| A | B |
|---|
| What are cicadas? | insects |
| What causes a classroom disturbance at the beginning of the story? | A cicada gets into the classroom and a student yells, "It looks like the cicada that got my grandma!" |
| Why does Lily feel invisible? | because of her silence |
| How long has Lily been silent? | two years |
| What kind of person does Lily think is the lowest kind of criminal? | people who steal books |
| Why do people think Lily can't read anymore? | She doesn't let them see her do it. |
| How old is Lily? | 12 |
| Why can Lily walk around the school during classes? | People think she's brain-damaged. |
| What reason does Lily's father give for the loud buzzing of the cicada? | He says they are loud because they are looking for love and sing to attract the perfect mate. |
| Why does her father keep touching the pocket of his overalls? | He wants to be sure his keys are safe. |
| Why is it hardest for Lily to be silent when she is with her father? | He continues to talk to her and she wants to tell him things. |
| Why is Lily silent? | She's afraid if she tell tells her father what happened to Pete, he will no longer love her. |
| Where did Pete and Lily like to race to? | the barn |
| What game do they play in the barn? | They pretend they are driving the cars that are parked there. |
| Which car is Lily's favorite and why? | The red sports car because it reminds her of Nancy Drew's car. |
| Which car is Pete's favorite and why? | The black sedan because it reminds him of a 1940's gangster car. |
| Who surprises Lily when she is reading under the cottonwood tree? | a girl named Tinny who is up in the tree |
| Who did the cars in the barn belong to? | Fern |
| What does Fern do for a living? | She owns a store. |
| What does Fern call Lily? | a Poor Motherless Child |
| Where does Lily live? | in a small town called Olena |
| What is Judy the Spelling Tiver afraid of? | heights |
| What does Carla Morgan give Lily without charging her? | lemonade |
| What does Lily do at the store? | sweeps the floor and eavesdrops |
| Why is Tinny at the store? | She is Fern's great-niece. |
| What does Tinny realize about Lily? | She is only pretending to be brain-damaged. |
| Why does Lily's father have the key to Fern's barn? | He goes to the barn each month to keep the sedan running for Fern. |
| What does Tinny drop on the floor of the store? | a Tootsie Roll wrapper with PO309 written on it |
| What does Tinny do to Fern that makes Lily angry? | She steals candy from Fern's store. |
| What does Tinny do in an attempt to get Lily in trouble? | She slips candy into Lily's pocket, and then tells Fern that Lily is taking candy. |
| Why does Liy start to go to the store every day? | Sshe doesn't trust Lily and wants to look out for Fern. |
| What does Lily discover when she counts the items on the shelves? | Tinny is stealing other items besides candy. |
| How did Pete convince Cyril Johnson to let him fish in his pond? | He pretends his father can't afford to take him fishing. |
| What happens at an Old Lady Party? | Every Friday night, Fern and the Page sisters go to Lily's house and bring dinner. |
| Where did Tinny come from? | Chicago |
| Who does Miss Opal talk to that her sister says is gone? | her sister, Sapphy |
| What is the Red Dragon? | a homemade toy pirate ship |
| What happens to the Red Dragon? | It sinks in the pond during a game of pirate. |
| What does Pete light at the pond to make the pirate battle look more exciting? | sparklers |
| What does Tinny want to know about? | She wants to know what happened in the barn. |
| Why is Miss Opal upset about the groceries that Tinny and Lily deliver? | There is a pack of gum missing. |
| Who gives the gum to Miss Opal, claiming it was on the floor? | Tinny |
| What does Lily believe really happened? | She thinks Tinny stole the gum, and then gave it back. |
| What bad dream does Lily have about Pete? | He is driving the sedan. |
| What does Lily call it when she takes Nancy Drew books without checking them out? | Keeping them in protective custody. |
| What has Pete been promised for his 13th birthday? | He will be allowed to drive Dad's truck a short distance. |
| How does Lily know that the stranger is not really a surveyor? | He is wearing city shoes. |
| What phrase do both Tinny and the stranger use? | "Choices, choices, ...my, oh, my." |
| Who does Fern think is stealing from the store and why? | She thinks Lily is stealing and it might be because she is jealous of Tinny. |
| Where is Lily not allowed to go because of Tinny? | to Fern's store |
| Who does Lily see when she goes back to the cottonwood tree? | Tinny and the Ring Man |
| Why does Lily call him the Ring Man? | He wears a silver ring with a crescent cut from the band. |
| What does the Ring Man want Tinny to tell him? | where her father is |
| What does Tinny give him to try to make him go away? | $100 |
| What does Tinny do when she and the Ring Man see Lily? | Tinny protects Lily by grabbing her by the hand and saying that Fern is expecting them. |
| What does the Ring Man toss out of his car? | the Nancy Drew book and Tinny's money |
| When Liy thought there were bad guys in the house, what did the noise turn out to be? | Pete sneaking out to the barn. |
| What happens in the barn? | Pete starts the sedan and dies of carbon monoxide poisoning. |
| Where does Lily wake up? | outside of the barn, lying in the field |
| Why does Lily blame herself for Pete's death? | She closed the barn door. |
| What reason does Tinny give Fern for leaving? | She prefers Chicago. |
| What confession does Tinny make in her note to Fern? | She is the one who stole the money. |
| What does Lily find out about the Ring Man when she goes to the post office? | He has left. |
| Why does Lily knock over the display of tax forms? | She creates a distraction in order to take the stack of wanted posters. |
| What is Tinny's father wanted for? | armed robbery |
| Who is the unknown accomplice that the wanted poster refers to? | The Ring Man |
| Why did Tinny say she had gone back to Chicago? | to lure the Ring Man away from Fern |
| When Lily finds Tinny in the barn with her eyes shut, what name does Lily keep screaming? | Pete |
| Who else is in the barn when Lily finds Tinny? | The RIng Man |
| How do Lily and Tinny escape the Ring Man? | Tinny hits him on the head with a piece of crate. |
| After Lily finds her father, what has changed for her? | She can talk again. |
| Lily's father said that Pete's death wasn't her fault because there was something she didn't know about. What was it? | carbon monoxide fumes |
| Why did Tinny steal from the store? | She stole money and supplies so that she could escape from the Ring Man. |
| How did the RIng Man find Tinny? | He watched Lily in the hope that Lily would lead him to Tinny. |
| How did the Ring Man try to hurt Lily? | by choking her |
| What does Tinny do with the scarf she had in her hair? | She wraps it around Lily's neck to hide the bruises. |
| Why doesn't Tinny tell the FBI the truth? | She doesn't want her father to go to jail. |
| What does Lily tell Tinny that Tinny must tell the authorities? | The money is in a Chicago PO box - the number was on the candy wrapper that Tinny dropped. |
| What does Tinny receive from her father at the end of the story? | a postcard |
| How rare are cicada summers? | They happen once every 17 years. |
| How is Lily's last dream about Pete different? | He is happy and drops her off at home. |
