Warrior Girl Unearthed: Weeks Three–Four

by Angeline Boulley
Also a Firekeeper's Daughter, sixteen-year-old Pearl (Perry) Mary Firekeeper-Birch would rather be fishing on Sugar Island, but as a summer intern, she becomes involved in a database of missing and murdered Indigenous women throughout Michigan.

Here are links to our lists for the novel: Week One, Week Two, Weeks Three–Four, Weeks Five–Seven, Week Eight–Epilogue
40 words 44 learners

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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. admonish
    scold or reprimand; take to task
    “You’d never be part of another reclamation, Perry,” he admonishes. “You’d set back any efforts to bring our ancestors home. Every action has an equal and opposite reaction.”
  2. forge
    make something, usually for a specific function
    “Now, what do you say about forging a connection with Dr. Fenton?”
  3. stuffy
    excessively conventional or narrow-minded and hence dull
    He looks just as stuffy as before, wearing a suit even though it’s eighty degrees today.
  4. requisite
    necessary for relief or supply
    After lunch and the requisite bathroom or smoking break, Cooper addresses the attendees, welcoming everyone and kicking off the introductions.
  5. pretentious
    creating an appearance of importance or distinction
    After the Leer-wah guy introduces himself, Miss Manitou sets down a name card that reads Dr. H. LeRoy.
    I turn my suppressed laugh at the pretentious pronunciation of an ordinary last name into a coughing fit.
  6. abstract
    dealing with a subject without a practical purpose
    Our Anishinaabe teachings are not abstract concepts or folklore. My ancestors had names, and they lived through good times and bad times.
  7. fellowship
    money granted for advanced study or research
    She names every university she attended, who she studied under, her scholarly publications, and the research fellowships she has received.
  8. regalia
    especially fine or decorative clothing
    Rocky is dressed in his hoop dancer regalia and immediately launches into an exhibition dance.
  9. flourish
    a showy gesture
    Our guests clap, and I do a game-show host flourish toward him.
  10. noble
    having high or elevated character
    During the Great Flood, Muskrat sacrifices himself to swim deep enough to grasp a tiny handful of earth that his companions find after his body resurfaces. Many people tend to get emotional at this part. I glance over at Dr. Fenton, who is dry-eyed at Muskrat’s noble death.
  11. incorporate
    make into a whole or make part of a whole
    Since Cooper was unable to give the presentation he worked on all week, I want to incorporate what he planned on sharing into my tour.
  12. subsistence
    a means of surviving
    We have a special permit for subsistence and ceremonial hunting and fishing on tribal and state land.
  13. venison
    meat from a deer used as food
    If someone is doing a naming feast and wants to serve traditional foods like venison, smoked whitefish, or turkey, we can provide the wild game or fish for the event.
  14. loophole
    an ambiguity that makes it possible to evade an obligation
    Erik found a loophole in the rules.
  15. jimmy
    move or force, especially in an effort to get something open
    She found a paper clip and a McDonald’s gift card in the garbage to jimmy the lock.
  16. distraught
    deeply agitated especially from emotion
    When the secretary comes in with the lunch, she looks upset. Pauline goes to hug her, and the woman breaks down. Pauline holds her while the distraught secretary mumbles something into her shirt.
  17. unwavering
    marked by firm determination or resolution
    In the movies, when a person gets fired, they slink away with a box of their personal belongings. Mom has prepared for it, knows with unwavering certainty that she will walk away with her head held high.
  18. incompatible
    not in harmonious or agreeable combination
    “Sometimes a supervisor and intern have different communication styles or incompatible personalities. Sometimes it’s just a bad fit.”
  19. allege
    report or maintain
    Every summer there are different reassignments for any number of reasons. No one will know why. Those details are between you and your former supervisor unless you or he alleges there was misconduct.
  20. fitful
    intermittently stopping and starting
    From what I can remember, my fitful sleep included versions of me getting fired over and over.
  21. stint
    an unbroken period of time during which you do something
    I didn’t even last three whole weeks. True, it was a week longer than Pauline’s stint with Tribal Council, but she got transferred because the chief was a guilty perv.
  22. germinate
    sprout; produce buds or branches
    It’s been twelve days since I took the squash seeds. They should’ve germinated by now, but since they were stored for decades, it could be a few more days.
  23. kinesthetic
    of or relating to kinesthesis
    When he doesn’t respond, I repeat myself and dance in a silly way.
    This time he stands on his hind legs to do his goofy dance. That earns him more jerky.
    “Gi maa mii kwen min,” I say, because I am proud of my dog for learning the language. He is a kinesthetic learner like me.
  24. corral
    a pen for cattle
    My dog catches up and does his sheepdog thing—nudging Waab back into an imaginary corral.
  25. attribute
    a characteristic that distinguishes objects or individuals
    I thought she was a fighter. It’s the one attribute I thought I had more in common with Auntie than my twin did.
  26. obtuse
    lacking in insight or discernment
    Let’s see how obtuse Mom and Pops are when Elvis Junior alerts them to Pauline’s post-shenanigan reentry around three a.m. Then she’ll know that I’m the clever one.
  27. shrewd
    marked by practical hardheaded intelligence
    My sister knows that if she can deflect their anger and disappointment toward me, then her punishment will be less than if they focus everything on her. She is shrewd, I’ll give her that.
  28. pike
    highly valued northern freshwater fish with lean flesh
    Yesterday, I had my waders on for fly-fishing at Baie de Wasai. The yellow pike were latching onto everything.
  29. adversary
    someone who offers opposition
    Maybe the Kinomaage program shouldn’t pit teams against each other. It sets us up to be adversaries.
  30. resolution
    a formal expression by a meeting, agreed to by a vote
    We preview agenda items to ensure we’ve got what we need for the official meeting, from four to seven p.m., when we vote on resolutions that become tribal law.
  31. contempt
    disrespect for the authority of a court or legislative body
    When Uncle Levi got in trouble, Stormy wouldn’t speak to the federal investigators. Not one word. Not even his own name when the judge asked him. He ended up serving two years for “contempt of court.”
  32. per capita
    relating to each person individually
    Stormy came back to Sugar Island and bought this property with his per capita payments that had built up while he was incarcerated.
  33. referendum
    a legislative act referred for approval to a popular vote
    Uncle Levi got banished for five years because he was convicted of a felony drug crime, and the Tribe passed a banishment referendum a while ago.
  34. masquerade
    pretend to be someone or something that you are not
    Anger masquerades as nerves.
  35. acquire
    come into the possession of something concrete or abstract
    Our focus right now is on acquiring a private collection that’s being donated to the Tribe.
  36. quirky
    strikingly unconventional
    “Lockhart’s a...quirky man. Kind of grouchy and particular.”
  37. astute
    marked by practical hardheaded intelligence
    “Why would you request me but then let me do independent study instead of helping with the Lockhart announcement?”
    He tilts his head as if seeing me for the first time.
    “In my village, we call that being astute.”
  38. indignantly
    in a manner showing anger at something unjust or wrong
    “Auntie Daunis agreed to stay here when Pops and I travel next Friday.”
    “Like a babysitter?” Pauline screeches indignantly.
  39. pedigree
    the ancestry or lineage of an individual
    Pops says only three things still have pedigrees: dogs, horses, and Indians. His tribe avoids all that by using lineal descendancy, which still involves a family tree but without any colonizer blood-quantum nonsense.
  40. lackluster
    not having brilliance or vitality
    “Oh, all right,” I say, mirroring his pose and starting off with a lackluster push.
Created on Sun Jan 07 12:32:16 EST 2024 (updated Mon Jan 08 12:09:42 EST 2024)

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