Like Vanessa: Pray Myself Invisible–Baby Steps, Girlfriend

by Tami Charles
Inspired by the first black woman to be crowned Miss America, thirteen-year-old Vanessa enters a local beauty pageant in the hopes of transforming her life.

Here are links to our lists for the novel: Fifty Stinkin’ Years–Goin’ Up Yonder, Pray Myself Invisible–Baby Steps, Girlfriend, Rise of the Undead–Junito Shatters the Earth, A Long Way from Our World–Much, Much Too Late, Me and My Stupid Miss America Dreams–I Remember
40 words 17 learners

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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. psychic
    a person sensitive to things beyond natural perception
    It’s almost like Pop Pop is psychic or something ’cause he can sense my nervousness.
  2. brooch
    a decorative pin
    Right before I leave for school, he gives me a star-shaped brooch to pin on my shirt.
  3. literally
    without exaggeration
    I scan the panel of teachers responsible for choosing the contestants. Mrs. Walton, without a doubt, will pick me. She literally begged me to try out.
  4. pity
    the humane quality of understanding the suffering of others
    Honestly, I think she only passes me out of pity.
  5. cringe
    draw back, as with fear, pain, or embarrassment
    I cringe and sink low in my chair.
  6. antic
    a playful, attention-getting act done for fun and amusement
    On the court she’s a true entertainer, and the crowd always goes wild for her silly antics.
  7. frill
    ornamental objects of no great value
    They got costumes and music and props. All I have is my oversized sweatshirt, bell-bottom jeans, beat-up sneakers, and this voice. No music. No costume. No frills.
  8. hefty
    large in amount, extent, or degree
    Tanisha elbows me in the ribs so hard, I let out a hefty cough.
  9. rambling
    straying from the main point or covering a range of subjects
    Mrs. Walton interrupts my rambling thoughts.
  10. vigor
    forceful exertion
    She attacks each chord with vigor, like the spirit done took over her whole body.
  11. sashay
    walk with a lofty proud gait, often to impress others
    Beatriz sashays toward the stage with her ruffly skirt swaying from side to side.
  12. ovation
    enthusiastic recognition
    Of course, when she’s done, her friends are giving her a standing ovation and so are all the other girls.
  13. pivot
    the act of turning on an axis
    My knees are clapping as I do the pivot turn. The girls on television at the Miss America pageant make this look so easy. I quickly pivot around.
  14. jut
    extend out or project in space
    Next thing I know, my arms jut out sideways like an airplane to keep myself from falling, but that doesn’t work.
  15. sly
    marked by skill in deception
    She’s got this smile, sly as the devil himself, stretched across her face.
  16. scowl
    a facial expression of dislike or displeasure
    But I don’t feel like being bothered, and I’m sure she can tell by the scowl I got on my face.
  17. pathetic
    deserving or inciting pity
    As much as I hate sports, never once did I fail on purpose when she asked me to try out for basketball. (I actually tried, as pathetic as it was.)
  18. rowdy
    disturbing the public peace; loud and rough
    I’ve sat through the torture of the annoying sounds of buzzers, cheerleaders, and rowdy people in the bleachers.
  19. sulk
    be in a huff and display one's displeasure
    When I get home Pop Pop and TJ don’t let me sulk for one second about Tanisha.
  20. smother
    envelop completely
    The way they eat up my smothered chicken, corn, and mashed potatoes, you would’ve thought they’d never eaten before.
  21. outrage
    a feeling of righteous anger
    There’s an outrage over making Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s birthday into a federal holiday.
  22. mere
    being nothing more than specified
    My heart bleeds, blood blackened to a crisp.
    For l am a ghost, a mere reminder of memory's bliss.
  23. reek
    have an element suggestive of something
    My tone reeks of I need someone to talk to.
  24. desperation
    a state in which all hope is lost or absent
    Can’t she hear the desperation in my voice?
  25. suffrage
    a legal right to vote
    My schoolwork is piling up too. Three tests: one for advanced English, one for algebra, and one in US history. Plus a paper about women’s suffrage. And that’s all due today.
  26. pounce
    move down on as if in an attack
    At this point I’m starting to realize that I have to do most of my homework at school because both TJ and Pop Pop pounce on me as soon as I walk through the door.
  27. horrid
    exceedingly bad
    TJ screws up his face when he sees my horrid pose.
  28. random
    lacking any definite plan or order or purpose
    But at least in the past I’d go trick-or-treating with her—even if my costume was random: some ripped-up jeans, one of Daddy’s work shirts, and some powder thrown on my face.
  29. brisk
    imparting vitality and energy
    November rolls in like a lion,
    stomping its way into Newark with a thunderous roar,
    devouring days of long suns and bearable, brisk winds.
  30. fad
    an interest followed with exaggerated zeal
    It’s bad enough my clothes don’t match with the latest fads, but wearing high-waters is considered social suicide in middle school.
  31. rave
    talk in a noisy, excited, or declamatory manner
    All the girls are raving about having either their dad or their crush walk with them onstage.
  32. slouch
    assume a drooping posture or carriage
    “Vanessa, why don’t you go next?” Mrs. Caldwell nudges me in the back. “Try to stand a little taller and not slouch, so you don’t look so...”
  33. pierce
    move or affect deeply or sharply
    The sound of giggling, soft and piercing, simmers low from the seats.
  34. disqualify
    declare unfit
    “Let’s run that again. And girls in the audience, show some respect or consider yourself disqualified!”
  35. crinkle
    become wrinkled or crumpled or creased
    She pulls a piece of crinkled paper out of her pocket and hands it to me. It’s her phone number.
  36. resort
    have recourse to
    But once the money runs low, we resort to the cans we have left on our pantry shelves.
  37. consolation
    the comfort you feel when soothed in times of disappointment
    I grab my grandfather real tight, no longer mad at him for staying out past dark. Darlene the Ninth is a nice consolation gift.
  38. clamp
    a device that holds things firmly together
    When he pulls the dress tighter with some clamps, I can see a waistline.
  39. suffocate
    feel or make uncomfortable for lack of fresh air
    Tanisha calls me later on that night. There is a new air in our conversations, short and choppy, so hot that the effort suffocates us both.
  40. hectic
    marked by intense activity or agitation
    That was over a year ago. Before things got weird and hectic.
Created on Mon Jul 09 19:53:04 EDT 2018 (updated Tue Jul 17 13:27:00 EDT 2018)

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