Barefoot Dreams of Petra Luna: Chapters 14–25

by Alda P. Dobbs
Based on a true story, this historical novel follows twelve-year-old Petra and her family as they flee their home during the Mexican Revolution and travel through battlefields and deserts to find a better life in the United States.

Here are links to our lists for the novel: "Citlalin Popoca"–Chapter 5, Chapters 6–13, Chapters 14–25
35 words 11 learners

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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. stoic
    seeming unaffected by pleasure or pain; impassive
    Marietta, with a stoic face, rested her thumbs over the cartridge belt that wrapped around her waist.
  2. tarnish
    make or become dirty or dull, as by exposure to air
    I looked out the cracked, tarnished window and could still make out her figure.
  3. shackle
    a restraint that confines or restricts freedom
    Our people had been enslaved by the Spanish for three hundred years. After Mexico won its independence the shackles were removed, but people’s hearts remained the same. The rich still owned all the lands and continued to whip the poor just as before.
  4. meager
    deficient in amount or quality or extent
    “He’d always say, ‘Ma, these meager wages will never be enough. I don’t want my children to inherit this debt or this life.’”
  5. resistant
    impervious to being affected
    I didn’t believe a full moon had made Papá the brave man he was or that never having stuck my hand in a pot would make me resistant to bullets.
  6. corrugated
    shaped into alternating parallel grooves and ridges
    I stood on the ladder with my upper body leaning over the corrugated steel top.
  7. hail
    praise loudly and forcefully
    It was as if everything around me—the mountains, the wind, and even the storm—hailed me for having made it this far and also screamed for me to join the cause.
  8. pungent
    strong and sharp to the sense of taste or smell
    It looked like the battlefields the soldaderas had described earlier—thick smoke, confusion and disorder, and the pungent smell of blood and burning flesh.
  9. obliterate
    do away with completely, without leaving a trace
    The train’s engine had been obliterated, and the first few cars lay ruined and mangled.
  10. calamity
    an event resulting in great loss and misfortune
    It was a sea of disaster, a calamity full of pain and agony that seemed boundless.
  11. tourniquet
    a bandage that stops the flow of blood by applying pressure
    “The tourniquet is too loose,” Marietta said to the man.
  12. integrity
    moral soundness
    “I admire your integrity and your compassion. And no matter where you go in life, you’ll be fine because you stay true to your heart.”
  13. harrowing
    causing extreme distress
    The harrowing winds blew so strong, it seemed to be raining sideways.
  14. lapse
    a mistake resulting from inattention
    I kept my eyes on the crosstie in front of me and nothing else. If I looked any farther, I feared a lapse that would send Amelia and me into the deep darkness.
  15. fester
    gnaw into; make resentful or angry
    I pressed my fingertips against my eyelids for relief as thoughts of doom festered inside my head.
  16. grim
    filled with melancholy and despondency
    I took a deep breath but kept my eyes closed so as to not see the grim faces around me.
  17. grueling
    characterized by effort to the point of exhaustion
    I thought the name also praised the grueling work miners poured into plucking the precious rocks from the earth.
  18. bewildered
    extremely confused and uncertain what to do
    We exited the car, and at the top of the iron steps we stopped, bewildered.
    We eyeballed hundreds of people in front of us, to the right and left, and as far as the eye could see. Everyone looked hungry, desperate, and lost.
  19. throng
    a large gathering of people
    From its balcony, men and women dressed in fancy suits and silks watched the throngs of people.
  20. stagnant
    not circulating or flowing
    Each was a massive river of people, stagnant and desperate to flow.
  21. disillusioned
    freed from false ideas
    I inched my way back to Abuelita, disillusioned. I observed the people I passed. I noticed their colorless lips and the dark puffs beneath their eyes. Both rich and poor had the same exhaustion, confusion, and fear that only war brings.
  22. barrack
    a building or group of buildings to house military personnel
    We reached the plaza and crossed the street to the barracks. Through its shattered windows, I could see two rebel soldiers talking to another one sitting at a small table.
  23. discreet
    not easily noticeable
    Discreetly, I rubbed my eyes and nose against my upper arm and cleared my throat.
  24. atrocity
    an act of shocking cruelty
    I’d heard and seen atrocities waged by the Federales against civilians.
  25. vise
    something likened to a tool that clamps or holds tightly
    Like a vise, my arms had squeezed them, smearing the mushy fruit on my blouse.
  26. muddle
    mix up or confuse
    We all looked at each other with muddled eyes. Confusion continued as people dashed in different directions, some arguing among themselves or calling out for others.
  27. torrent
    a violently fast stream of water or other liquid
    Abuelita and I spent the night sleeping on the sidewalk with hundreds of others under a torrent of rain.
  28. impenetrable
    not admitting of passage into or through
    With a border as impenetrable as this one, we were doomed.
  29. heed
    pay close attention to
    For a moment, a strange feeling tugged at my heart; it pushed me to heed Abuelita’s advice.
  30. deluge
    an overwhelming number or amount
    I clutched Amelia’s hand and dragged her behind me into the deluge of people.
  31. poised
    in full control of your faculties
    Below us, el Río Bravo sparkled. Its calm and poised flow contrasted with the storm above it.
  32. angst
    an acute but unspecific feeling of anxiety
    The angst in his face had been replaced with haste.
  33. formidable
    extremely impressive in strength or excellence
    Mamá’s passing, Papá’s conscription, the war, the wilderness—all had marked me with sorrow and despair, but also with strength. The deeper indentations, the ones I would cling to for life, had been formed by encounters with formidable people.
  34. flourish
    make steady progress
    Despite these harsh truths, I was hopeful to one day see Mexico flourish into a country full of peace and prosperity for the people who’d fought and given up so much for her.
  35. grapple
    work hard to come to terms with or deal with something
    Every struggle and challenge I’d grapple with and every failure and victory that lay ahead would dig deep into me and help chisel out my true character.
Created on Mon Mar 21 10:13:03 EDT 2022 (updated Fri Mar 25 13:07:19 EDT 2022)

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