Elliot Jelly-Legs and the Bobblehead Miracle


 Contents
 
 Cover
 Digital Rights
 Title Page
 Copyright Page
 Dedication
 Chapter 1
 Chapter 2
 Chapter 3
 Chapter 4
 Chapter 5
 Chapter 6
 Chapter 7
 Chapter 8
 Chapter 9
 Chapter 10
 Chapter 11
 Chapter 12
 Chapter 13
 Chapter 14
 Chapter 15
 Chapter 16
 Chapter 17
 Chapter 18
 Chapter 19
 Chapter 20
 Chapter 21
 Chapter 22
 Chapter 23
 Chapter 24
 Chapter 25
 Chapter 26
 Chapter 27
 Chapter 28
 Chapter 29
 Chapter 30
 Chapter 31
 Chapter 32
 Chapter 33
 Chapter 34
 Chapter 35
 Chapter 36
 Chapter 37
 Chapter 38
 Chapter 39
 Chapter 40
 Acknowledgments
 Promo page for My Best Friend is Extinct by Rebecca Wood Barrett
 About the Author and Illustrator
 
 
 
 Landmarks
 
 Cover
 Digital Rights Management
 Title Page
 Copyright Page
 Dedication
 Start of Content
 Acknowledgments
 Promo page for My Best Friend is Extinct by Rebecca Wood Barrett
 About the Author
 
 
 
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 Orca Book Publishers is proud of the hard work our authors do and of the important stories they create. If you are reading this book and did not purchase it or did not check it out from a library provider, then the author has not received royalties for this book. The ebook you are reading is licensed for single use only and may not be copied, printed, resold or given away. If you are interested in using this book in a classroom setting, we have digital subscriptions with multi user, simultaneous access to our books, or classroom licenses available for purchase. For more information, please contact [email protected].
 ivaluecanadianstories.ca
 
 
 
 Elliot Jelly-Legs and the Bobblehead Miracle
 A novel
 
 
 Yolanda Ridge
 Illustrated by Sydney Barnes
 
 
 
 
 
 Text copyright © Yolanda Ridge 2023
 Illustrations copyright © Sydney Barnes 2023
 Published in Canada and the United States in 2023 by Orca Book Publishers.
 orcabook.com
 All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording or by any information storage and retrieval system now known or to be invented, without permission in writing from the publisher.
 Library and Archives Canada Cataloguing in Publication
 Title: Elliot Jelly-Legs and the bobblehead miracle : a novel / Yolanda Ridge ; illustrations by Sydney Barnes.
 Names: Ridge, Yolanda, 1973- author. | Barnes, Sydney, illustrator.
 Identifiers: Canadiana (print) 20220185468 | Canadiana (ebook) 20220185492 | ISBN 9781459833791 (softcover) | ISBN 9781459833807 (PDF) | ISBN 9781459833814 (EPUB)
 Classification: LCC PS8635.I374 E45 2023 | DDC jC813/.6—dc23
 Library of Congress Control Number: 2022934492
 Summary: In this illustrated middle-grade novel, eleven-year-old Elliot relies on his Carey Price bobblehead doll to help him excel on his hockey team.
 Orca Book Publishers is committed to reducing the consumption of nonrenewable resources in the production of our books. We make every effort to use materials that support a sustainable future.
 Orca Book Publishers gratefully acknowledges the support for its publishing programs provided by the following agencies: the Government of Canada, the Canada Council for the Arts and the Province of British Columbia 
 For Spencer. Thank you for turning me into a hockey mom and showing me what determination can accomplish.
 
 
 
 Don’t be discouraged from the improbable.
 —Carey Price
 
 
 
 
 Chapter 1
 “It’s the most important penalty shot of the season.”
 Duncan points his plastic mini stick at me before continuing in a deep sportscaster voice.
 “Star goalie for the red team, Elliot Feldner-Martel, crouches into position. The outcome of the game rests entirely on his shoulders.”
 Feet planted, I sink lower and narrow my eyes at my best friend. He keeps talking as he rushes toward me. “Duncan Bilenki, lead scorer for the blue team, stickhandles into the zone. He dekes to the right, waits for the goalie to commit, then snaps a laser toward the open side—”
 My legs feel like they’re being ripped in half as one socked foot slides away from the other. I’m a millisecond too late. The ball curves past my outstretched pad into the small net behind me.
 “—and scores!” Duncan pumps his fist.
 “I wasn’t ready!” I shout, even though I was totally ready. The angle of Duncan’s shot was as obvious as an illegal crosscheck. I should’ve blocked it. He had even told me what he was going to do. Not that he needed to—I know all his moves.
 We play hockey pretty much