Figurative Language Analysis

Figurative Language- “...Hershel said the sky was growling at us. It’s a joy and wonder to him, a place where the sky takes note of us and speaks” (Horvath 7). This is personification.
Prediction- I predict that Mary thinks he came to their village for a reason and now she is going to send him on a quest before she dies.
Poem-
Ned taught French at school but didn’t know it,
And the school fired him before he could quit.

He was called and told that a prior caretaker of him was dying,
Which left him at the table sighing.

He and his family pack up and leave, head to the carriers,
And travel through the night hoping to reach the barriers.

For the first time in awhile, they stopped to get food at a diner,
They fill themselves up and get back

on the road, never thinking to take a jetliner.

Chapters 3 and 4:

Connection- I can connect to Jade’s feeling of riding in the car all night tired but not able to sleep, and then being grumpy because she didn’t get a good night sleep. I have been in a car at midnight and been mad and grumpy because I couldn’t sleep . All though I love to travel and see new things, like Jane, I can’t stand this feeling, like her.

Diary Entry-
Dear Diary,
We have been traveling for days in our old station wagon.

I love adventures, but this one has been going on for forever, and it is starting to seem pointless. We are still many miles away from the place we are heading to, the carriers, and now we ran out of gas. We are in the middle of nowhere, so Ned, my step-dad, ventures out into the wilderness to find some help while my little brothers run around to let all of their built up energy escape. Finally, Ned comes back with a Carrier scavenging supplies, named Jim. He brought a spare gas tank to fill up the car and then he directed us to the Carriers, where we found the dying Mary, the lady who wanted to see Ned. She ends up giving Ned a sack full of money his brother left for him, and now Ned wants to return it. Is he crazy? We are poor, then are gifted money, so we rise out of debt, and now he wants to make us poor again. Great! Now we also have to find his brother in Vegas before we go home. This is going to be a long trip.
-Jane

Questions-
Why do Mary’s people call Ned?
Why does Ned prefer to drive at night?
Why do you think he is returning money that his family needs and how do you think he will find his brother John? Explain.

Chapters 5 and 6

Letter to a Character-

Jane,
I have many questions to ask you about you and your family’s recent actions.
To start, why does your dad want to return the money your family needs so much? His brother left it for him, why shouldn’t he or won’t he keep it? Next, does your dad know a lot about his brother, or is he clueless about his siblings life? If he knows things about his brother, tell me. Also, why do you like traveling a lot, especially by car? It is painful for me to sit in a car for more than three hours. It might be cool to go to different places and check them out, but how do you stand sitting in the car for forever? Finally, why are you allowed to walk around in a casino at your age, aren’t you a little young? I also have to say, you are great at staying calm in bad situations.

From,
Lucas

Illustration-

In this scene, Jane sees a sign over a building that says John he Ama ing and tells her step-father. It says John The Amazing without the missing letters. They were looking for his brother John, a magician, in Las Vegas, so because Jane found where he performs, they can find him and return the money, and maybe ask him a few questions. This is also very important because they were losing hope of finding John in the large city.

Vocabulary-

Waltz:
My Guess- Slowly walk
Dictionary- A dance in triple time performed by a couple

Ravenous:
My Guess- Anxious
Dictionary- Extremely hungry

Chapters 7 and 8

What Would I Do-
If I were in Ned’s position right now, I would burn John’s bag of (supposedly) illegal money in a fireplace. There is really no other choice. Keeping the money could be extremely dangerous because people could become suspicious of the sack of money he is carrying around, and it could lead to an investigation of him if the police know about the money that could have been stolen. Turning it into the police would be an even worse idea. The police would most likely question you and investigate you which could put you in a bad position. Also, if you left it somewhere, it could put people who pick it up in a bad position. There is no other good choice than to burn the sack of money. John can’t be found, so we should light it up and let it feel the burn.

Interview-
I will be interviewing Jane

Me: So I know that you started out happy that you were going on this trip. This far into the journey, is it still exciting?

Jane: Yes, the whole family is exploring new land we have never seen before, finding animals new to us, and the different climate between all these places! It is still fun for me and Ned, but maybe a little more boring and aggravating for my mom and everyone else, especially Maya.

Me: Jane, I have a few questions for you. First, how far was Dorothy thrown off the horse and how hard did she hit the ground?

Jane: The horse was not in a good mood and kept on trying to jerk her off, and when she fell off, she was thrown far and hit the ground harder than I could imagine. I could even hear the crack of her hip breaking.

Me: So then, why was she riding the horse in the first place, especially when it wasn’t in a good mood?

Jane: She was trying to teach me how to ride a horse even though I wasn’t in the mood to. Even Ben reminded her that the horse wasn’t happy and she kept on going trying to teach me what I didn’t want to be taught.

Me: Did you go to the hospital when she was brought there, and if so, tell me what happened there?

Jane: I did not go to the hospital, but, Ned told me that Dorothy had to go through many tests and a long operation before she could come home and rest her hip.

Me: Finally, why has Maya been watching TV so much lately?

Jane: She has been exposed to TV for the first time since we left Massachusetts, so she wants to watch some TV. She will soon be back to her old self when we get back home.

Me: Thank you!

Jane: Thank you for having me!

Letter to the Author-

Dear Polly Horvath,
I’ve been reading your book Northward to the Moon, and I must say, it might have started out slowly, but it has built up into a very interesting novel. I just have to ask you, how did you come up with the idea to write this book. As a kid did you like traveling and exploring new places? Did you have younger brothers? Have you ever been to Las Vegas? Have you ever lived in Canada? And, have you ever had a sibling give you illegal money, if you have any? I am at the part of the book when Ned’s sisters get to their mom’s house bought with illegal money after she broke her hip because she fell off of a horse. The main conflict has had many conflicts within it, making it very fun and enjoyable to read. Keep up your great book writing. I will be looking forward to your next novel.
From,
Lucas

Chapters 9 and 10

Signposts-

Aha Moment- When Jane realizes that their family doesn’t want to take Ned’s mother, Dorothy, with them back to their house (page 145). This might change things because after Maya asks about this solution and realizes this about their family, she might urge her family to get out of Nevada and bring Dorothy. This would be something that Maya would do seeing that she complains a lot and likes Dorothy.

Again and Again- The word wolves keeps on coming up again and again. I think this word is frequently showing up because it is hinting the reader that wolves will have a role in a part of the book, even though there having been wolves in Nevada in a long time (during the setting of the book), I think that they could make something happen to alter the book. Wolves have only come into play so far with people being weary of them and Maya being scared to death of them so far.

Making Inferences-

“I am watching Ben working a horse now and wondering how old he is” (133).
“No one even notices me go and look over the ring and watch Ben” (137)

After reading these sentences, I can come to a conclusion that Jane really likes Ben, one of Dorothy’s young workers.

Effective Word Choice-

Jeepers- Ned says this when he hears that his sisters are coming to stay with his mom as well as him and his family. This shows how he feels about his sisters and them reuniting for the first time in a while. This put the image of Ned being a little bit scared of them coming.

Scamper- This word is used to describe how she is getting to where she is spying on Ned and Ben. This word is effective because it puts the image of Jane quickly running over to the horse ring.

Futzing- This word is used to tell the reader what Ned is doing. This word is effective because you can picture Ned and Ben talking about random things, wasting time so he can delay having to shop with Nelda.

Chapters 11 and 12

Mood Analysis-

“‘Because he’s the devil’s spawn’” (Horvath 168).

This shows the mood of anger in this scene clearly. It shows that Jane has, at this point of the book, a big hatred of Ned, even though she used to really like him as her step-dad. This one sentence, along with all the sentences on page 168, make the reader feel angry at Ned because of how Jane talks about him.

Character Analysis-

“‘It’s a dump,” says Dorothy at dinner. “But I guess my presence will improve it’”.

This line shows that Dorothy is immodest or not modest. It shows she thinks highly of herself because she thinks that she could make a retirement home that she compared to a dump better because of her presence there. After reading this quote, you can clearly see she is immodest.

Significant Quote-

“Sometimes it is good to have things happen outside of your control. There are parts of yourself you will never discover otherwise.”

This means exactly what is said, you can discover things about yourself when you are put into situations you can’t control. This quote is important because it tells you a good life lesson.

Chapters 13 and 14

Figurative Language-

“‘People are nuts,’ Ginny said”.
This is a metaphor because it is comparing people to nuts without using like or

as.

Poem-

Ned and his family go home only to grab a phone,
Getting told that his mom was alone,
Candace said that Ben ran away,
From Dorothy so he couldn’t stay.

They take a plane to Nevada,
On the way they eat an enchilada,
To Elko they go,
They don’t know what to do, oh no.

She was in poor condition,
I can’t blame Ben for ditchin’,
Now that no one was supervising her dome,
We had to put her in a retirement home.

Then Ned noticed it was wrong,
They can’t throw her there, she’s strong,
They took her out in the middle of the night,
They were about to go on a long flight.

They brought her home,
They now had no room to roam,
Ned was forced to sleep on the rug,
I think he deserves a hug.

Vocabulary-

Cerebral-
My Guess- Mellow

Definition- Intellectual

Vigilance-
My Guess- Trying to keep everyone safe

Dictionary- The state of noticing problems or signs of danger