Chapter Four

What's your title?

Spelling

Some of you are being a bit careless with your spelling.  You can do better.

Chapter Three

What would you call this chapter?

Chapter Three

Was it okay for Megan to be eavesdropping on the conversation between her mother and grandfather?  Please elaborate when explaining your thinking.

Chapters 1-2

Imagine that you are Megan.  What might you be thinking at this point of the story?  How might you feel?  Please be sure to elaborate.

Chapter Two

On page 14, it says, "For a moment after she turned away, they were speechless.  "We're really going to go.  At ten o'clock at night," Sandy said, incredulous.

Using context and your background knowledge of the story up to that point, what do you think "incredulous" means?

Chapters 1-2

The chapters in this book do not have titles -- they are only numbered.  based on the events within, what title would you give to chapter one?  How about chapter two?

Chapter Seventeen

Can you connect the dots?  Please reread the paragraph near the top of page 170 that begins "It was a moment..." and then the last paragraph of the chapter on page 180.  Do you see any connections here?  What does this tell you about Jack?

Chapter Sixteen

On page 166, the Justice of the Peace said, "I don't see any reason to let the law interfere with justice around here.  We never did before."  What do you think that means?

Chapter Sixteen

Why do you think gold prospectors considered horse stealin' "a heinous crime" that was worse than stealing gold or watches?

And this is a...

So this is a...

A Rocker, as Described in Chapter Fifteen

Chapter Fifteen

Considering where the story leaves off at the end of this chapter, please make a prediction as to what you think will happen and explain why you think this.

Chapter Fourteen

After reading this chapter, do you now have more insight into how and why Praiseworthy thinks he can defeat The Mountain Ox?

Chapter Fourteen

So... what is the difference between a burro and a mule?

Chapter Thirteen

Why do you think Praiseworthy agreed to fight The Mountain Ox?  What do you think he has planned?

Miners with Long Toms, Auburn, California, 1852

Chapter Thirteen

Jack and Praiseworthy seem to have a knack for turning bad fortune into good.  What is the most recent example of this, and how do you think Praiseworthy was able to anticipate this turn of events?

Chapter Twelve

When Jack and Praiseworthy return to Hangtown (pp. 127-129), it seems that Praiseworthy's reputation has continued to grow.  Why do you think that "every man in the diggings became hard of hearing when he wanted to" and "they preferred a tall tale to the facts?"