EVERY word matters

I recently started reading a book that grabbed me from the get-go with its distinctive voice:

Beholding Bee by Kimberly Newton Fusco

Distinctive voice is the one element that makes me fall in love with a book more than any other. (Character comes in second.)

So, I'm reading along...la la la....and then....

Screeeeech (That's the sound of brakes)

I came to a word that stopped me in my tracks. 

Or rather, I thought I came to a word that stopped me in my tracks.  

Here's what I thought I read:

Pauline knows I am talking about the old lady in the orange floppy hat.

The word that stopped me was floppy.

That was NOT the right word.

It didn't fit the voice of the writing.

But I shrugged it off and kept reading.

Before long, I came to this:

Pauline does not like me talking about the lady in the orange flappy hat.

FLAPPY hat?

Now that is the right word.  

Flappy fits in just perfectly with the voice of the writing. 

So I went back to the page where I thought I read floppy and guess what? The word was flappy all along.

Phew!

And isn't it amazing how much one little word matters?