ch 17 vocab

Delved- to carry on intensive and thorough research for data, information, or the like; investigate. In an effort to learn more about her family's history, Christine delved into a box of old photos.



Conversation- informal interchange of thoughts, information, etc., by spoken words; oral communication between persons; talk. They had an extensive conversation about politics.




Burdensome- oppressively heavy; onerous. Having a baby so young was burdensome.






Wharf- a structure built
on the shore of or projecting into a harbor, stream, etc., so that vessels may be moored alongside to load or unload or to lie at rest; quay; pier. They waited at the fisherman's wharf until the sun set.





Cringe- to shrink, bend, or crouch, esp. in fear or servility; cower. The sight of the road kill made her cringe.





Genuine- possessing the claimed or attributed character, quality, or origin; not counterfeit; authentic; real. The man told her it was a genuine hand bag.







Anguish- excruciating or acute distress, suffering, or pain. The death of her daughter caused her great anguish.








Rastafarianism- a religious cult, originally of Jamaica, that regards Africa as the Promised Land, to which all true believers will someday return, and the late Haile Selassie I, former emperor of Ethiopia, as the messiah. The family practiced Rastafarianism.







destination- the place to which a person or thing travels or is sent. They finally reached their destination after three days.










somber- gloomily dark; shadowy; dimly lighted. The mood at the funeral was somber.

ch 16 vocab

infuriating- causing or tending to cause anger or outrage. It was infuriating being in the same room as the accused murders.







civilian- a person who is not on active duty with a military, naval, police, or fire fighting organization. Hundreds of civilians were killed in the bombings.










vengeance- infliction of injury, harm, humiliation, or the like, on a person by another who has been harmed by that person. She sought vengeance for the man who raped her.







cringed- to shrink, bend, or crouch, esp. in fear or servility; cower. She cringed at the sight of the rat.








illuminated- to supply or brighten with light; light up. The lamp illuminated the room.









maneuver- a planned and regulated movement or evolution of troops, warships, etc. The cop used a pit maneuver to stop the high speed chase.







kiosks- a small structure having one or more sides open, used as a newsstand, refreshment stand, bandstand, etc. She worked at a Verizon wireless kiosk.






apprentice- a person who works for another in order to learn a trade. He worked as an apprentice under a carpenter.











looted- spoils or plunder taken by pillaging, as in war. People looted all the stores during the flood.






sporadic- (of similar things or occurrences) appearing or happening at irregular intervals in time; occasional. The probation officer showed up sporadically.

ch 17 questions

Describe the nurse in your own words.

The nurse’s uniform and hat were white. Her teeth were white and she had dark shiny skin. She had big brown eyes and a charming smile.

Why were Ishmaels friends teasing him about? Have you ever been in that situation. What did your friends tease you about?
Ishmaels friends were teasing him about having talks with Esther. My friends have teased me about having crushes.

What did the nurse tell Ishmael about them being friends?

The nurse told Ishmael that if he wanted to be friends that she would have to trust him first.

When he was talking to the nurse he was quiet in the beginning, and he stated he didn’t trust anyone in his life.
Why does he feel this way? Give me examples.

I think Ishmael feels he doesn't have anyone to depend on. Everyone in his life has disappeared. He needs to work on building relationships with people.

Have you ever been in a situation where you feel the same as Ishmael?
I have felt the same way Ishmael is feeling. I went through a stage where i didnt trust anyone and didnt reall have many friends.

What did the nurse give Ishmael?
The nurse Esther gave Ishmael a walkman and a cassette.

How does Ishmael respond when he unwraps the gift? Why??
Ishmael asked her why she had bought him the gift. He seemed surprised.

Describe when Ishmael shot the prisoners that had allegedly shot him.

To make the prisoners suffer, Ishmael shot them in the feet and then waited a day to kill them. He described their eyes as irritating.

What was Esther’s response to Ishmael’s story?
Esther cried and told Ishmael that it wasn’t his fault.

Why didn’t Esther want Ishmael taking the walkman with him?

Esther thought that the others boys would be jealous and steal the walkman from him.

What stood out to you the most about his story of his past ? why/?
the thing that stood out most about is that he really didnt notice or seemed to care about being shot.I

What do you think about his lieutenant?
I think Ishmaels liutenant was coldhearted and very mean.

What did Ishmael see when he tried to remember his child hood?

When Ishmael tried to remember his childhood, he couldn’t, he would flash back to the first time he slit a man’s throat.

Explain his surgery, how did the doctors fix him up. Detail
The doctor started working before the drugs kicked in. The doctor stuck a crooked -looking scissors inside the wound and fished for the bullet.

What is the worst thing you have ever endured?explain.
Once i broke my elbow. It was pretty messed up and I couldnt write in school. It hurt really bad.

What did he do right after he gained consciousness?
Ishmael started cleaning his weapon when he gained consiousness.

What did he do to the “people responsible for his foot”

To make the prisoners suffer, Ishmael shot them in the feet and then waited a day to kill them. He described their eyes as irritating.

When he gets flashbacks, how does he feel? Have you ever received flashbacks, what are they of?

Ishmael feels ovewhelmed when he sees his flashbacks. I have flashbacks regarding my childhood.

Why did Esther come on her Day off?

Esther came to take Ishmael to the hospital and for a tour of the city.

What cassette did the field worker buy him at the market?

The field worker bought Ishmael a Bob Marley cassette, the Exodus album.

Why do you think song writing is a passion for Ishmael?
No i think that when he copies lyrics from songs he likes it lets him escape.

Have you ever written a song? Why?
No i have never written a song.

Why did Ishmael like the story of Rastafarianism and King Solomon and the queen of Sheba?

He related to the long distance they traveled and their determination to reach their chosen destination.

He listens to Bob Marley to avoid nightmares, what is your favorite song from Marley? Why?
My favorite Bob Marley song is No More Trouble with Erykah Badu. Its about war and the negative effects of it.

What phrase did Ishmael start to believe?

Ishmael started to believe that the things he did was not his fault.

Ester is like a savior for him, who is your person that has helped you out of your rut?
I think I would consider my mom as my savior. She stays on back about school, but she isnt to bad.

Why did Ishmael like talking to Esther?
Ishmael liked talking to Esther because he felt like she didn’t judge him

ch 16 questions

What made him infuriated? why?
Ishmael got infuriated by the civilians telling him what to do.

How did they feel about attending scheduled medication checkups?
When the staff members and nurses told the boys about attending scheduled check ups, they threw bowls, food, spoons, and benches at them.

What was the result of them not having drugs?
They craved the drugs so badly, it mad them more violent.

What do they do to the cooks? why?
The boys placed a bucket over the cooks head and pushed him around the kitchen because he wouldn't put more cream in their tea.


Have you ever bullied anyone, what did you do?
Yes I have bullied someone, a girl in high school. She had a big gap in her teeth and I told her that she could floss with jump rope.

What was happening to the drugs in his system? What did he do because of it?
The drugs in Ismael's system were wearing off. He searched his pockets for crumbs of weed. He became more violent.

Can you relate to his cravings? what have you craved so badly that made you do something crazy?
I can relate to craving a cigarette, but not as badly as he describes.

what do they do in between meals? give me examples from chapter of what they would do.
Between meals the boys would fight, for no reason.

Why do you think the staff members would come back after getting beaten up?
I think the staff members want to rehabilitate these boys and the staff members don't want to give up on them.

who is Poppay? and what did they want from him? why?
Poppay is the man in charge of storage, the wanted dry mattresses from him.

How would you feel if you were a staff member and had to go through this every day?
If I were a staff member being treated like this, I would probably give up.

Why was he getting so many migraines?
Ishmael was getting so many migraines because he was coming down from the drugs and he was stressed out.

what did they do to the classroom? what happened to him because of it?
The boys decided to break the glass windows in the classroom, Ishmael broke them with his hand and he had to go to the nurse to get it taken care of.

What did they do with the school supplies? How did they get them?
They had been given the school supplies from the staff members. They would usually make campfires with them, but they decided to sell them instead.

Where did they go after breakfast?
They went to the capital city Freetown.

When they went to villages what are they scouting for?
The soldiers were searching for anything they can find; marijuana, cocaine, food and ammunition.

Tell one incident that happened at a village.
Ishmael got bruises all over his body from getting grazed by bullets.

What famous movie do they refer all their war moves from?
They make reference to the movie Rambo when they talk about their moves.

Did they let anyone live in the village?
They didnt let anyone in the village live because they were all rebels.

who got the name little rambo?
Alhaji’s nick name was little Rambo.

What was the nickname Ismael got? why?

Ishmael was given the nick name little snake.

He tried to sleep without medicine, what would happen to him? what were some things that kept him up or wake him up?

Ishmael would be woken up by nighmares.

Tell the seasons for Sierra Leone.
The rainy season in Sierra Leone is between May and October, the heaviest rains fall in July, August, and September.

What did they do when they didn’t have enough money to get home?
They ran from the bus when it stopped.

What were some of the things they did at night?
At night they would take their mattresses outside and sit on them until the morning.

Why do you think they couldn’t sleep?
I think the boys couldn't sleep because they still have drugs in their system and it makes it hard for them to go to sleep.

Why do you think the staff member would always say “This isn’t your fault”?
I think the staff members keep telling the boys that it isn't their fault to make them feel better.

ch. 15 collage

ch. 13 collage

14 collage