SHORT ANSWER QUESTIONS
Q1.Why did Zan feel awkward and isolated during his first year of high school?
Ans: Zan’s position during his first year of high school as the junior most class made him feel awkward. The big size of the new school and separation from his closest friends made him feel isolated.
Q2.Why did the author miss his old teachers?
Ans: The author missed his old teachers because they would encourage him to get involved in school activities so that he could meet new people. They also assured him that he would soon adjust to his new school. Their affection, warmth, and cooperation in making him feel special made the author miss them.
Q3. What kind of day it was when a fire broke out in the author’s house? What were the author and his cat doing at that time?
Ans: It was a Sunday afternoon of a cold and windy winter when the fire broke out. The author was at the dining-room table doing homework with the fire burning in the fireplace. His red tabby cat was lying over his papers, purring loudly and sometimes swatting at his pen.
Q4. What does the author notice one Sunday afternoon? What is his mother’s reaction? What does she do?
Ans: One Sunday afternoon, the author smelled something strange and noticed smoke pouring in through the seams of the ceiling of his house. His mother reacted promptly and the two of them ran out into the front yard. However, she ran back into the house and brought out a small metal box full of important documents.
Q5. What happened to the narrator’s mother when she had run into the burning house?
Ans: The author’s mother inhaled a little smoke when she ran into the burning house. She was rescued by the firemen who put an oxygen mask on her after bringing her out. However, she was fine soon.
Q6. How did Zan’s mother save important documents from the burning house?
Ans: Zan’s mother saved important documents from the burning house by courageously rushing inside the house on fire and bringing out a small metal box that contained those documents. She thus risked her life but eventually succeeded in her mission.
Q7. Why did Zan’s mother run back into the house after having saved the important documents?
Or
“I knew what she was after”. Why does Zan make this observation?
Ans: Zan’s mother ran back to save the pictures and letters of his father who had died when Zan was young. Zan knew that these memories of her husband were extremely precious for her and she did not want them to go up in flames.
Q8. Why did Zan try to run after his mother and why did the fireman hold him back?
Ans: Zan tried to run after his mother because he was afraid of losing her. He was afraid that she might get burnt in the fire. The fireman held him back because Zan’s act was very rash and illogical. the lie could not have saved his mother and would have risked his life as well.
Q9. Who brought out Zan’s mother from the burning house? Why was an oxygen mask put on her?
Ans: A fireman brought Zan’s mother out of the burning house. She had inhaled a little smoke and so he rushed her to the truck and put an oxygen mask on her to facilitate better breathing.
Q10.When did the author realise that his cat was missing?
Ans: After five hours of raging fire that burnt down the author’s house almost completely, he realised that his cat was missing. He had not seen her all this while and realised to his horror that she was nowhere to be found.
Q11. Why does the narrator say, “I was suffering loss, big time”?
Ans: The author feels that he was suffering loss, big time because he had lost his old dear school and teachers, he had lost his house to the fire, and now he had lost his dear cat whom he loved dearly.
Q12. Why does Zan break down in tears after the fire?
Ans: Zan breaks down in tears after the fire because he had lately been suffering losses. His old school, his house and his cat – all had been lost. The tears were an emotional outburst of a teenager who was struggling with adjustment issues.
Q13. In what condition does the author go to school after the fire incident?
Ans: After the fire incident, the author goes to school wearing the dress that he had worn to church on Sunday morning and the tennis shoes that he had borrowed from his aunt. His shoes, clothes, books, homework, and backpack had been destroyed in the fire.
Q14. Why is the author deeply embarrassed the next day in school? Which words show his fear and insecurity?
Ans: The author is embarrassed because he feels that his appearance is weird without uniform, books and a backpack. His fear and insecurity are shown by the words: “Was I destined to be an outcast and geek all my life?”.
Q15. Why did the author dislike growing up?
Ans: The author disliked growing up because he felt that growing up had brought so many losses with it. He had lost his old school, his friends, his house and most of all his dear pet cat.
Q16.What is surreal? Why does the author feel that everything was surreal?
Ans: Surreal means something strange or unreal. The author felt that everything was surreal because too many unfortunate things had happened to him – his house was burnt down, his cat was lost, his mother was left with no money and he had no books, shoes, clothes and school uniform. His secure zone had been ripped away suddenly and the changes were too much and too many for him to handle.
Q17. What was the extent of damage caused by the fire?
Ans: All belongings except photo albums, documents and some personal items had got burnt in the fire. Whatever remained had got destroyed by the water and chemicals that had been used to put out the fire.
Q18. The author’s heart ached for his cat but there was no time to grieve. Why? The author felt pain at the loss of his cat but life had to move on.
Ans: He could not grieve as a new place to live had to be found and new clothes had to be bought for school.
Q19.Why did Zan’s mother have to borrow money from his grandparents?
Ans: Zan’s mother had to borrow money from his grandparents because her credit cards, cash and even identification that was needed to draw money from the bank had got burnt up in the fire. She had to rent a new place, buy new clothes for Zan and resettle quickly. She did not have time to wait for the recovery of her lost documents till then.
Q20. Why did the narrator go over to his burnt house even though they had rented an apartment nearby?
Ans: The narrator went over to his burnt house even though they had rented an apartment nearby because he hoped that his cat would be found somewhere. He would watch the clearing away of the debris expecting to see his cat.
Q21. What thoughts crossed Zan’s mind when he missed his cat?
Ans: Zan thought of his cat as the vulnerable little kitten who would tag along after him in the morning. He thought of how she would climb up his robe and crawl into his pocket to fall sleep.
Q22.How and why were people acting stranger than usual at Zan’s school?
Ans: When Zan was getting ready for gym class at his locker, people were gathering around him asking him to hurry up. This was stranger than usual as they almost seemed to shove him into the gym. They behaved so because they had put up a surprise collection of school supplies and clothes etc for Zan in the gym.
Q23.What help did the author get from his schoolmates after the fire accident?
Or
What kind of gesture did Zan’s schoolmates show to hint?
Ans: The author’s schoolmates helped him by getting him school supplies, notebooks, and different clothes – jeans, tops sweatshirts. Those who had never spoken to him introduced themselves and many invited him to their homes.
Q24. Why was the author overcome by emotions when he got help from his schoolmates?
Ans: The author was overcome by emotions when he got help from his schoolmates because they had gone out of their way to bring him the things he needed. He was touched by their genuine outpouring of concern.
Q25. When does the author say “It was like Christmas”? Why?
Ans: The author says this when he gets inside the gym to see the surprise load of school supplies and different clothes on the big table only for him. This seemed like Christmas because these assorted gifts were similar to the surprise gifts that one gets from loved ones on Christmas.
Q26. What made the author finally breathe a sigh of relief?
Ans: The thought for the first time that things were going to be okay made the author finally breathe a sigh of relief. He had made friends in the new school who had a genuine concern for him.
Q27.Why was it different for Zan to see his house getting rebuilt? How did the fire help him?
Ans: It was different to see his house getting rebuilt because Zan wasn’t alone this time. Two of his new friends from school were with him. The fire had helped him by diverting his mind away from his feelings of insecurity. He now opened up to the wonderful people around.
Q28. Where was the cat after the fire? Who brings it back and how?
Or
How did Zan get back his beloved cat?
Ans: The cat had been so freaked by the fire that she had run away over a mile away. A woman brings her back by locating the owners through different sources because the phone number etched on the cat’s collar could not be reached as it had been disconnected due to the fire.
Q29. How did the author’s feelings of loss and tragedy seem to diminish?
Ans: The author felt gratitude for life, his new friends, the kindness of the woman who had rescued his cat and certainly for the life of his beautiful cat. This gratitude diminished his feelings of loss and tragedy.
Q.30. What problem does the author face when he moves to a new school?
Ans. In the junior school,l he was the head boy of his class. He was very close to all the teachers. He enjoyed the seniority. But when he joins a new school at senior level, he faces many problems. This school was twice as big as his old school. He felt very isolated.
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