Betty G. Birney > Quotes

“If you think you are too small to make a difference, you have never been in a dark room with a mosquito”
― Betty G. Birney

“You can learn a lot about yourself by getting to know another species. Even humans.”
― Betty G. Birney, The World According to Humphrey

“Squeak-squeak squeak, squeak-squeak squeak. Squeak . . .”
― Betty G. Birney, Winter According to Humphrey

“got dangerously close to my poo corner—something”
― Betty G. Birney, Winter According to Humphrey

“4. Help somebody (like your mom or dad or teacher) without being asked. Now that’s a nice surprise!”
― Betty G. Birney, Surprises According to Humphrey

“my poo.”
― Betty G. Birney, Winter According to Humphrey

“NOTE TO SELF: Humans tend to pop up where you least expect them-and some of them have whistles.”
― Betty G. Birney, Summer According to Humphrey

“Buenas noches, señores! ¿Cómo estás?”
― Betty G. Birney, Surprises According to Humphrey

“JERK.” Mom”
― Betty G. Birney, The World According to Humphrey

“My poo is just a part of life, but for some reason, it makes children giggle. And it sometimes makes grown-ups nervous. I don’t know why, because I keep my poo FAR-FAR-FAR away from my food”
― Betty G. Birney, Adventure According to Humphrey

“When it was over, no one clapped or said a word. It seemed as if those sweet notes were still drifting around the room. “That was lovely, Sayeh. Thank you for sharing your beautiful voice with us,” Mrs. Brisbane said. I wish she’d speak that way to me someday. Nice. Encouraging. Friendly. Anyway, the tricks continued. And after A.J. told a few riddles, Mrs. Brisbane looked around the circle and said, “Did I miss anyone?” This was the moment I’d been waiting for. No one had noticed, but the night before, I had sneaked one of Aldo’s white dusting cloths into my sleeping hut. I had to act quickly. I pulled out the cloth and crawled under so it completely covered me. Then I stood up and began to shout like I’d never shouted before. “Trick or squeak!” I cried. “Trick or squeak!” Miranda noticed first. “Look!” she yelled. “It’s Humphrey!” I wish I could have seen the faces of my classmates, but it was DARK-DARK-DARK under the cloth. I could hear them, though. First there were gasps, then giggles, then shouts of “Look!” and “Humphrey’s a ghost!” I continued to squeak my heart out until I heard Mrs. Brisbane’s firm footsteps coming toward my cage. “Who did this?” she asked. “Who put that on Humphrey?” No one answered, of course. Not even me. “He could suffocate under that,” she said. “But he looks so cute,” Heidi called out. Mrs. Brisbane didn’t answer. She just said, “Will someone please uncover him?” Golden-Miranda opened the cage door and whisked the cloth away. “Humphrey, you are a riot,” she said. Only a riot? Let’s be honest here: I was a smash hit! Then the room mothers served up cupcakes with orange icing and cups of apple juice, and my classmates played games. Just before the bell rang, Mrs. Brisbane clapped her hands and made an announcement. “Mrs. Hopper and Mrs. Patel and I have consulted”
― Betty G. Birney, The World According to Humphrey

“perfectly quiet”
― Betty G. Birney, Adventure According to Humphrey

“2”
― Betty G. Birney, Secrets According to Humphrey

“worked extra hard the next week, maybe because I was hoping Pa would miss me when I was gone. I already knew I’d miss him.”
― Betty G. Birney, The Seven Wonders of Sassafras Springs

“Lucinda”
― Betty G. Birney, Trouble According to Humphrey

“Last year, I had one of the best classes ever. But I think this class will be even better!”
― Betty G. Birney, School Days According to Humphrey

“To the dock!” Kirk replied with a big laugh. “Get it? To the doc!”
― Betty G. Birney, Adventure According to Humphrey

“Sal”
― Betty G. Birney, The Seven Wonders of Sassafras Springs

“TIP ELEVEN: Be careful. If set free, hamsters are experts at disappearing in a room.”
― Betty G. Birney, The World According to Humphrey

“HUMPHREY’S TOP SECRET SCRIBBLES Sometimes you have to LOOK-LOOK-LOOK To find the very perfect book.”
― Betty G. Birney, Secrets According to Humphrey

“Not with Humphrey in it, you dodo.”
― Betty G. Birney, Adventure According to Humphrey

“Oh,”
― Betty G. Birney, The World According to Humphrey

“vegetables”
― Betty G. Birney, School Days According to Humphrey

“studying ancient Egypt and I thought I’d like to see them, too. Rolling-Rosie’s hand waved back and forth. “Tell me, Rosie, where would you fly?” Mrs. Brisbane asked. “I’d fly out of my wheelchair, straight up to the sky. I’d keep flying all over the world, just like a bird!” Her eyes glowed with excitement. “Where would you go first?” Mrs. Brisbane asked. Rosie thought for a few seconds. “I think I’d like to see those pyramids, too.” Everyone’s ideas were so exciting! Just-Joey wanted to fly like a hawk to Africa, and Small-Paul wanted to fly to outer space in a space shuttle. That’s a LONG-LONG-LONG way to fly! Simon wanted to fly like a dragon to Italy because he likes Italian food. “Especially pizza!” he said. “I could use my fire-breathing to heat it up.” The whole class chuckled at that, including me! Kelsey wanted to fly like a butterfly to any place she could see a professional ballet. “I’m happy to see that your imaginations are working very well,” Mrs. Brisbane said. “Now I want you to continue the paragraph, describing exactly what you’d like to see on your trip and telling us why.” There was a groan from the back of the room.”
― Betty G. Birney, Imagination According to Humphrey

“Although I hadn’t had my hamster ball for long, I loved rolling up and down the aisles of Room 26. You can learn a lot from studying the floor of a classroom. You can find out who is messy (Richie, Mandy) or who is twitchy (Seth, Art). You can even find out who is growing the fastest by seeing whose jeans are a little short (Garth, Sayeh).”
― Betty G. Birney, Adventure According to Humphrey

“Bargainmart!” Richie said. Everybody laughed. I figured Bargainmart must be some kind of store, like Pet-O-Rama.”
― Betty G. Birney, Trouble According to Humphrey

“Simon”
― Betty G. Birney, Mysteries According to Humphrey

“Chinese junk”
― Betty G. Birney, Adventure According to Humphrey

“I’ve wanted to bring Humphrey home since the first day of school.”
― Betty G. Birney, Mysteries According to Humphrey

“I don’t know what color I’ll be when I come back!”
― Betty G. Birney, Adventure According to Humphrey