The Man Who Loved Clowns

Content Warning: This section of the guide includes discussion of bullying and ableism.

Delrita Jenson is an 8th grader in Tangle Nook, Missouri. It’s the beginning of the school year, and there’s a new girl in Delrita’s class named Avanelle Shackleford. Delrita and Avanelle share a textbook in math class, and they become friendly. One day, Avanelle asks Delrita if they can study together, but Delrita declines because she doesn’t want Avanelle to come to her house. Avanelle pulls on Delrita’s shirt and follows her as she walks home, but Delrita wishes Avanelle would leave her alone. She is afraid that Avanelle will find out about Delrita’s Uncle Punky, who has Down syndrome.

Avanelle asks Delrita if she’s always lived in Tangle Nook, and Delrita replies that her family used to live in the countryside on a farm. Avanelle says that her family just moved to Tangle Nook from St. Louis. Delrita wonders why anyone would move from a major city to a small town like Tangle Nook.

Delrita thinks of herself as being “invisible” at school. Her classmates generally avoid her, and she avoids them. She thinks that Avanelle is just too new to realize this about Delrita. Delrita sometimes overhears her parents’ conversations about her—they worry that she is too socially isolated.