Van Man

About

Van Man

May 30 1977

Van Man was born on the west coast of California at an unknown location inside of an alien space craft.

His nickname is taken from Steven Spielberg's “E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial” movie end credits.

He is a brown mouse with blue eyes and black hair. His clothing matches Chip's so he can attract a blonde girl mouse some day.

Titanic

A blonde girl mouse was born on May 31 in Belfast, Ireland. She is to be known as "Titanic" by her family.

Chapter 1

This is Jenny a vixen. She's very calm and nice when normal. She love too sing and listen music! Her favorite color is the purple, but also love the blue and the green! Jenny looks like Mrs. Fox with purple eyes.

This is... Tornado (Jenny). Her super power is the wind. She's the commander of her own ship. So, be gentle with her.

It's Tornado (Jenny in superhero) on the clouds... It's like if she was in heaven with Van Man.

The story takes place during the tornado season of May 3, 1999 in Oklahoma. After a boy from a neighboring town named Ray Brower went missing and is presumed dead, Van Man and his three friends set out to find the body. During the course of their journey, the three boys, who all come from abusive, dysfunctional families, come to grips with some of the harsh truths of growing up in a small farm town that does not seem to offer them much in the way of a future.

Van Man was 21 at the time of the story, his favorite diversion is writing and storytelling.

The Writer: (voiceover) I was 21 going to be 22 the first time I saw a dead animal. It happened during the spring of 1999- a long time ago, but only if you measure in terms of years. I was visiting in a small town in Oklahoma. There were only farms and twisters and sometimes foxes. But to me, it was the whole world.

Vern: You guys wanna go see a dead body?

Chapter 2

The Writer: (voiceover) It happens sometimes. Friends come in and out of our lives, like busboys in a restaurant.

The Writer: (voiceover) Vern didn't just mean being off limits inside the junkyard, or fudging on his folks, or going on a hike up the road to Jenny's house. He meant those things, but it seems to me now it was more and that we all knew it. Everything was there and around us. We knew exactly who we were and exactly where we were going. It was grand.

The Writer: (voiceover) At the beginning of the school year, Vern had buried a quart jar of pennies underneath his house. He drew a treasure map so he could find them again. A week later, his mom cleaned out his room and threw away the map. Vern had been trying to find those pennies for nine months. Nine months, man. You didn't know whether to laugh or cry.

Chapter 3

Vern: Geez, Van. Why couldn't you have gotten breakfast stuff? Like Twinkies and Pez and Root Beer?

Van Man: Sorry, Vern. I guess a more experienced shopper could have gotten more for your seven dollars.

Chapter 4

[Chris drags Van Man behind the building to show him his gun]

Van Man: What kind of gun is that?

Chapter 8

The Writer: (voiceover) The twister had knocked Ray Brower out of his Keds the same way it had knocked the life out of his body.

Chapter 9

Ace: You got two choices. You leave quietly, we take the body. Or, you can stay, we beat you up, we take the body.

Chapter 10

The Writer: (voiceover) [referring to Chris] Although I hadn't seen him in more than ten years, I know I'll miss him forever.

The Writer: (voiceover) [typing on computer] I never had any friends later on like the ones I had when I was 21.