Birdie Mae Hayes is eight years old and lives in a small town in Alabama with her mama; daddy; and little brother, Bubba. Her best friend, Sally Rose Hope, lives just five houses down from her. They have been best friends since the day they were born. Birdie Mae always seems to know when something bad is going to happen. An awful feeling comes over her, and she knows there is nothing she can do about it. The worst part is that awful feeling she gets is never wrong. When Birdie Mae gets that feeling on the first day of school, she knows for sure that her first day as a third-grader isn't going to be good. In fact, she knows it s going to be very bad. "