The Last Last-Day-of-Summer: Chapters 36–41

by Lamar Giles
Cousins Otto and Sheed, also known as the Legendary Alston Boys, are used to dealing with unusual happenings in the town of Fry, Virginia. When a mysterious stranger freezes time on the last day of summer vacation, the young sleuths embark on their strangest and most dangerous adventure yet.

Here are links to our lists for the novel: Chapters 1–9, Chapters 10–17, Chapters 18–25, Chapters 26–35, Chapters 36–41

Here is a link to our lists for Spin by Lamar Giles.
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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. clamber
    climb awkwardly, as if by scrambling
    The last and biggest Time Suck clambered down from the clock tower with Mr. Flux himself stuck on its back like a tick.
  2. smug
    marked by excessive complacency or self-satisfaction
    Confident—really, just smug—Mr. Flux rode his Time Suck to the frontline, facing off with Otto.
  3. bask
    derive or receive pleasure from
    He surveyed Otto’s troops, basked in his supremacy. “Welcome, everyone. I’m so glad you’re here. It gives me such great pleasure to accept your surrender in person.”
  4. inadvertent
    happening by chance or unexpectedly or unintentionally
    He yelped, firing another inadvertent camera flash, catching a few of Otto’s Second Guessers.
  5. skirmish
    a minor short-term fight
    “Sheed!” Otto rushed into the thick of it. Ducking, dodging, hopping over all the little skirmishes that broke out.
  6. menagerie
    a collection of live animals for study or display
    Dr. Medina’s entire menagerie of animals—dogs, cats, snakes, a wild-eyed goat, even a quartet of guinea pigs—launched coordinated attacks at her prompting.
  7. melee
    a noisy riotous fight
    Sheed caught glimpses of his cousin through the melee and did what he could to assist other combatants as he attempted to reunite with Otto.
  8. grope
    feel about uncertainly or blindly
    Having been instructed by Otto, the closest human executed the second part of the attack by unfreezing a mirror so it shattered on the ground, unleashing the groping monster prisoner inside, which attacked Flux’s troops without mercy.
  9. fray
    a noisy fight
    The discs sprouted thin, wiry legs like spiders and skittered into the crowd, where they affixed themselves to Mr. Flux’s troops, delivering electrical charges that sent them yelping up and out of the fray.
  10. parry
    blocking a lunge with a circular motion of the sword
    He jabbed and parried and thrust, cutting a path any way he wished.
  11. valiantly
    with heroic courage or bravery
    At every position, anywhere on the Fry Town Square battlefield, the brigade Otto had assembled fought valiantly.
  12. swath
    a path or strip (also figurative)
    Lightning-bright flashes doused swaths of combatants, freezing them mid-punch, mid-kick, mid-retreat.
  13. residual
    relating to or indicating a remainder
    Sheed kept pushing his way to Otto, seeing the residual camera flashes from the corner of his eye like quiet lightning in a distant cloud.
  14. amend
    make revisions to
    Sheed hugged back. “Why are you crying? I thought legends didn’t do that.”
    “I’m amending our rules.”
  15. brunt
    the main part, especially of a force or shock
    TimeStar leapt between Mr. Flux and the boys at the last possible second, taking the full brunt of the flash.
  16. coax
    influence or persuade by gentle and persistent urging
    Otto gently coaxed the beast into motion, while Sheed yelled at Mr. Flux, “If you want us, come get us.”
  17. ploy
    a maneuver in a game, conversation, or situation
    In the quiet halls, Mr. Flux’s angry shouting carried. “Is this another desperate ploy for some way to defeat me? More yearbooks? So futile.”
  18. jar
    move or cause to move with a sudden jerky motion
    The Time Suck tore through the wall, destroying the doors and the sign above it in the process. Despite the jarring impact, Otto and Sheed were fine.
  19. inclination
    an attitude of mind that favors one alternative over others
    Sheed’s natural inclination to fight his cousin buzzed stronger than ever.
  20. appeal
    cite as an authority
    Mr. Flux’s smile was genuine. “You’re trying to appeal to some sort of nostalgia, aren’t you? I was created in this room. Perhaps you can convince me that I should do things differently. That I can be a better person.”
  21. nostalgia
    a longing for something past
    Mr. Flux’s smile was genuine. “You’re trying to appeal to some sort of nostalgia, aren’t you? I was created in this room. Perhaps you can convince me that I should do things differently. That I can be a better person.”
  22. squander
    spend thoughtlessly; throw away
    “Why?” Mr. Flux spat from unmoving lips. “So you could convince me to unfreeze your world and let all of you unmotivated humans continue wasting time and opportunities? Well, you’re going to be disappointed. I don’t care that I’m frozen, it’s not so different from all the years I spent stuck watching you people squander all your time! I know what happens if this freeze isn’t undone. If I stay stuck, Fry stays stuck. I still win.”
  23. dire
    fraught with extreme danger; nearly hopeless
    He flicked his eyes to Otto, whose face was pinched with concern, but not dire concern.
  24. primp
    dress or groom with elaborate care
    No, all around them Sheed saw motion. Flowing dresses and veils. Boys primping in badly fitted suits like his own.
  25. tote
    carry with difficulty
    At that moment, a young, camera toting Anna Archie entered the auditorium, wearing a perplexed expression.
  26. coddle
    treat with excessive indulgence
    A short yelp and hard thud later, he was sprawled in the floor, his castmates rushing forward to coddle him, leaving Old Petey and Young Petey alone to talk.
  27. ovation
    enthusiastic recognition
    Petey, both versions, got the first standing ovation of their life.
  28. substantial
    real; having a material or factual existence
    Mr. Flux held up a halting hand, a hand that seemed less substantial suddenly.
  29. telltale
    disclosing unintentionally
    There were no telltale golden footprints anywhere.
  30. sparse
    not dense or plentiful
    The street they strolled had sparse, country-lazy traffic that never exceeded the speed limit.
  31. meander
    move or cause to move in a winding or curving course
    The clouds meandered, the sun slid across the sky.
  32. plush
    characterized by extravagance and softness
    A side door jutted forward, breaking some kind of seal with a pressurized hiss, then slid aside giving them a view of plush leather seats occupied by two almost familiar people.
  33. hyperventilate
    breathe excessively hard and fast
    Sheed gasped, possibly hyperventilating. “YOU INVENTED FLYING CARS!”
  34. revelation
    an enlightening or astonishing disclosure
    Otto fought a chill, braced for potentially horrifying revelation. “What?”
  35. shifty
    characterized by insincerity or deceit; evasive
    “Why do you care? You know something was off about him. He had shifty eyes.”
Created on Fri Apr 12 16:07:13 EDT 2019 (updated Thu Apr 25 09:46:49 EDT 2019)

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