say.
    â€œI’m used to getting up early.” Ruby wraps her trunk around one of the bars on her door. “At my old circus we always got up when it was still dark and then we had breakfast and we walked in a circle. And then they chained my feet up, and that really hurt.”
    Ruby falls silent. Instantly Bob is snoring.
    â€œIvan?” Ruby asks. “Do you know any jokes? I especially like jokes about elephants.”
    â€œUm. Well, let me see. I heard Mack tell one once.” I yawn. “Uhh … how can you tell that an elephant has been in the refrigerator?”
    â€œHow?”
    â€œBy the footprints in the butter.”
    Ruby doesn’t react. I sit up on my elbows, trying not to disturb Bob. “Get it?”
    â€œWhat’s a refrigerator?” Ruby asks.
    â€œIt’s a human thing, a cold box with a door. They put food inside.”
    â€œThey put food in the door? Or food in the box? And is it a big box?” Ruby asks. “Or a little box?”
    I can see this is going to take a while, so I sit up all the way. Bob slides off, grumbling.
    I reach for my pencil, the one I snapped in half with my teeth. “Here,” I say, “I’ll draw you a picture of one.”
    In the dim light, it takes me a minute to find a piece of the paper Julia gave me. The page is a little damp and has a smear of something orange on it. I think it’s from a tangerine.
    I try my best to make a refrigerator. The broken pencil is not cooperating, but I do what I can.
    By the time I’m done, the first streaks of morning sun have appeared in flashy cartoon colors. I hold up my picture for Ruby to see.
    She studies it intently, her head turned so that one black eye is trained on my drawing. “Wow. You made that! Is this the thing you were telling me about before? Art?”

    â€œSure is. I can draw all kinds of things. I’m especially good at fruit.”
    â€œCould you draw a banana right now?” Ruby asks.
    â€œAbsolutely.” I turn the paper over and sketch.
    â€œWow,” Ruby says again in an awed voice when I hold up the page. “It looks good enough to eat!”
    She makes a happy, lilting sound, an elephant laugh. It’s