Leslie (book chapter)

Illustrated by Tim Heitz

"**Leslie**" is the eighteenth chapter of *Sideways Stories from Wayside School*.

## Synopsis

Seeing no use for her toes, Leslie considers selling them to Louis.

## Plot

This chapter introduces Leslie, a girl with five fingers on each hand, five toes on each foot, one hand for each arm, one foot for each leg, and most importantly, two long, brown pigtails that reach to her waist. However, Leslie has a problem. Despite knowing exactly what to do with her hands, fingers, and feet, she has no idea what to do with her toes. As far as she is concerned, they are useless. She tries to get advice from her classmates. Sharie suggests Leslie should suck her toes, because that's the easiest way for her to fall asleep. However, Leslie can not get her foot in her mouth, so she decides against this. Dana says she can use it to scratch her legs, but Leslie's legs don't itch. Dana suggests she can help her scratch her legs, but Leslie decides against it, too.

Leslie then spots Louis and decides to ask him for help. She hops on his shoulders and asks him what to do, and Louis notes there is a problem. Louis tells Leslie that he'd be willing to solve the problem by taking them away - he asks her to cut them off and give them to him. When Leslie refuses, Louis elaborates by telling her he can give them to Miss Mush and have her make little hot dogs out of them. When Leslie neglects this offer, Louis offers to give a nickel apiece for them. Leslie objects at first, but as she starts thinking, she realizes there are plenty of things she could get with fifty cents.

Leslie goes back to class and asks Mrs. Jewls if she should accept Louis's offer. Mrs. Jewls is pretty sure Louis is pulling her leg. Leslie claims this isn't true, because Louis is actually pulling her toes. Mrs. Jewls is curious what Louis wants with her toes, and Leslie admits she isn't sure, but she's willing to accept the offer if she can get fifty cents. At lunch, Leslie tells Louis that she's willing to sell her toes, and Louis decides to take one last look at her toes, so Leslie takes her shoes off so he can see her toes before buying them. He decides that only the big toes are worth five cents, and the smaller toes are worth much less, three cents at most. Leslie denies this offer, then Louis suggests to just give him the biggest toes and call it a day. They bargain, but they can't agree. Ultimately, Leslie refuses to sell her toes as a complete set, thus losing the deal. As she leaves, Louis offers her a dollar apiece for her pigtails instead, but Leslie finds that outrageous.

## Characters

* Leslie
* Mrs. Jewls
* Paul (mentioned)
* Sharie
* Dana
* Louis
* Miss Mush (mentioned)

## Trivia

* The true purpose of toes is to provide balance and help people walk. If Leslie did cut her toes off, not only would it be *very* painful, but her legs will never be able to support her weight making it quite difficult to walk or even get up.
* Dana's legs itching in this chapter may reference the chapter "Dana."

## Gallery

Dennis Hockerman illustrationJulie Brinckloe illustrationAdam McCauley illustration
### Foreign editions

Peter Allen illustration (UK)Satoshi Kitamura illustration (Japan)Unknown illustrator (China, Simplified Chinese)