What is the setting of the novel
1967 Long Island, NY Mostly takes place at Camillo Jr. High School
Holling uses the word "perfect" a lot when describing his house
why do you think he does this? Describe the irony, The "Perfect House" is located right in the middle of the town between the Jewish side and Catholic side. Holling's family (mainly Mr. Hoodhood) wants everyone on the outside to believe that their family
With which character from Treasure Island does Holling identify
Holling identifies with Jim Hawkins from Treasure Island since he is in the same position: feeling overrun by Doug Swieteck's brother, teachers, his dad, everything. He feels that he needs guts like Jim Swieteck.
Holling complains to his family that Mrs. Baker hates him yet they are unsympathetic. Why do you think this is?
, His family's reaction was typical of this time period. Teachers weren't questioned for their tactics, their word was powerful, and there was a reluctance to challenge adult authority. His family thought that he was just being paranoid and needed to figu
Explain why Holling has to spend Wednesday afternoons alone with Mrs. Baker. What does he think Mrs. Baker is planning?
ALL of Holling's peers attend religious (either Catholic or Hebrew) classes Wednesday afternoons. Since he is Presbyterian, he stays at school with his teacher. Holling feels that she is out to get him because she hates him.
Who is Lieutenant Tybalt Baker and where is he going?
Lieutenant Tybalt Baker is Mrs. Baker's husband. He is going off to the Vietnam war with the 101st Airborne Division.
Why doesn't Holling complain to Mrs. Baker about cleaning erasers and straightening her classroom?
Holling would never dream of complaining to Mrs. Baker because she is the teacher and he is a student AND because his father made it 100% clear to him that Hoodhood and Associates is going to try to get the contract for the Baker Sporting Emporium......he
What are the priorities for Holling's father?
Holling's father's priorities are work, keeping up the image of his architecture firm, and getting the contract for the Baker Sporting Emporium.
What happens to the cream puffs? Why doesn't Holling tell anyone about them?
Mrs. Baker is in charge of bringing the cream puffs to an event later on in the afternoon. She asks Holling to bring them up to the classroom to cool instead of going outside for recess. Everyone threatens Holling that he better not get a cream puff. Once
What is the conflict between Mr. Hoodhood and his daughter
Heather does not believe in the war and having innocent lives lost in battle. She is a peace-lover flower child (kind of) and is vocal about it. Mr. Hoodhood feels that his chance to become the 1967 Chamber of Commerce Businessman might be jeopardized if
Heather said, "I want support for believing in something bigger than me." What was she referring to?,
Heather is referring to her protesting the war, protesting her father and being who or what you want to be in the future.....not become what others think you should be.
What does Mrs. Baker mean when she says to Holling that "we have been wasting our opportunities"?
Mrs. Baker means that they have Wednesday afternoons for extra learning. She thinks that Holling is smart enough to read Shakespeare.
Who are Sycorax and Caliban? What happens to them?
Sycorax and Caliban (named after two of Shakespeare's characters) are rats that Mr. Baker gave to Mrs. Baker. They, accidentally, escape while Holling is cleaning out their cage.
Which Shakespearean play does Holling read first? What does Holling think Mrs. Baker's intentions are in getting him to read this play? Does he think she succeeds?
The first play that Holling reads is The Merchant of Venice. He thinks Mrs. Baker chose Shakespeare to bore him to death. No, he does not think she succeeds because he enjoys it and can relate to the character Shylock.
What are Holling's final thoughts about the character Shylock?
Holling can relate to the character Shylock. He feels that Shylock couldn't be anything except for what he was. The other characters would not allow him to be anything other than that; they would not allow him to change. Holling is a lot like Shylock mean
What is the second Shakespeare play Holling reads?
The second play read is The Tempest.
Why does the character Caliban fascinate Holling?
Holling is fascinated with the character Caliban because he knew cuss words. Holling decided to learn all of them by heart even if he didn't know their meanings. He mastered them and learned how to deliver them so their connotation would be taken correctl
How does it come about that Holling takes part in the Long Island Shakespeare Company's Holiday Extravaganza?
Holling is pressured by some of his peers to produce cream puffs...OR ELSE. So, he takes his allowance to Goldman's Bakery. He does not have enough money and asks if he can work it off. Mr. Goldman responds by saying that what he really needs is a boy who
What are Mrs. Baker's thoughts on how The Tempest ends? What are your feelings about Mrs. Bakers' comments?
Mrs. Baker feels that there is a part of all of us that can be so awful. She would have liked to see what would have happened if Caliban were given the opportunity to grow from his defeats and perhaps change his outlook which would change his character.
What happened to Mrs. Bigio's husband?
Mrs. Bigio's husband is killed fighting in the war. He was killed at night during a reconnaissance mission. It took three weeks, but the body of First Sergeant Anthony Bigio of the US Marine Corp was brought back home to rest. Never before has Holling hea
What part does Holling get in the Shakespeare Company's Holiday Extravaganza? How does he feel about it?
Holling's part in the play is Ariel the Fairy/Warrior. He is not happy about it because he feels he will look like a fairy and has to wear yellow tights.
What do Danny Hupfer's actions during the incident at the Baker Sporting Emporium tell you about him
Danny immediately walks over to Mickey Mantle and tells him he doesn't need the signed baseball. Mickey Mantle is no longer a 'god' in his eyes if he would treat a person that way. It shows that Danny is a kind person and stands up for what he knows in hi
When gods die they die hard" (page 93). What is the metaphorical death here?,
The metaphorical death here is of Mickey Mantle, the Yankee baseball player. Young boys, especially, idolized him and would have stopped at nothing to get a signed baseball. To kids, he was god-like......until he acted like such a jerk to Holling. It was
Why is Mrs. Bigio mean to Mai Thi in the lunch line?
Mrs. Bigio is mean to Mai Thi because she blames "her people" (the Vietnamese) for the death of her husband.
How does Mrs. Baker make up for what happened at the Baker Sporting Emporium?
Mrs. Baker's brother-in-law was a witness to the incident between Holling and Mickey Mantle. Together they devise a plan to make it up to the boys. She hands them mitts and balls, compliments of Baker Sporting Emporium, and says that she has arranged time
What trick does Doug Swieteck's brother play on Holling?
Doug Swieteck's brother gathers up as many newspapers he can get his hands on, cuts out Holling's photo from the play, paints his tights yellow, and plasters them all around the school. Doug is a good friend and refuses to help his brother torment Holling
Why did Mrs. Baker give Mai Thi her cup of hot chocolate on the day there was no heat in the school?
Mrs. Baker knew that Mrs. Bigio was not in her right mind by taking her hurt and anger about her husband's death on a little girl. It was cold, and Mrs. Baker knew Mai Thi needed the hot chocolate more than her.
What is the third Shakespeare play that Holling reads?
The third play is Macbeth.
Why does Holling disagree with Mrs. Baker about how "malice is a small and petty thing"?
Holling disagrees with Mrs. Baker because the prank that Doug Swieteck's brother pulled does not seem like a "small thing" to him because he was publicly embarrassed.
During the snowstorm Holling saw a chance for revenge against Doug Swieteck's brother. What does Holling do?,
On his way to school one cold, snowy morning, Holling sees Doug Swieteck's brother riding on the bumpers of unaware motorists. He packs a snowball, hard, spits on it to give it a frozen covering, and throws it at him.....assuming he'll miss. However, it h
Explain Holling's allusion to Macbeth.
Holling compares himself to the character Malcolm in Macbeth because in the end Malcolm has no more need for vengeance against Macbeth. Holling saves his sister's life by pushing her out of the way of a sliding bus. He instantly becomes a local hero and h
what is ironic about Mr. Hoodhood receiving the award for the Chamber of Commerce Businessman of 1967?
It's ironic that Mr. Hoodhood would receive this award because it is supposed to go to someone in the community that supports the general atmosphere of the town. Mr. Hoodhood only thinks about himself and HIS business and doesn't care if others fail. If t
Explain why Holling thought that Romeo and Juliet were stupid. Why then does he choose to go see the play? How does he get the tickets?
Holling thinks that Romeo and Juliet were stupid because he feels that in real life they never would have killed themselves. I think he is of this opinion because he is young and has never been in love.Holling must have gotten into a romantic mood after r
How does Holling's viewpoint about Romeo and Juliet change by the end of February?
By the end of February, Holling no longer thinks that Romeo and Juliet is a stupid play. It is hard to care about two things at the same time. It is true that if they had never met then they might have lived. The lesson is that just being alive is not rea
What happens with the design for the new junior high? How did Holling play a part in Kowalski and Associates' design? How did Meryl Lee feel about this?
While on their "date", Holling and Meryl Lee, discuss their fathers' designs for the new Camillo Jr. High School (dads' companies are competing architects for the contract). Holling draws a sketch of his father's design. Meryl Lee is so impressed with his
Why does Holling compare his father to Shakespeare's character Shylock?
Holling starts to wonder about his father after he calls Kowalski and Associates (Meryl lee's dad) chumps. How could he be so happy at another's misfortune? He wonders if his father is an architect because he wants to be or because that is what his father
Holling uses a metaphor to explain Mrs. Baker and the classroom. What is this metaphor at the bottom of page 157?
The metaphor that is used to describe Mrs. Baker has to do with seeds. It describes her as tending to the seeds (students) she'd planted earlier and now it is time to cultivate and watch them grow. If she is a good farmer/gardener (teacher), her plants wi
What happened when Mr. Vendleri replaced the bulging ceiling tiles?
When Mr. Vendleri replaced the bulging ceiling tiles, tons of chewed up items from the classroom and coatroom fell from the ceiling in the garbage can Holling was holding and onto the floor.
Holling has two experiences of foretelling the future in March. What were these?
The first experience of Holling's foretelling was when Mrs. Baker told the class when people from the school board members were going to visit the classroom, and the second was the date when the cross county varsity try-outs were going to be. Both would b