If we only had a boat of our own. Then the boat comes along and Wendy, Dick, Beanie and their parents decides to earn the $2,000 purchase price. They take extra jobs, give up vacations, baby sit, wash cars, collect papers, and even breed rats. The project is a complete success until Beanie is hit by a car and taken to the hospital. The boat fund becomes the medical fund and the children realize how unimportant the boat is, compared to Beanie. When Beanie is better, Wendy discovers that she has won a contest and can buy the boat with her prize money. The story, told by Wendy, set in up-state New York, is a warm account of family relationships.

ABOUT the AUTHOR:
COLLIER, Zena. (Zena Hampson). Also writes as Jane Collier, Zena Shumsky. American (born England), b. 1926. Genres: Novels, Novellas/Short stories, Young adult fiction. Career: Writers Workshop in Continuing Education, Nazareth College, part-time teacher; full-time writer. Resident fellow, Yaddo, MacDowell, Saltonstall Foundation, and Virginia Center for the Creative Arts.
Publications:
ADULT NOVELS: A Cooler Climate, 1990; Ghost Note, 1992. Contributor of short stories and essays to journals and magazines.
YOUNG ADULT FICTION: (as Zena Shumsky with L. Shumsky) First Flight, 1962; (as Jane Collier) The Year of the Dream, 1962; (as Zena Shumsky with L. Shumsky) Shutterbug, 1963; (as Jane Collier) A Tangled Web, 1967; (as Zena Collier) Next Time I'll Know, 1981.
YOUNG ADULT NON-FICTION: Seven for the People, 1979.
Address: c/o Harvey Klinger, 301 W 53rd St, New York, NY 10019-5766, U.S.A. Online address: zcollier@earthlink.net