CHAPTER 0
The Five Most Important Things about Me
There are several important things you should know about me before reading my book. Usually I charge a dollar for this information, but for a limited time only, it’s free.
1. My name is Wednesday August Wilson. But you can call me Wednesday. I was supposed to be born on a Friday in September, but instead I was born on a Wednesday in August. My moms hadn’t picked a name yet.
2. I have two moms (a mom and a mum, to be precise), which is confusing for some people but not when they get to know me. Some people ask which one is my real mom, because I’m mixed race and I don’t look exactly like either one of them. Lately I’ve stopped answering, because clearly they’re both real! And really, it’s no one’s business, right?
3. I have a little brother named Mister. Our moms let him change his name last year because he stopped listening when people called him (especially his preschool teacher, Ms. Hill). At first, everyone thought he had a hearing problem, so they took him to a ton of ear specialists. But it turned out he just didn’t like his name anymore. When our moms said he could change it, he first chose the name Moo. “We’re not calling you Moo, mister,” my mum said. And that’s how he got the idea to go by Mister.
4. My best friend is Charlie Lopez. We have been friends since we were two weeks old. We hang out a minimum of nine times a week, not including recess and lunch, or when he’s at swimming lessons or his dad’s house for the weekend. It would be even more, but our teacher, Ms. Gelson, doesn’t group our desks together anymore because we talk too much. I’m 82 percent sure she has superhuman hearing, because even when we whisper, she can still hear us.
5. THE MOST IMPORTANT THING: I’m going to be an entrepreneur. It’s a hard word to say for something so simple, but it sounds like this: on-tra-pren-ur. It’s basically a fancy word for someone who runs their own business and makes tons of money. I haven’t started any businesses yet, but I’m pretty sure today is the day. That’s why I’m so excited you’re reading this book — you get to know me before I make it big, so later when there’s a movie about me, you could be interviewed and tell the director how nice I am.
Maybe you’re reading this in class and the bell is about to ring, or you’re at home before bed and your eyes are tired, so I have to get to the good stuff! Business! I’ve had a lot of business ideas floating around lately, which is a good thing because I have a big, long list of things I want to buy once I’m a successful entrepreneur. In fact, it’s the longest list I have. (If I shared it all here, it would take a whole month just to read it.) At the top of my list is a surprise vacation for my family, so that we can come back from winter break with those tags on our jacket zippers that show people we went skiing. There’s no end to my list because I keep adding to it.
But if you think money is the only reason I want to start my own business, then you’re wrong. I know from being a big sister that I’d make a good boss, since I’m really good at making rules (but not so good at following them). Plus, if you run your own company, you can bring your puppy to work!
