The Incredibly Human Henson Blayze: Chapters 23–34

by Derrick Barnes
In this novel, 13-year-old Henson Blayze becomes the star of his school's football team, but soon learns that he must choose between fame and fighting back against racism.

Here are links to our lists for the book: Prologue-Chapter 11, Chapters 12-22, Chapters 23-34, Chapters 35-44, Chapter 45-Epilogue
15 words 27 learners

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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. boutonniere
    a flower that is worn in a buttonhole
    Sunflower boutonnieres beamed brightly from their left lapels.
  2. impetuously
    in an impulsive or hasty way; without taking precautions
    Henson and Gavin nudged their pieces impetuously with their knuckles and barely laid an eye on their respective boards.
  3. dub
    give a nickname to
    I’m talking about the kid that’s been dubbed the ‘Great Mountain Messiah.’
  4. prodigy
    an unusually gifted or intelligent person
    “This young man says that he is Henson Blayze’s manager, agent, consigliere, and best friend in the whole world. It appears we have a prodigy athlete being handled by a prodigy sports executive. Alright, kid, what’s your name?”
  5. unbridled
    not restrained or controlled
    The crowd, the band, even the Jonestown fans exploded with unbridled amazement.
  6. blowout
    an easy victory
    Homemade signs in every nook of the sold-out stadium bore Henson’s face, his name, and predictions of the blowout to come.
  7. procure
    get by special effort
    If nothing else came through, if no one else showed up, if the sun didn’t shine and the rains never fell from the sky again, he knew, deep down in his soul that his little buddy would be in the seat that Henson procured for him.
  8. signify
    make known with a word or signal
    The buzzer sounded to signify the end of the first quarter.
  9. somber
    serious and gloomy in character
    Coach chuckled, an empty attempt to break the somber cloud that hung over the space.
  10. boorish
    ill-mannered and coarse in behavior or appearance
    Then he returned the boorish sentiment with an electric roar, “I SAID I HAVE TO GO!”
  11. lob
    propel in a high arc
    Out of the eight thousand folks in attendance at the stadium that night, only nine people, positioned near the Marauders tunnel, had the courage, the audacity, or the outright stupidity to lob cups, food, and gobs of spit on Henson Blayze from their seats.
  12. gall
    the trait of being rude and impertinent
    One woman had the gall to take the extra-large cup full of RC Cola that her husband was holding, pop off the lid, and then launch it at Henson.
  13. reciprocity
    a relation of mutual dependence or action or influence
    Accepting and understanding reciprocity was something that those nine lost souls, apparently, did not possess.
  14. enthralled
    filled with wonder and delight
    “Oh yeah. I remember. So what’d you say?” Henson asked, completely enthralled by the fact that she, Freida St. Louis of all people, actually came to his defense.
  15. tetchy
    easily irritated or annoyed
    Flowell burst into the room in an extremely tetchy mode.
Created on Tue Nov 25 08:08:41 EST 2025 (updated Tue Dec 02 11:38:32 EST 2025)

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