14 vocab

Simultaneously- existing, occurring, or operating at the same time; concurrent. The storms came simultaneously.
















Tremendous- extraordinarily great in size, amount, or intensity. The amount of rain was tremendous.













Addicted- devoted or given up to a practice or habit or to something psychologically or physically habit-forming. She had become addicted to marijuana.











Dreadlocked- A natural hairstyle in which the hair is twisted into long matted or ropelike locks. The man's hair was dreadlocked and natty.















Admiration- a feeling of wonder, pleasure, or approval. His admiration for her increased more each day.








Betterment- the act or process of bettering; improvement. She went to collage for the betterment of herself.












Instilling- to infuse slowly or gradually into the mind or feelings. Growing up, my mom was constantly instilling manners into me and my sister.













Prompted- done, performed, delivered, etc., at once or without delay. When you click on that link you will be prompted for a username and password.












Eager- keen or ardent in desire or feeling; impatiently longing. She was eager to hear who won American Idol.











Fulfilled- to carry out, or bring to realization, as a prophecy or promise. She fulfilled the requirement to work at the hospital.

ch 14 questions

How has Ishmael changed?
Ishmael is doing drugs now and he isn't afraid to shoot anymore, before he was an innocent boy.

What has he become addicted too? Why?
Ishmael has become addicted to the white capsules, they give him a lot of energy.

Describe how he felt when he tried all the drugs together?

When he tries all the drugs together, he started to sweat so much he took all his clothes off. His body shook, his sight became blurred, and he lost his hearing for several minutes.

What is the difference between him and the rebels now? Are there any?
I dont think there is a difference between him and the rebels, they do alot of the same things and act the same.

Describe the activities they do.
The soldiers watch movies, do drugs, and practice servicing their weapons.

What does he think about killing now?
Ishmael felt that he was seeking revenge by killing the rebels.

How were they able to watch movies?

They were able to watch movies with a generator, or a car battery.

How was he similar to Rambo?
Ishmael was similar to Rambo because he was killing people.

How has Alhaji and Ishmael changed?

Alhaji and Ishmael are both violent and they enjoy killing and taking over villages now.

Tell me a time where you completely changed to a different person, and why it could be good or bad.
I dont think there was a time where i had changed completely, but i have changed by enrolling my self back in school and trying hard to finished. I think i have changed in a positive way.

What were some things they got from the villages they raided?

When they raided the villages, they gathered gasoline, marijuana, cocaine, clothes, crapes, watches, rice, dried fish, salt, gari, and many other things.

What do they do to capture rebels?
The soldiers capture the rebels after long gunfights.

Are they careful with civilians?
The soldiers are not careful , there are several civilian casualties.

What was making Ishmael feel special?

Ishmael felt special because he felt like he was part of something that took him seriously.

Do you think he is brainwashed? How does the lieutenant control them?
I think they are all brainwashed. The lieutenant controls them by boosting their morale.

Describe the way they practice killing prisoners.
They lined up and sliced the prisoner's throat on the corporal's command.

How did they celebrate each night?
The soldiers celebrate with more drugs and more war movies.

Who won the contest? What was the reward?
Ishamle won the contest and he was promoted to the rank of junior lieutenant.

Does he sleep anymore?
Ishmael doesnt sleep anymore, he said sleep never came to him. I think that it was probaly the drugs.

What do you think of Ishmael now?
I dont think any different of IShmael now, I think that none of this is his fault, and he doesnt hav eany control of his fate.

ch 13 vocab

Inspection- the act of inspecting or viewing, esp. carefully or critically. The house passed the white glove inspection.







Readied- to make ready; prepare. She readied her babies for the day.









Capsules- a gelatinous case enclosing a dose of medicine. The granny had to take two capsules, twice a day.








Tormented- to afflict with great bodily or mental suffering; pain. The boy always tormented the cat.















Gradually- taking place, changing, moving, etc., by small degrees or little by little. She watched the child grow gradually.













Massacres- the unnecessary, indiscriminate killing of a large number of human beings or animals, as in barbarous warfare or persecution or for revenge or plunder. The Nazi soldiers massacred hundreds of thousands of people.













Reverie- a state of dreamy meditation or fanciful musing. The girl was caught in a state of reverie.









Effectiveness- adequate to accomplish a purpose; producing the intended or expected result. She wanted to try the vacuums effectiveness.

13 questions

Why does the corporal tell them to worship their lord?
The corporal told them to worship their lord because they might not have another chance to.

How did they play their swimming games?
The first group to capture all the members of the other group would win.

What was the bag of tablets?
I think the tablets were some kind of amphetamine to keep them energized.

Why do you think Ishmael had tears in his eyes?
Ishmael had tears in his eyes because he was so scared.

What was Ishmael feeling during the fight between the rebels?
He was frozen, he was so nervous and scared that he couldn't shoot.

Do you think you would freeze up?
I think i would probably scared like him and get killed.

What happened to Josiah?
An RPG had thrown him far and it killed him.

What image flashes through his head during the fights?
Every massacre he had ever seen since his life was touched by war was flashing in his mind.

Was he scared of the lifeless bodies? Why?
He was not afraid of the lifeless bodies, they were dead.

What friends did he lose in this chapter?
Ishmael lost Josiah and Musa in this chapter.

What did he dream at the end of the chapter? How did he react?
Ishmael dreamed that he was picking Josiah up off the stump and a gunman was standing over him. He started shooting inside of his tent.

ch12 vocab

Agonizing- accompanied by, filled with, or resulting in agony or distress. The pain from the fall was agonizing.

Complemented- having a complement or complements. he complemented her on her hair style.

Latrines- a toilet or something used as a toilet, as a trench in the earth in a camp, or bivouac area. He had diarrhea so he ran fast to the latrines.


Colleagues- associates. He bragged to his colleagues about his house, in actuality he lived in a run down apartment.

Various- of different kinds, as two or more things; differing one from another. The candy can in various flavors and colors.

Gruesome- causing great horror; horribly repugnant; grisly. The boys halloween costume was too gruesome for school.

Dilemma- a situation requiring a choice between equally undesirable alternatives. His girlfriend gave him a dilemma to leave his wife.

Megaphone- a cone-shaped device for magnifying or directing the voice, chiefly used in addressing a large audience out of doors or in calling to someone at a distance. The P.E. instructor used a megaphone.

Tarpaulin- a protective covering of canvas or other material waterproofed with tar, paint, or wax.The tarpaulin had a hole in it and it let water in.

Dilapidated- reduced to or fallen into partial ruin or decay, as from age, wear, or neglect. The old man's car was dilapidated.

Countenance- appearance, esp. the look or expression of the face. There was a sad countenance about her that night.

Cherishing- to hold or treat as dear; feel love for. She was cherishing her new doll she got for her birthday.

ch 12 questions

1. Describe the men they encountered as they walked.
The men's faces were very dark and their eyes were extremely red.

2. What is the setting like in the beginning of the chapter, and where are they?
They are walking through the forest in the beginning of this chapter.

3. Describe what life was like in the village Yele, what did they do?

The village of Yele was happy and positive. People were living almost normally.

4. Why did Ishmael distance himself from the games? What was going on with him?
Ishmael distances himself from the games because he has really bad migraines.

5. What did he dream? Tell me a dream you had that kept you from sleeping/
He had a dream that he was shot in the head. I don't really have any scary dreams and if i ever do, i just go back to sleep.

6. Describe Lieutenant Jabati.

The Lieutenant was a tall man with little hair. He was quiet, with big eyes, full cheekbones, and dark skin.

7. Does Ishmael join the fight against the rebels? Would you?
Ishmael does join the fight against the rebels. I probably would have, its either join them an maybe die or don't and for sure die.

8. What does lieutenant tell the boys, to get them to see what the rebels have done?

The lieutenant described how rebels had cut off the heads of some people’s families and made them watch, burned entire villages along with their inhabitants, forced sons to have intercourse with their mothers, hacked newly born babies n half because they cried too much, cut open pregnant women’s stomachs, took babies out, and killed them.

9. Do you think Lieutenant Speech was inspiring why?
if i was separated from my family, i think that his speech would've inspired me.

10. What was the training regime like?
The training for them was difficult, especially sine the guns were too heavy for them.


11. What did they use the banana tree for?
They used the banana tree to stab, pretending it was a rebel.

ch. 11 vocab!

Vehemently- strongly emotional; intense or passionate. She finished her assignment vehemently.

Executed- to murder; assassinate. The police executed the child molester in front of the whole city.

Boasting- to speak with exaggeration and excessive pride, esp. about oneself. The woman was always boasting about her beauty.

Hesitantly- hesitating; undecided, doubtful, or disinclined. They turned the corner hesitantly.

Motioned- the action or process of moving or of changing place or position; movement. The traffic controller motioned her to go.

Emerged- to come forth into view or notice, as from concealment or obscurity. The monster emerged from the closet to eat me.

Grieve- to feel grief or great sorrow. After the funeral, the family went home to grieve.

ch 11 collage

ch 11 questions

1. How did the boys grieve Saidu’s death?
All the boys, except Ishmael, sat, cried and comforted each other.

2. Who is Gasemu?
Gasemu was one of the notorious single men in Ishmaels village.

3. What does Gasemu say about his family?
He tells Ishmael that his family has been talking about him and praying for him everyday.

4. How did he feel when he thought of seeing his family again?
Ismael was very excited an happy when he heard his family was safe and that he would be able to see them again.

5. What happened as he was going down the hill?
when they were going going down the hill they heard gunshots, dogs barking, and people screaming and crying.
6. Describe the village after the gunshots?
The village was completely on fire and bullets covered the ground.

7. Why did Gaseu start screaming?
gasemu was screaming because he saw more than twenty people laying face down, dead.

8. What happened to the house Ishmael’s family stayed at?
The house was consumed by fire.

9. Why did he have a guilty feeling?
he felt like if they would have taken a break on the hill, or if they wouldn't have ran into Gasemu, he would have seen his family.

10. Describe the 10 rebels they saw, how were they acting?
They were laughing and giving each other high fives. They had blood on thier clothes and they were smoking marijuana. they were also boasting about how many villages they had burned and destroyed.

11. What were the rebels boasting about?
They were boasting about how many villages they had burned.

12. Could you relate to any of the tragic events in this chapter or do you know some A-holes that are ruthless like the rebels?
I know some gangsters that I grew up with, they are pretty damn ruthless. I know that alot of them have probably shot, stabbed, and probably killed some people.

13. What happened to Gasemu in the end? Where did Gasemu tell the boys to go?
In the end, Gasemu got shot. He told the boys to go to the wahlee.

14. How do you think it made Ishmael feel seeing a familiar face and being recognized?
I think it probably comforted him seeing a familiar face and being recognized.

15. What feeling do you think they were feeling knowing they were close to seeing their families?
I think they probably felt anxious, excited and very happy.


16. Have you ever been so close to getting something you want and have it slip away from you?
Yes there have been some concerts that I wanted to go to but I couldn’t go, but nothing ever this drastic and sad.

17. Do you think any of the boys families made it out of the village?
I think there is a possibility that some families escaped.

ch. 10 questions

1. What is the unsettling thing about Ishmael journey?
One of the unsettling things about his journey was that he wasnt sure when and where it was going to end.

2. Why are they boys always on the move?
the boys are always on the move because they have to survive.

3. Describe Ishmael’s mood in the beginning of the chapter.
In the beginning of this chapter Ishmael seems very fed up, and it seems like hes just waiting for something to happened.

4. What does he compare his journey with?
Ishmael compares his journey with the moon, because the clouds were trying to cover the moon.

5. What does Saidu mean by this “I feel like each time I accept death, part of me dies.”pg.70
Saidu means that every time he sees a death, it kills a part of him.

6. What do spiders symbolize in his culture?
In his culture the spider is the animal that always tricks the other characters.

7. Tell me one of your fondest memories with your family?
One of the fondest memories I have of my family is visiting my dad in prison.

8. What happened to their meat?
A dog stole their meat and ate it.

9. What happened to Musa’s family?
Musa's family was separated when the rebels attacked their village.

10. What was Alhaji doing during the attack?
Aljhaji was getting water at the river when the rebels attacked.

11. What is Kanei’s story of attack?
Kanei escaped with his family, but he was separated from his two sisters and three brothers. Him and his parents jumped into a boat to cross the river. When the boat was in the middle of the river, the rebels began shooting at it. As everyone panicked, the boat capsized, and Kanei swam ashore.

12. Tell me Jumah and Moriba’s story?
Rocket propelled grenades destroyed both their houses during the attack. They ran to search for their parents but they couldn't find them.

13. Why was Saidu’s family unable to leave town during the attack?
i don't know why they werent able to leave town, it doesn't say.

14. What happened to Sauidi’s sister?
His sisters were raped over and over again by the rebels.

15. What do you think of the crow falling out of the sky? What does it mean?
I think that the crow falling out of the sky is an omen that something bad is going to happen.

16. Why were the dogs crying?
i think the dogs started crying because the could tell something was going to happen.

17. Which boy in the group died? What did they do for him?
Saidu dies. They give him a proper burial in the village where he passed away.

18. Tell me some customs in your culture when someone dies?
In my culture we have funerals, casket viewings, and rosaries for the dead. We also go the the cemetery on the persons birthday and the day that they died.

19. What do you think was a fore shadow of death?
I think the crow falling out of the sky and the dogs howling foreshadowed Saidu's death.