Sweet Whispers, Brother Rush: Chapters 1–4

by Virginia Hamilton
At first sight on an Ohio street corner, almost-fifteen-year-old Teresa "Tree" Pratt falls in love with Brother Rush, before she realizes he is a ghost who has appeared to show her the past.

Here are links to our lists for the novel: Chapters 1–4, Chapters 5–8, Chapters 9–13, Chapters 14–17
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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. stoop
    small porch or set of steps at the front entrance of a house
    He had been leaning on a stoop of an apartment building.
  2. melancholy
    a feeling of thoughtful sadness
    Tree understood that the way Brother Rush was dressed expressed his style as well as his melancholy.
  3. fleeting
    lasting for a markedly brief time
    She made fleeting notice that Brother's skin was a pale brown with a good sprinkling of reddish freckles.
  4. refined
    cultivated and genteel
    He had refined features and full lips.
  5. fathom
    come to understand
    She denied the message that was there in his eyes. It had gone too deeply inside her for her to fathom it at once.
  6. swoon
    be overwhelmed with ecstasy, especially when encountering something or someone you admire
    Her insides had performed a wild screeching at her, like a girl swooning in some fifties movie clip she had seen on TV.
  7. foyer
    a large entrance or reception room or area
    "Dab ain't smart. No way," Tree would say when she was by herself in her room or taking off her boots in the foyer.
  8. alcove
    a small recess opening off a large room or garden
    She would never call the closet room a room. You wouldn't want to show it to somebody as a room. It was more like the end of a room. Like an alcove made too small, with a folding door across it to hide the mistake.
  9. sliver
    a thin fragment or slice that has been shaved from something
    The fish froze solid, flaking scales of ice slivers that made her shiver violently.
  10. modest
    following standards of propriety in conduct or appearance
    Pink and new, it covered her neatly, yet it was a bra, and she was modest.
  11. musty
    stale and unclean smelling
    It was a beige sweater, soggy and musty with the rain she had wiped from her books.
  12. notion
    a vague idea in which some confidence is placed
    Tree had the vague notion that she had run out and come back again.
  13. recollection
    something recalled to the mind
    She had no recollection of having had the baby. Yet she knew she had.
  14. utter
    complete
    It made the day shake down to utter stillness.
  15. bound
    move forward by leaping
    He stood in the shade a moment, then bounded up the steps.
  16. commission
    a fee for services rendered
    The woman went in the house and got her numbers. She had them ready for the neighborhood. Had them added up and the names of everybody and how much by each name and each number on a white sheet of paper. She had a good feeling today. She hoped for hits to make her commission.
  17. weary
    physically and mentally fatigued
    She'd had a dream last night. All dark and weary dream, something flying.
  18. stifle
    smother or suppress
    She'd stifled a scream for fear of waking her good husband.
  19. wretched
    characterized by physical misery
    She thought of her firstborn, wretched son, her cross to bear through life.
  20. pry
    move or force in an effort to get something open
    The thump-thumping was the boy Dabney's foot opening and closing the closet door. He'd pry it open with his toes.
  21. sprawl
    sit or lie with one's limbs spread out
    He was knocked unconscious when he hit the floor, but only for a moment. Vy had fainted, was like a rag doll sprawled across him.
  22. novelty
    originality by virtue of being refreshingly new
    She leaned over to see the shoes with the little electric lights built into the toes. She and M'Vy had gotten the shoes for him in a novelty store.
  23. monotonous
    sounded or spoken in a tone unvarying in pitch
    It was a monotonous one-note, almost a questioning that Tree could recognize even in her sleep, like a stray cat sounding miserable in the rain.
  24. considerable
    large in number, amount, extent, or degree
    She had learned a considerable amount about taking care of an older brother who was unlike anyone she'd ever known.
  25. emphatically
    in a forceful manner; with emphasis
    "Uh-huh," he said emphatically. "Got to eat."
  26. poised
    marked by balance or equilibrium and readiness for action
    She stood before the open refrigerator, her hand poised in mid-air, reaching for the meat.
  27. welfare
    a contented state of being happy and healthy and prosperous
    She could be doing something, anything, but always a piece of her mind was attached to the welfare of Dab.
  28. earnest
    characterized by a firm, sincere belief in one's opinions
    He was being so serious with her, with an earnest look on his face.
  29. tender
    physically untoughened
    Would have taken her wide-toothed Fro pick like a weapon and raked it across that tender piece of skin under the nose between the nostrils.
  30. scrutinize
    look at critically or searchingly, or in minute detail
    Carefully she scrutinized him, all that she could see of him from the waist up.
Created on Sun May 12 11:03:52 EDT 2024 (updated Sun May 12 16:10:10 EDT 2024)

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