A house is not home
Answers to Textbook questions
What does the author notice one Sunday afternoon? What is his mother’s reaction? What does she do?
One Sunday afternoon, the author noticed a strange smell. Then he saw smoke pouring in through the seams of the ceiling and filling the room very quickly. They could barely see anything. His mother reacted promptly and the two of them ran out into the front yard .By the time they ran out into the front yard, the roof was already engulfed in flames and was spreading very quickly. His mother ran back into the house. She brought out a small metal box full of important documents. She again ran back to bring her husband’s pictures and letters.
Why does he break down in tears after the fire?
After the fire, he broke down into tears because it suddenly struck him that he was suffering a big loss. He realized that his cat could not be seen anywhere. The cat and the author were emotionally attached to each other Then, everything hit him at once − the new school, the fire, and his cat. That was when he broke down and cried. The tears were an emotional outburst of a teenager who was struggling with adjustment issues.
Why is the author deeply embarrassed the next day in school? Which words show his fear and insecurity?
The author is deeply embarrassed the next day in school because when the fire broke out, he was still wearing the dress he had worn to church that morning but he had no shoes as he had lost them in the fire. So he had to borrow some tennis shoes from his aunt. He was totally embarrassed by everything. The clothes he was wearing looked weird, he had no books or homework, and his backpack was gone. Words used in the lesson that show his fear and insecurity are “…outcast and geek…”, “…like a zombie.”,
.His fear and insecurity is shown by the words: “Was I destined to be an outcast and geek all my life?”
. …wanted to curl up and die, ‘Everything felt surreal’, All the security…had all been ripped away”.
The cat and the author are very fond of each other. How has this been shown in the story? Where was the cat after the fire? Who brings it back and how?
The way the cat behaves with the author shows the bonding between them. She lies over his papers while he is doing homework, purring loudly, occasionally swatting at his pen for entertainment’s sake. He missed her terribly after losing her and would go over after school to watch the clearing of debris with the hope of finding her somewhere. When she was restored back to Zan, the cat purred as happily as the author felt elated to get her back. Even the woman who rescued the cat knew that she was loved and sorely missed. The cat escaped the fire and ran far out of fear. A lady who brought her back tried the telephone number written on her collar to find its owner. As the telephone of author’s home was non-functional after fire so it can be assumed that the lady must have made efforts to search for them to return the cat.
What actions of the schoolmates change the author’s understanding of life and people, and comfort him emotionally? How does his loneliness vanish and how does he start participating in life?
After the loss of all his belongings in the fire that ravaged his house, Zan, the narrator, started feeling depressed and embarrassed. At this time, the friendly and helpful actions of his schoolmates changed his understanding of life and people, and comforted him emotionally. His schoolmates took up a collection and bought him school supplies, notebooks, and all kinds of clothes. Those who had never spoken to him before came up to him and introduced themselves. Many invited him to their houses. Their genuine concern touched Zan. He felt relieved and began to believe that everything would be okay. He stopped focusing on his feelings of insecurity and opened up to all the wonderful people around him. The company of his new friends and sharing joys with them made his loneliness vanish and reconnected him to life.
What is the meaning of “My cat was back and so was I”? Had the author gone anywhere? Why does he say that he is also back?
Zan’s cat was brought back home after more than a month of absence. She had run away due to fear of fire and could not be brought back early as her collar had those phone numbers that had got disconnected and instruments destroyed due to the fire. Zan too was back to his normal cheerful life. His absence was emotional unlike the physical absence of his cat. Zan says that he is also back since he wants to point out the return of his faith in the goodness of life. He had drifted away from joys of friendship and comfort of familiarity on moving to a new school. By the time his cat returned, his gratitude for life had also returned in the company of new friends.
What does the author notice one Sunday afternoon? What is his mother’s reaction? What does she do?
One Sunday afternoon, the author noticed a strange smell. Then he saw smoke pouring in through the seams of the ceiling and filling the room very quickly. They could barely see anything. His mother reacted promptly and the two of them ran out into the front yard .By the time they ran out into the front yard, the roof was already engulfed in flames and was spreading very quickly. His mother ran back into the house. She brought out a small metal box full of important documents. She again ran back to bring her husband’s pictures and letters.
Why does he break down in tears after the fire?
After the fire, he broke down into tears because it suddenly struck him that he was suffering a big loss. He realized that his cat could not be seen anywhere. The cat and the author were emotionally attached to each other Then, everything hit him at once − the new school, the fire, and his cat. That was when he broke down and cried. The tears were an emotional outburst of a teenager who was struggling with adjustment issues.
Why is the author deeply embarrassed the next day in school? Which words show his fear and insecurity?
The author is deeply embarrassed the next day in school because when the fire broke out, he was still wearing the dress he had worn to church that morning but he had no shoes as he had lost them in the fire. So he had to borrow some tennis shoes from his aunt. He was totally embarrassed by everything. The clothes he was wearing looked weird, he had no books or homework, and his backpack was gone. Words used in the lesson that show his fear and insecurity are “…outcast and geek…”, “…like a zombie.”,
.His fear and insecurity is shown by the words: “Was I destined to be an outcast and geek all my life?”
. …wanted to curl up and die, ‘Everything felt surreal’, All the security…had all been ripped away”.
The cat and the author are very fond of each other. How has this been shown in the story? Where was the cat after the fire? Who brings it back and how?
The way the cat behaves with the author shows the bonding between them. She lies over his papers while he is doing homework, purring loudly, occasionally swatting at his pen for entertainment’s sake. He missed her terribly after losing her and would go over after school to watch the clearing of debris with the hope of finding her somewhere. When she was restored back to Zan, the cat purred as happily as the author felt elated to get her back. Even the woman who rescued the cat knew that she was loved and sorely missed. The cat escaped the fire and ran far out of fear. A lady who brought her back tried the telephone number written on her collar to find its owner. As the telephone of author’s home was non-functional after fire so it can be assumed that the lady must have made efforts to search for them to return the cat.
What actions of the schoolmates change the author’s understanding of life and people, and comfort him emotionally? How does his loneliness vanish and how does he start participating in life?
After the loss of all his belongings in the fire that ravaged his house, Zan, the narrator, started feeling depressed and embarrassed. At this time, the friendly and helpful actions of his schoolmates changed his understanding of life and people, and comforted him emotionally. His schoolmates took up a collection and bought him school supplies, notebooks, and all kinds of clothes. Those who had never spoken to him before came up to him and introduced themselves. Many invited him to their houses. Their genuine concern touched Zan. He felt relieved and began to believe that everything would be okay. He stopped focusing on his feelings of insecurity and opened up to all the wonderful people around him. The company of his new friends and sharing joys with them made his loneliness vanish and reconnected him to life.
What is the meaning of “My cat was back and so was I”? Had the author gone anywhere? Why does he say that he is also back?
Zan’s cat was brought back home after more than a month of absence. She had run away due to fear of fire and could not be brought back early as her collar had those phone numbers that had got disconnected and instruments destroyed due to the fire. Zan too was back to his normal cheerful life. His absence was emotional unlike the physical absence of his cat. Zan says that he is also back since he wants to point out the return of his faith in the goodness of life. He had drifted away from joys of friendship and comfort of familiarity on moving to a new school. By the time his cat returned, his gratitude for life had also returned in the company of new friends.
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