Angela Nicely (book)

Angela Nicely is the first book in the Angela Nicely series; a spin-off of the main series.

Miss Skinner's Wig!
Angela, Laura, and Maisie are in the school hall, awaiting assembly. Miss Skinner greets the class and gives them a few orders, but Angela is surprised that her hair has changed from a brown bun to long, red, curly, and worn down. Angela concludes that Miss Skinner is wearing a wig and whispers to Laura about it. Miss Skinner asks Angela what she has to say, but she's too embarrassed to reveal it. In class, Angela, who is sulky about getting in trouble, tells Maisie (who hadn't noticed Miss Skinner's change in hairstyle) that Miss Skinner is wearing a wig, but Maisie accuses Angela of lying. Eventually, Maisie asks Angela to prove it, so Angela decides to do just that, but without asking Miss Skinner directly for fear of her getting angry.

After lunch, Angela convinces Laura and Maisie to accompany her to spy on Miss Skinner through her office window. Angela climbs onto Maisie's shoulders and looks through, but then Miss Skinner sees Angela and screams, startling Angela, causing her to fall into the compost heap. Miss Skinner angrily asks Angela what she was doing. Angela lies that she was looking for her P.E. kit, but Miss Skinner doesn't believe her. Angela clams up, so Miss Skinner punishes her by making her stand outside her office door. Catching sight of the other two girls, Miss Skinner threatens to tell their teacher about them, causing them to become angry with Angela for getting them in trouble.

Angela sulks through her punishment and is then sent back to class. On her way, she sees Mr. Grouch vacuuming and asks him questions about the vacuum, including whether it can suck up hair. When he says it can, this gives her an idea, and she tells Maisie in class that she knows how to prove Miss Skinner is wearing a wig, frustrating Maisie.

When the after-school bell rings, Angela, despite Laura and Maisie's protests, convinces them to stay behind, takes the vacuum, and leads them into Miss Skinner's office. There, Angela turns the vacuum on, but several objects get sucked up and make a mess when she turns it off. Before the girls can clean up the mess, Miss Skinner enters and spots the girls. Angela tries to claim she was attempting to tidy the office as an apology, then she pretends that the vacuum cleaner is broken, convincing Miss Skinner to look into it, and turns it on. It is then revealed that Miss Skinner wasn't wearing a wig after all and she shoos the girls out of her office. On their way out, Angela wonders if Mr. Weakly is the one who wears a wig.

Supermodel!
On Monday, Angela's class has News Time, where Angela is eager to share that the Nicelys are getting a dog, even though her parents haven't had any say. The other students reveal their news while Angela waits impatiently -- Laura went to the park, William cut his knee, and Tiffany's mother is taking her to the casting for a magazine that's looking for girl models. Unfortunately, lessons begin before Angela can share her news, making Angela angry. She thinks being a model isn't a big deal, but the more she thinks about it, she decides that being a model would be fun. At dinner, Angela tells her parents about Tiffany being in the casting, annoying Mrs. Nicely as according to her, Mrs. Charmers likes to brag about Tiffany. When Angela reveals that anyone can be in the casting, Mrs. Nicely decides to audition Angela.

At the casting, the Nicely ladies and the Charmers ladies talk to each other, and Tiffany gives Angela a chocolate bar, but unfortunately Angela gets it on her face and dress.

While Angela is being cleaned up, Tiffany auditions. She is asked what she likes to do, and when she replies that she does ballet, is asked to demonstrate it. Angela's turn is next, and when she is asked what she likes doing, she starts making a list. When she gets to standing on her head, she demonstrates, only for her skirt to flop down. Despite this, she gets the part.

Angela heads to the beach for the photoshoot, excited but annoyed that Tiffany was also chosen. Tiffany is given a dress to wear, while Angela is given some stripy dungarees, which she dislikes as she feels they make her "look like a deckchair". Mrs. Nicely, who also dislikes the dungarees, tells Angela to stay still and not eat anything lest she get them dirty. Bored, Angela decides to get back at Tiffany by tricking her into getting her dress dirty or wet. She goes over to Tiffany and tries to talk her into taking a swim in the sea. When this doesn't work, Angela wades into the ocean, and this works to get Tiffany to follow her in, but unfortunately, a wave soaks Angela. Their mothers arrive with Melanie the photographer, but luckily, Angela gets to pose in a mermaid costume, making Tiffany jealous.

Healthy Holiday!
Angela hears "strange noises" coming from her parents' bedroom and is summoned there by Mrs. Nicely. Angela enters (a bit nervous that Mrs. Nicely is still cross about Angela painting Pusskins's claws) and it turns out that the noises were Mrs. Nicely grunting due to having difficulty zipping up a dress. Angela tries to help Mrs. Nicely, but can't, and offends her by suggesting that she has gained weight. Mrs. Nicely, in a fit of insecurity, decides to book a spa break, which she describes to Angela as a "sort of healthy holiday". Angela wants to come along, and (despite Mr. Nicely believing the spa isn't for children) Mrs. Nicely agrees, exciting Angela.

At the spa, the Nicely ladies meet their trainer Miss Bullock, who is stern and forbids confections and crisps. The next morning, the Nicely ladies are hungry due to having had a small breakfast, and Miss Bullock has them jog in the rain, which tires them out.

At lunch, the Nicely ladies are served beetroot, which Angela hates, and shredded carrot. They finish their lunch but are still hungry, and the only choices for dessert are yogurt or half an apple, which Angela feels are insufficient and she wants to leave. Their next lesson is in the swimming pool, but Angela is disappointed that there aren't any rides and is asked to do a crawl, which she cannot do. She manages to doggie paddle with a rubber float, and at the end of the lesson, Mrs. Nicely is tired and Angela is still alert but she's very hungry due to the small lunch. She then decides that the confiscated snacks must be stashed away somewhere and decides to search for them. After dinner, she looks through the keyhole of the staffroom to see the staff eating the snacks. She is then caught and shooed away.

At midnight, Angela wakes up and tries to sneak out to get some chocolate, but Mrs. Nicely catches her. Angela tells Mrs. Nicely what is going on, and Mrs. Nicely is ambivalent -- she feels Angela is stepping out of line, but also wants a treat. She eventually lets Angela go, so Angela sneaks off, steals a bunch of snacks, and heads back to her room, where the Nicely ladies start eating the snacks. Miss Bullock bursts in and threatens to punish them with more laps, but Mrs. Nicely decides to go home. Angela asks if they can go to Splash City, and Mrs. Nicely reluctantly agrees.

Trivia

 * It's revealed in "Miss Skinner's Wig!" that Angela sees Maisie as her "second-best friend" and that the leftovers from the school cafeteria get put on Mr. Grouch's compost heap.
 * "Supermodel!" reveals that Angela's favourite type of chocolate bar is called a Twizzle bar and that she can stand on her head.
 * "Healthy Holiday" reveals that Mrs. Nicely's favourite food is ginger creams and that Angela hates beetroot and isn't a very good swimmer.