Reading Club

• Engels
• Middelbare school
• mavo, havo
• Leerjaar 1

Ch. 13-15 

3 February 2021

What does the word mean?
You'll be surprised what you can
'accomplish'
if you set your mind to it.

What does the word mean?
But first I want you to fill everyone's
'canteen'.

What does the word mean?
After an hour or so, his sore muscles
'seemed'
to loosen up a little bit.

What does the word mean?
He dug his shovel into the earth and threw it on the
'dirt pile'.

Why didn't X-Ray want to talk about the tube during breakfast?

Ch. 16+17 

10 February 2021

"Glad you're here, X-Ray," she said to him. "We need your sharp eyes."
What does X-Ray have to do with sharp eyes?

What does the word mean?
Stanley spent more time pushing the 'wheelbarrow' than digging, ...

What is Stanley's dad busy with? What is he trying to 'accomplish'?

He's trying to recycle old sneakers (BrE trainers) by boiling them. It gives off a strong smell.

Why did ZigZag hit Stanley with his shovel?

Because Stanley 'seemingly' left his dirt pile for ZigZag to scoop up.

Which words did you underline?

Ch. 18+19 

17 February 2021

Why is Magnet called 'Magnet'?

Because he's good at stealing things. "My fingers are like little magnets."

What does the word mean?
There were no 'mirrors' in camp, but Stanley imagined he looked like he had a hard-boiled egg sticking out of him.

What does the word mean?
You don't have to 'teach' me how to write.

What does the word mean?
Stanley was thankful that there were no 'racial problems'.

Which words did you underline?

Ch. 25-26 

10 March 2021

What does the word mean?
After an hour or so, his sore muscles
'seemed'
to loosen up a little bit.

What does the word mean?
You don't have to 'teach' me how to write.

"Doc Hawthorn was almost completely bald, and in the morning his head often smelled like onions."

What does this suggest about the doctor?

He believed in Sam's concoctions and the ointment that would cure baldness (p. 108)

"People passing by would stop and 'admire' the school"
What does 'admire' mean?

Chapter 26

• Teacher Katherine (Kate) Barlow falls in love with the black (negro) onion picker Sam
  
• They kiss, but a black man is not allowed to kiss a white woman
  
• They flee together, but Sam and his donkey are killed
• Kate takes revenge by killing the sheriff and kissing him wearing red lipstick afterwards
• She becomes known as the outlaw 'Kissing Kate Barlow' for twenty years

Which words did you underline?

Ch. 28-29 

17 March 2021

Chapter 26

• Teacher Katherine (Kate) Barlow falls in love with the black (negro) onion picker Sam
  
• They kiss, but a black man is not allowed to kiss a white woman
  
• They flee together, but Sam and his donkey are killed
• Kate takes revenge by killing the sheriff and kissing him wearing red lipstick afterwards
• She becomes known as the outlaw 'Kissing Kate Barlow' for twenty years

"She knew she was crazy. She know she'd been crazy for the last twenty years."
What does 'crazy' mean?

"You've got exactly ten seconds to tell me where you've hidden your loot."
What does 'loot' mean?

What do you know about "God's thumb"?

It's the rock formation where Stanley's great-grandfather had found refuge after having been robbed and left in the desert by Kissing Kate Barlow.

Which words did you underline?

Ch. 30-31 

23 March 2021

"He was a lot stronger than when he first arrived. His body had 'adjusted' somewhat to the heat and harsh conditions."
What does 'adjusted' mean?

"He was a lot stronger than when he first arrived. His body had 'adjusted' somewhat to the heat and harsh conditions."
What does 'adjusted' mean?

Give a brief (='kort') summary of chapter 30+31

What happened with Zero and why?

Which words did you underline?

Ch. 32-34

31 March 2021

Why did Stanley want to use the car to drive away?

He wanted to look for Zero in the desert.

What happens if one of the yellow-spotted lizards bite you?

You die 

What did he find in the middle of the desert on his way to the Big Thumb?

A boat. The Mary Louise

Which words did you underline?

Ch. 36+37

21 April

Give a brief summary of Ch 36+37.

Which words did you underline?

Ch. 39+40

12 May

What does Zero confess to Stanley about the shoes?

That he had stolen the shoes which caused Stanley to be sent to Camp Greenlake

What does the flashback into the past about Sam and his onions tell us?

That Sam's onions have healing powers. They can cure people who feel ill.

Which words did you underline?

Ch. 42+43

18 May

How many onions have they eaten?

Two hundred and eighty onions, according to Zero.

What is the plan?

Dig the hole in which Stanley found the tube further and try to find the treasure. Then steal food and water at the camp and head for a city or village. (escape)

Which words did you underline?

Ch. 44+45

26 May

What does 'barefoot' mean? (p. 204)

Without any shoes (and socks). Naked feet.

And what do you think 'bare-chested' means then? (p. 204)

Naked chest/torso/upper body.

Which words did you underline?

Ch. 47+48

7 June

What is happening in chapter 47?

Stanley's attorney (=advocaat) arrives and argues with the warden. Then they can finally get out of the hole and the Warden tries to grab the suitcase, which has Stanley's name on it...

Which other word for 'attorney' (=advocaat) do you find on p. 217?

lawyer

Where is Hector Zeroni's file?

They destroyed it, after he had gone missing, so nobody would ever know he had died.

What happens to Zero at the end of chapter 48

He is released, because there's no file about him. So no one officially knows how long Zero has already been at the Camp and why.

Which words did you underline?