Swing: Part 2

by Kwame Alexander
Best friends Noah and Walt bond over their shared love of baseball and appreciation for jazz. With the help of some vintage love letters (and some intervention from Walt), Noah tries to express his true feelings for his long-time crush, Sam. But as Walt and Noah attempt to "find cool," division and prejudice within their community cause their lives to take an unexpected turn.

Here are links to our lists for the novel: Prologue–Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5–Epilogue

Here are links to our lists for other books by Kwame Alexander: The Crossover, Booked, Solo, Rebound
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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. levelheaded
    exercising or showing good judgment
    It's pretty obvious you’re not level-headed.
  2. compliance
    a disposition or tendency to yield to the will of others
    Make sure he knows I'm just not gonna let him act any old way. He's gotta earn my compliance.
  3. foyer
    a large entrance or reception room or area
    And this right here is a start, he says, dropping what looks like a gift card down on the table in our foyer.
  4. shenanigan
    reckless or malicious behavior that causes annoyance
    A bunch of aunts are at the house helping my mom plan the wedding. It’s gonna be in our backyard. A lot of familial shenanigans I want no parts of.
  5. tinge
    a slight but appreciable amount
    Can’t you feel the tinge of freedom in the air?
  6. galvanize
    stimulate to action
    Hey, remember those letters you showed me? I need more. I’m galvanized.
  7. muse
    the source of an artist's inspiration
    even though i’ve lived here many years prior to us, remembering those days seems pointless up until u entered my life, gave me everything, like the goddess of muses.
  8. alluring
    highly attractive and able to arouse hope or desire
    we will gallop with the butterflies and honey bees, you swinging in and out of my arms on the breeze. our samba will be rhythmic and alluring and deep.
  9. alabaster
    of or resembling a white stone
    copper sun and alabaster moon. they each need each other. we need each other.
  10. unrequited
    not returned in kind
    Those letters, yo. They got all up in my feelings. The unrequited love. The romance. I think I'm in love.
  11. concoction
    any foodstuff made by combining different ingredients
    Well, good for you, he says, slurping his concoction next to me at the counter.
  12. paradigm
    the generally accepted perspective of a discipline
    WOW! This is not just drawing. This is game-changing, paradigm-shifting-ish stuff, Noah!
  13. proclivity
    a natural inclination
    You’re exhausting. Your proclivity for not hugging life is just exhausting.
  14. affix
    attach to
    Walt sees
    this old musician
    trumpeting a song,
    and collecting money
    in an old instrument case
    that has an American flag
    affixed to it.
  15. succumb
    be fatally overwhelmed
    After twenty-seven years of wrongful imprisonment, after walking out of prison a free man to thunderous applause, after becoming president of South Africa, he succumbed to tuberculosis, respiratory infection, and old age.
  16. entwine
    wind or twist together
    I see Cruz
    and Sam
    in the hallway,
    entwined
    in love.
  17. sap
    a person who lacks good judgment or is easily tricked
    I stare at her,
    wonder
    if she knows,
    if Walt told her,
    if she sees
    into my sappy soul
    and realizes I’m
    a silly, lovelorn
    sap.
  18. statute
    an act passed by a legislative body
    there should be
    a statute
    of limitations
    on unrequited love.
  19. indelible
    not able to be forgotten, removed, or erased
    She liked it, didn't she? Trust your indelible words.
  20. blather
    talk foolishly
    SHUT THE FREAK UP
    is what I want
    to yell
    at Walt
    as he blathers on
    about why
    he had to do it
    on my behalf.
  21. fiasco
    a complete failure or collapse
    afraid that anything
    will open up the universe

    of this blackout fiasco—
    this black hole

    of my existence.
  22. tiff
    a petty quarrel
    Trouble in paradise. You guys have a tiff?
  23. suitor
    a man who courts a woman
    The heart-shaped letter thingy from X, my anonymous suitor. I didn't get another one.
  24. ominous
    threatening or foreshadowing evil or tragic developments
    I'm confused
    and a little worried
    what this prank
    might mean,
    or if it's an ominous
    message from Cruz.
  25. paraphrase
    rewording for the purpose of clarification
    I was paraphrasing. Just trying to elucidate the power of communication between brothers.
  26. elucidate
    make clear and comprehensible
    I was paraphrasing. Just trying to elucidate the power of communication between brothers.
  27. woo
    make amorous advances towards
    Seriously, you could woo her like Steve Martin.
  28. botch
    make a mess of, destroy, or ruin
    Nobody’s really sure, but he was either injured by a wooden beam, a botched assassination attempt, or he went insane and stabbed himself...
  29. lilt
    a jaunty rhythm in music or speech
    I want to watch the rhythm
    in her walk,

    hear the lilt in
    her raspy voice
  30. raspy
    unpleasantly harsh or grating in sound
    I want to watch the rhythm
    in her walk,

    hear the lilt in
    her raspy voice
  31. modality
    a particular functioning condition or arrangement
    Abandoning the traditional major and minor key relationships of tonality, Miles based the entire album on modality.
  32. improvisation
    a performance given without planning or preparation
    It was improvisation, but each of the performers was given a set of scales that defined the parameters of their improvisation.
  33. parameter
    any factor defining a system and determining its performance
    It was improvisation, but each of the performers was given a set of scales that defined the parameters of their improvisation.
  34. bearing
    the direction or path along which something moves or lies
    July 17, 1967. Coltrane died from a tumor on his liver, Walt says, getting his bearings back.
  35. misnomer
    an incorrect or unsuitable name
    It’s actually a misnomer. The sculpture should have been called—
    Aphrodite of Milos, Divya interrupts.
  36. dabble
    work with in an amateurish manner
    Wow, Noah, you know your art.

    I dabble.
  37. impending
    close in time; about to occur
    We don't even talk about
    his brother's return, or
    his mom's impending wedding.
  38. transcendence
    a state of being beyond the limits of material experience
    A place where
    jazz is king,
    where the mind is all lit,
    and what Swing calls
    a transcendence of sorts.
  39. pristine
    immaculately clean and unused
    I hear
    the sound
    of a million stars
    singing
    of pristine love.
  40. serenade
    sing and play for somebody
    I hear a trumpet
    serenading
    lovers.
Created on Tue Nov 06 14:11:32 EST 2018 (updated Wed May 01 11:23:12 EDT 2019)

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