Free Junie B. Jones Is a Beauty Shop Guy by Barbara Park Page A

How come we’re not there? Are we lost? Huh, Daddy? Did you lose us?” I asked.
    Just then, Daddy pulled into a parking lot.
    “Hey! We’re there! We’re there!” I hollered very thrilled.
    I looked through the window.
    “Yeah, only here’s the problem. I don’t even recognize this place. ’Cause this is not your regular barber shop.”
    Daddy got me out of my seat belt.
    “This is a different barber shop,” he explained. “Someone at work recommended it. Only it’s not actually a barber shop. It’s more of what you’d call…well, okay…it’s a
beauty
shop.”
    My eyes got big and wide at that guy.
    “A BEAUTY SHOP? OH BOY! ’CAUSE I LOVE BEAUTY SHOPS EVEN MORE THAN BARBER SHOPS!”
    I jumped up and down and all around.
    “HEY, EVERYBODY! MY DADDY IS GOING TO A BEAUTY SHOP! MY DADDY IS GOING TO A BEAUTY SHOP!”
    “Shh, Junie B.! Please!” said Daddy.“You
have
to be on your best behavior in this place. I mean it. No acting crazy.”
    I smoothed my jacket very proper.
    “Yeah, only I don’t even know what you’re talking about,” I said. “I never acted crazy in my whole entire career.” After that, I skipped very happy through the beauty shop door.
    There was a lady behind a counter.
    Her face had big, shiny red lips on it.
    “Name, please?” she said.
    “Robert Jones,” said Daddy.
    I stood on my tippytoes.
    “Yeah, only he has other names, too,” I told her. “’Cause some people call him Bob. And some people call him Bobby. Plus today my mother called him Ace.”
    The lady looked over the counter at me.
    “And what is
your
name?” she asked.
    I quick took off my jacket and showed her my name tag.
    “Pinkie!” I said. “My name is Pinkie Gladys Gutzman! ’Cause I just thought of that cute name this morning! And it is adorable, I think!”

    The lady looked funny at me.
    She didn’t ask any more questions.
    Pretty soon, a different lady walked up. And she shook my daddy’s hand.
    “Hello. I’m Maxine and I’ll be cutting your hair today,” she said real nice.
    My eyes popped right out at that woman! ’Cause she was wearing a name tag! Just like me!
    “MAXINE! HEY! MAXINE! LOOK DOWN HERE! I HAVE ON A NAME TAG, TOO!” I hollered.
    Maxine ruffled my hair.
    “Pinkie Gladys Gutzman, huh?” she said. “Well, Pinkie Gladys Gutzman…since you’re already wearing a name tag, I guess that means you should be my helper today.”
    “YES!” I yelled. “’CAUSE I ALREADY KNOW HOW TO BE A HELPER! ONACCOUNT OF SOMETIMES I HELP MY GRAMPA MILLER FIX STUFF. AND LAST WEEK WE FIXED THE UPSTAIRS TOILET! AND I GOT TO TOUCH THAT BIG BALL THAT FLOATS ON TOP!”
    Maxine laughed.
    “Wow…a helper with plumbing experience. This must be my lucky day,” she said.
    After that, she holded my hand. And me and her took Daddy to the sink.
    Then Maxine washed Daddy’s hair. And she let me hold the fluffy towel.
    I holded it real tight in my arms.
    “Look, Maxine! Look at me holding the fluffy towel! See how good I am doing? I am not even letting it touch the floor!”
    Only too bad for me. Because just then, my nose got some itchy fuzzies in it. And I started to sneeze.
    “AH…AH…ACHOO!”
    I sneezed right into the fluffy towel.
    It was soft as a feather.
    That’s how come I wiped my itchy nose on that softie thing. Plus also I blowed a teeny bit.
    Maxine made a face.
    “Yeah, only you don’t have to worry. ’Cause I’m not even contagious,” I told her.
    Then I gave her the fluffy towel to dry Daddy’s hair. But Maxine said, “No, thank you.” And she dried Daddy’s hair with a different fluffy towel.
    After that, all of us went to her giant spinny chair.
    “HEY! I LOVE THIS KIND OF CHAIR!” I said real excited.
    I climbed up there zippity quick.
    “SPIN ME! SPIN ME! SPIN ME!” I hollered.
    Daddy leaned close to my ear. His face did not look pleasant.
    “Get
dowwwwwwn,
” he whispered very chilling.
    I got down.
    Maxine patted my head.
    She gave me a broom.
    It was big and