Chickadee: Chapters 6–12

by Louise Erdrich
This fourth book of The Birchbark House series is set in 1866 around the Great Plains, where an eight-year-old Ojibwe boy is unhappy about being named after a bird, until he learns that small things can have great power.

Here are links to our lists for the novel: Prologue–Chapter 5, Chapters 6–12, Chapters 13–19, Chapters 20–25
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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. craggy
    rugged and lined or rough-textured
    Then they felt the two massive men moving above them, leaning over them, and they saw the craggy faces of the brothers very near.
  2. blunder
    make one's way clumsily or blindly
    Although blinded, the twins leaped up anyway, fast as rabbits. They jumped, fell, scurried, blundering into trees and tripping over branches as they fled.
  3. reel
    walk as if unable to control one's movements
    Chickadee and Makoons reeled back to the safety of their camp to find the women in the family were finishing their work.
  4. tawny
    having the color of tanned leather
    Omakayas wrapped the tawny blocks of maple sugar in birchbark and tied the bark down with split jack-pine root.
  5. stealth
    the act of moving in a quiet or secretive way to avoid being noticed
    With a stealth surprising for his size, Babiche wiggled his hands and arms underneath the loose walls.
  6. hobble
    walk unevenly due to pain, injury, or weakness
    Nokomis hobbled quickly over to Omakayas, who was examining the sets of footprints outside the wigwam.
  7. suffuse
    become overspread as with a fluid, a color, or light
    Deydey’s face was suffused with fury.
  8. lope
    run easily
    And once that was done, this woman of tremendous strength loped along, sworn to find Chickadee.
  9. plod
    walk heavily and firmly, as when weary, or through mud
    Sometimes Chickadee woke and heard the horses picking their way along or plodding through what seemed like mushy ground.
  10. graze
    feed as in a meadow or pasture
    So what Chickadee sensed from inside his mail sack was that although the horses galloped hard, they were also rested from time to time and were allowed to graze when they came across melted areas of rich winter grass.
  11. perilous
    fraught with danger
    They came through the Pembina Hills and even managed to cross the Red River. It was in that perilous time just before the ice broke.
  12. shanty
    a small crude shelter used as a dwelling
    Batiste was ducking into a small log cabin. Babiche was taking the two brown horses toward a shanty built of pole logs and mud.
  13. matted
    tangled in a dense mass
    As they passed the pile, the horses reached out their long necks and swiped a matted clump of hay to chew.
  14. leer
    look suggestively or obliquely
    “Now you’ll learn to make yourself useful. If you don’t,” he leered, his big yellow teeth dripping with spit, “we will chop you up and feed you to our horses. They love the meat of little boys.”
  15. reproachful
    expressing disapproval, blame, or disappointment
    The two mild brown horses looked over their shoulders, their eyes reproachful.
  16. makeshift
    done or made using whatever is available
    They didn’t look like they ate little boys, thought Chickadee, but he hurried over to the makeshift barn anyway.
  17. ignorant
    uneducated in general; lacking knowledge or sophistication
    “He would get lost in no time. Our ignorant servant doesn’t know where to go!”
  18. sinew
    a band of tissue connecting a muscle to its bony attachment
    Each pack of furs was bundled tightly with sinew, but by pulling out the middle furs each one of them could wiggle in.
  19. cataract
    a large waterfall; violent rush of water over a precipice
    All that sleep noise became a mighty cataract.
  20. assume
    take to be the case or to be true
    Because there was another lump on the floor, which he assumed was a person, Chickadee added an extra big chunk of moldy old meat to the kettle, and slipped out for an extra dollop of snow.
  21. dollop
    a soft lump or portion of something, especially food
    Because there was another lump on the floor, which he assumed was a person, Chickadee added an extra big chunk of moldy old meat to the kettle, and slipped out for an extra dollop of snow.
  22. unsavory
    not pleasing in odor or taste
    No matter how tightly Chickadee put the lid on the kettle, mice somehow got into the stew pot. He was already used to the musty taste.
    As the stew heated up, the cabin air filled with the unsavory steam so beloved by the Zhigaag brothers.
  23. delirious
    marked by uncontrolled excitement or emotion
    Orph kept yelling the reason, and they might have learned it, too, but as he galloped away in delirious haste, his voice was cut off by wind.
  24. compel
    force somebody to do something
    “Do I carry the mail, which my blood oath compels me to deliver, or do I carry my brother, whom I love beyond all things except my sainted mother, the horses, and now, perhaps you?”
  25. addled
    confused and vague; used especially of thinking
    Chickadee tugged the reins and the addled horses followed him.
  26. slough
    a stagnant swamp
    Chickadee made his way along the tips of melting snowdrifts and the edges of mush sloughs.
  27. gait
    an animal's manner of moving
    The horses, sensing that he had a destination in mind, seemed to regain their senses. They followed with an eager gait and stopped spitting foam.
  28. coax
    influence or persuade by gentle and persistent urging
    Chickadee didn’t have to coax them along.
  29. roiling
    (of a liquid) agitated vigorously; in a state of turbulence
    He watched the roiling gray water as it churned frozen slabs of ice along in its rapid flow.
  30. nicker
    make a soft sound characteristic of a horse
    The horses nickered and snorted.
  31. waver
    move hesitatingly, as if about to give way
    To the north, a small speck appeared on the horizon. He watched as it enlarged, wavering, and slowly came into focus.
  32. dainty
    affectedly refined
    Their hands were encased in gray mittens, and their feet were dainty in black lace-up boots.
  33. venture
    proceed somewhere despite the risk of possible dangers
    Chattering like squirrels, the women in strange gray dresses went to investigate the cabin. Each ventured in and came out quickly, waving the air away from her nose.
  34. hunker down
    crouch or squat into a low position
    Chickadee tried to sink into the hay, but he had hunkered down as far as he could.
  35. morsel
    a small amount of solid food; a mouthful
    The priest and the Sisters hadn’t much to eat themselves, but each contributed a morsel.
  36. pagan
    relating to a polytheistic, pre-Christian religion
    “He’ll be baptized and given a proper name,” she said, “a saint’s name. How typically pagan, to be named after a bird!”
  37. jounce
    move up and down repeatedly
    During the day, Chickadee saw them secretly wincing whenever the wagon jounced over a big rock.
  38. barge
    a flatbottom boat for carrying heavy loads
    The priest and the ferry owner coaxed the ox aboard and secured the wagon. Then the Sisters stood in a bunch and held tight to the sides of the barge.
  39. fervently
    with strong emotion or zeal
    The Sisters prayed fervently, with their eyes closed, all except for Seraphica.
  40. veer
    turn sharply; change direction abruptly
    For a while, the wagon followed the river north. Then suddenly a rutted trail appeared and it veered east.
Created on Tue May 14 16:26:05 EDT 2024 (updated Wed May 15 15:17:48 EDT 2024)

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