Granny Torrelli Makes Soup

Granny Torrelli greets Bailey by saying ciao, which means both hello and good-bye in Italian. Granny Torrelli is busy getting all of the ingredients they need ready to make pasta. Rosie helps her grandmother add ingredients, but when it is time for the eggs, Granny Torrelli takes Bailey’s hands to show him how to crack the eggs himself. Rosie realizes that while she, herself, tends to do things for Bailey, Granny Torrelli instead shows him how to do things. This moment helps Rosie realize that Bailey does not need quite as much help as she thinks he needs. She considers herself to be a “take-charge Rosie” (83).

Rosie feels intense affection for Bailey. She thinks, however, about Janine. Janine is a new girl in the neighborhood who Rosie feels is too friendly and makes Rosie feel like an “ice girl, ice queen” (84). Rosie narrates how Janine introduced herself on Janine’s first day in the neighborhood. Janine asked Rosie if she would be her new best friend, and Rosie told her that she already had a best friend. Rosie is offended that Janine would propose being best friends when they have just met. Nonetheless, Rosie then tells her that this best friend is a boy best friend, Bailey, so she does not have a “girl best friend” (86). Rosie says this despite having Marlee, her current closest female friend, as Rosie knows that Marlee cannot go anywhere outside of her home besides school and because Rosie is not allowed inside Marlee’s home because Marlee’s father is creepy. While Rosie does not want an instant friend, she is flattered because Janine must really like her. Rosie and Bailey continue to help with the pasta, and Rosie’s heart feels warm again. “I am an odd Rosie girl” (86), she thinks.

While they make the pasta, Granny Torrelli asks the children what is new on their street. Bailey mentions Janine, and Rosie becomes an “instant ice queen” (88). Bailey wants Rosie to tell Granny Torrelli about Janine, but Rosie cannot speak because her face is frozen. While Bailey tells Granny Torrelli about Janine, Rosie mangles and strangles the dough. Rosie shakes off her jerkiness for a moment and says that Janine is nice. Bailey says numerous nice things about Janine, and Rosie gets upset thinking that she is all of the things that Bailey says Janine is. Rosie is upset because Janine instantly started swooning over Bailey when she met him. She thinks it is silly how Janine tossed her hair when Bailey could not even see such movements. Rosie wants to get rid of Bailey so she can explain her side of the story so Granny Torrelli will be on her side and know why Rosie is being so cold, but then Bailey tells them that Janine wants to learn Braille and that he is going to be her teacher. Granny Torrelli understands how this must make Rosie feel.

Granny Torrelli asks the children if she has ever told them about Violetta. She briefly introduces Bailey to her history with Pardo, and then she says that one day Pardo got a new neighbor, Violetta. Rosie recognizes some ice in her grandmother’s voice. Granny Torrelli tells the children about Violetta’s “long curly hair” (94). She tells about how Violetta flirted with Pardo. She thinks Violetta hypnotized him: “He was stumbling around as if he’d been kicked by a mule” (96). Rosie wants to know what Bailey is thinking. Granny Torrelli says that she did not like Violetta and the way she fawned over Pardo. Bailey looks at Rosie, and they hear a knock on the window.

Rosie introduces Janine to Granny Torrelli. About her grandmother, Rosie says, “[s]he’s mine” (98). Janine is happy to know that Granny Torrelli has heard of her. Rosie has an inside tiger that wants to jump out as Janine expresses surprise at learning that people can make pasta. Granny Torrelli looks to Rosie to make sure the tiger stays in, and then she starts to explain the process to Janine. Rosie does not want Janine to help. Janine explains that she came over because she went to Bailey’s house and Carmelita told her that Bailey was at Rosie’s house. She went to Bailey’s house to see what time Bailey could teach her Braille tomorrow. Granny Torrelli gives Rosie’s tiger a look, but Rosie also realizes that the look also is meant to comfort her. Rosie is worried because she forgot to remind Bailey about their pasta party tomorrow, but she cannot remind him now or else Janine might want to come. Bailey seems to remember the party, however, because he tells Janine that he can teach her on Monday instead. When Janine leaves, Granny Torrelli whispers in Rosie’s ear the name “Violetta.”

Granny Torrelli continues to tell the children about Violetta. She warns them that she is not proud of what she has done in the story that she is about to tell. One day, Granny Torrelli asked Violetta if she ever got too hot with her long and heavy hair, and Granny Torrelli told her that she would look great with shorter hair. Granny was lying. She then lies to her again and tells Violetta that she is good at cutting hair. Violetta gives Granny Torrelli permission to cut her hair, and Violetta is excited as Granny Torrelli snips off a lot of her hair. Granny Torrelli gets worried as she cuts, and she ends up trying to do a good job. The kids ask Granny Torrelli if Violetta looked ugly, but she says that Violetta actually looked more beautiful with short hair than she did with long hair. Bailey finds this funny, but Rosie does not. Pardo really liked the haircut. Granny Torrelli leaves to go to the bathroom.

Bailey asks Rosie if she is jealous. She denies it, but her thoughts are racing because she is jealous. Bailey tells Rosie that she would have no need to be jealous unless she thought Janine was better than her. Things continue to fly inside Rosie’s head. She finds the courage, though, to ask Bailey if he might ever like Janine better than her. Her own boldness shocks her. However, Bailey responds nonchalantly, just saying “I don’t think so” (109). This response makes Rosie’s tiger very angry, and Bailey realizes that Rosie is angry right as Granny Torrelli returns.