Kira-Kira: Chapters 13-16

by Cynthia Kadohata
Kira-Kira tells the unforgettable story of sisters Katie and Lynn Takeshima. After their Japanese-American family moves to Georgia in the 1950s to build a new life, Katie and Lynn find hope through their unique way of seeing the world. But when Lynn develops lymphoma, Katie must help keep her family from falling apart while remembering everything her sister taught her.

Here are links to our lists for the novel: Chapters 1-4 , Chapters 5-8, Chapters 9-12, Chapters 13-16
35 words 26 learners

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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. bolster
    a pillow put across a bed underneath the regular pillows
    I pulled her up and picked up the bolster from the floor and used it to support her back.
  2. mournful
    expressing sorrow
    Then she started to make a soft, mournful, squeaky noise, kind of like “heeah...heeah...heeah,” every time she exhaled.
  3. sear
    burn slightly and superficially so as to affect color
    Sammy’s face looked seared in the glow from the Rabbit on the Moon night-light Auntie Fumi had given Lynn.
  4. surveyor
    an engineer who determines boundaries and elevations of land
    In addition to Sammy and me, Uncle was bringing his family, my friend Silly, and his friend Jedda-Boy, a local land surveyor.
  5. traction
    the friction between a body and a surface on which it moves
    Uncle wanted Silly and me to sit in the truck bed to get better traction.
  6. jolt
    move or cause to move with a sudden jerky motion
    In fact, at one point while I was learning, the truck jolted forward several inches.
  7. recede
    pull back or move away or backward
    They rolled merrily along while I lay on the road and watched the truck recede.
  8. lope
    run easily
    I found I loved pretending to be a deer, loping through the forest as the boys counted to one hundred.
  9. radioactive
    exhibiting or caused by emissions in nuclear decay
    He finished the job even though the area was probably radioactive, because a self-respecting surveyor always finishes a job no matter what it involves, including, he said, wild dogs, gunshots from angry neighbors mixed up in a property dispute, snakes and alligators, and radioactivity.
  10. dispute
    a disagreement or argument about something important
    He finished the job even though the area was probably radioactive, because a self-respecting surveyor always finishes a job no matter what it involves, including, he said, wild dogs, gunshots from angry neighbors mixed up in a property dispute, snakes and alligators, and radioactivity.
  11. stroke
    touch lightly and repeatedly, as with brushing motions
    Auntie stroked his face.
  12. wistful
    showing pensive sadness
    I didn’t know what the ancient Egyptians had said, but I doubted they had said exactly that Uncle’s face got wistful as he stared into the sky.
  13. flit
    move along rapidly and lightly; skim or dart
    A little brown moth flitted in.
  14. flutter
    move along rapidly and lightly; skim or dart
    Here are the sounds I heard:

    1. An old piece of newspaper fluttering in the breeze.
  15. surreal
    resembling a dream
    The lack of sleep coupled with Lynnie’s death made the world surreal.
  16. fervor
    feelings of great warmth and intensity
    But instead of feeling like complaining, I felt my mother’s fervor.
  17. feeble
    lacking strength or vigor
    What if my mother had held the mirror wrong and had missed Lynn’s feeble breath?
  18. sardine
    small fishes found in great schools along coasts of Europe
    We walked quietly inside for another meal of sardines and rice.
  19. doggedly
    with obstinate determination
    My mother ate doggedly.
  20. brisk
    imparting vitality and energy
    I sat there as the sky turned black and the air grew brisk.
  21. lurch
    move suddenly or as if unable to control one's movements
    He started the car suddenly, and we lurched across the field toward Mr. Lyndon’s house.
  22. perpetrator
    someone who commits wrongdoing
    “They think the perpetrator drove a light blue Ford.”
  23. croon
    sing softly
    A singer crooned in Spanish from the record player.
  24. indigestion
    a stomach disorder characterized by discomfort or pain
    “'You don’t want to get indigestion,” he said.
  25. eulogy
    a formal expression of praise for someone who has died
    I was supposed to give one of the eulogies because everybody said Lynn loved me more than anything in the world.
  26. lapel
    a fold of fabric below the collar of a coat or jacket
    His wife wore a button on her lapel that said union, and I noticed Hank Garvin wore the inexpensive watch that was the best we could afford to give him for a thank-you.
  27. pulpit
    a platform raised to give prominence to the person on it
    The pulpit seemed to be about a thousand miles away.
  28. angelic
    relating to spiritual beings attendant upon God
    He’d chosen a rose because he thought that was the most royal flower and Lynn was his little empress, and he’d chosen white because it was angelic.
  29. repertoire
    the range of skills in a particular field or occupation
    Ramen and pizza were the end of my repertoire.
  30. persona
    an image of oneself that one presents to the world
    Then we did a dance in our persona as the Shirondas.
  31. bash
    hit hard
    I said, “Why not bash his car again?”
  32. reimburse
    pay back for some expense incurred
    He said, “I’m going to reimburse you.”
  33. intimidated
    made scared or fearful as by threats
    I saw my father was not intimidated by Mr. Lyndon.
  34. majestic
    having or displaying great dignity or nobility
    I’d always thought of Lynn’s handwriting as consistent and perfect and even kind of majestic.
  35. rickety
    inclined to shake as from weakness or defect
    When we arrived, on December 31, it was eighty-five degrees, and the Santa Ana winds whipped against the rickety walls of our motel room.
Created on Tue Aug 29 11:10:30 EDT 2017 (updated Wed Sep 06 15:52:26 EDT 2017)

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