Two Degrees: "Going Nowhere"–"Refugees"

by Alan Gratz
Four young people find themselves struggling to survive against the devastating effects of climate change. Akira is caught inside a California wildfire; Owen and George battle and save a struggling polar bear in the Canadian tundra; and Natalie survives Miami's "Big One" hurricane.

This list covers vocabulary from "Going Nowhere"–"Refugees."

Here are links to our lists for the book: List 1, List 2, List 3, List 4, List 5, List 6
15 words 96 learners

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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. smolder
    burn slowly and without a flame
    Hot cinders bounced onto the car that had run into them and settled in, smoldering on its surface.
  2. wildfire
    a destructive burning that is raging and rapidly spreading
    Get somewhere safe, Akira’s dad had said. But what was safe in the middle of a wildfire?
  3. harrowing
    causing extreme distress
    Akira sagged with relief. She quickly told her mom about meeting Sue and Daniel, about the harrowing drive through the fire, and her and Sue getting separated from their dads.
  4. catatonic
    characterized by unresponsiveness or lack of movement
    Sue’s eyes went wide and she got a far-off look, like she was about to go catatonic.
  5. dubious
    not convinced
    Sue gave Akira a dubious look.
    “It’s true,” Akira told her.
  6. maul
    injure badly
    He hadn’t been paying attention, and he’d come between a momma bear and her cub. Thanks to his obliviousness, he and George had been ruthlessly mauled.
  7. loll
    hang loosely or laxly
    George’s eyes were closed and his head lolled lifelessly, but Owen could still see the slow, steady rise and fall of his friend’s chest. That gave him hope.
  8. gingerly
    in a manner marked by extreme care or delicacy
    Very gingerly, Owen pulled his friend’s torn ski mask off his head.
  9. tundra
    a vast treeless plain where subsoil is permanently frozen
    The ground beneath them jerked lower again, and this time there was no doubt. They had both been out on the tundra enough to know when they were on thin ice.
  10. grueling
    characterized by effort to the point of exhaustion
    Pushing the snowmobile wasn’t easy when they weren’t injured. Now it was grueling.
  11. assess
    estimate the nature, quality, ability or significance of
    It was how the bears investigated something new, spiraling in toward it to assess the threat.
  12. disoriented
    having lost your bearings
    Her head shot out of the water, and Natalie gasped and coughed, dizzy and disoriented.
  13. eaves
    the overhang at the lower edge of a roof
    Street signs folded flat around their poles. And the water — the water was almost up to the eaves of the one-story houses that lined the street.
  14. ebb
    flow back or recede
    The storm surge was already higher than the front door, but as the water ebbed, Natalie was able to grab on to the top of the doorframe, take a deep breath, and swim in through the open door.
  15. lurch
    move abruptly
    The floor underneath them shuddered and lurched again, sloshing water back and forth across their feet, and this time there was no doubting it.
    The house was moving.
Created on Tue Jul 08 22:06:28 EDT 2025 (updated Wed Aug 13 12:54:37 EDT 2025)

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