The Epic Fail of Arturo Zamora: Chapters 10–15

by Pablo Cartaya
When a land developer unveils plans to raze a local eatery, thirteen-year-old Arturo must prove how important his family's restaurant is to his community.

Here are links to our lists for the novel: Note to Self–Chapter 4, Chapters 5–9, Chapters 10–15, Chapters 16–22, Chapters 23–Epilogue
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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. instinct
    inborn pattern of behavior often responsive to stimuli
    Mop’s first instinct had been to tell my mom about Wilfrido’s plans, so maybe Carmen was right.
  2. sift
    check and sort carefully
    I closed my door and opened the box. Sifting through it, I placed all the contents on my desk: a CD, a whole bunch of letters, a few pens, a watch that didn’t work, and a folded envelope...
  3. ponder
    reflect deeply on a subject
    Perhaps you are thinking, your abuelo was a bit loquito, leaving you so much paper to sift through and ponder.
  4. inspire
    serve as the inciting cause of
    Did you know that a poem by José Marti inspired a very famous song called “Guantanamera”?
  5. tempestuous
    characterized by violent emotions or behavior
    Love is not a tempestuous sea; it is a calm river.
  6. ember
    a hot, smoldering fragment of wood left from a fire
    It is not a bonfire but a quiet ember.
  7. abrupt
    exceedingly sudden and unexpected
    It is not an abrupt end; it is peace.
  8. exile
    the act of expelling a person from their native land
    No form of exile or malady can defeat us.
  9. malady
    any unwholesome or desperate condition
    No form of exile or malady can defeat us.
  10. fateful
    having extremely unfortunate or dire consequences
    On one fateful occasion, while I drove through the same neighborhood, a vicious rainstorm swept through the streets, and gour abuela got caught in the middle of it.
  11. subside
    wear off or die down
    I gave her the keys to my taxi and she waited inside while the storm subsided.
  12. gentrification
    change in poorer areas due to an influx of wealthier people
    It was an article from a local paper in northern Florida, talking about a word I had never heard before: gentrification.
  13. garnish
    decorate, as with parsley or other ornamental foods
    “Dos batidos de mango,” she said as she handed us the glasses garnished with little mango wedges.
  14. chime in
    break into a conversation
    Carmen chimed in excitedly in Spanish every time I stopped to take a breath.
  15. caress
    touch or stroke lightly in a loving or endearing manner
    Before we left, Abuela said good-bye to every guest in the dining room in her style—stroking faces, caressing hair, and squeezing shoulders.
  16. daze
    overcome as with astonishment or disbelief
    “Abuela? Abuela!” I yelled. Finally she turned to me, looking dazed.
  17. fraternal
    (of twins) derived from two separate fertilized ova
    “Do you know the likelihood of having two sets of fraternal twins, Tuti? One in three thousand. One. In three thousand.”
  18. croquette
    a small patty of minced food that is coated and fried
    We sent out free goat cheese croquets with fresh fig jam to every person who came in to eat.
  19. essence
    the choicest or most vital part of some idea or experience
    But that meant we all had to try to fill the dining room with Abuela’s essence—the thing our customers loved more than her cooking.
  20. corral
    collect or gather
    Working with Martin was like trying to corral a stubborn water buffalo.
  21. stubborn
    refusing to change one's mind or ways; difficult to convince
    Working with Martin was like trying to corral a stubborn water buffalo.
  22. caviar
    salted fish eggs eaten as a delicacy
    Dulce Dominguez, the lady who owned Two Scoops, munched on a crostini that looked like it had red caviar on it.
  23. faze
    disturb the composure of
    My mom gave Wilfrido the most intense look, but he didn’t seem fazed.
  24. dumbfounded
    as if rendered speechless with astonishment and surprise
    “What is the point of that, Vanessa? Residents don’t get to vote—only the city council.” Martin still looked dumbfounded.
  25. entitled
    qualified for by right according to law
    “As members of this community,” Vanessa argued, “we are entitled to distribute promotional materials about our place of business within three hundred feet of our property. And the festival is taking place on the lot outside, so...”
  26. verse
    literature in metrical form
    The verses were in Spanish, and I had a feeling I was going to end this reading session with a headache.
  27. distinction
    an identifying difference
    No, my dear grandson, that distinction belongs to the first time I mustered the courage to tell your abuela I loved her.
  28. rickety
    inclined to shake as from weakness or defect
    How was that more courageous than escaping your country in a rickety boat with small children and risking being eaten by sharks or getting caught and sent to prison?
  29. rally
    a large gathering of people intended to arouse enthusiasm
    They organized rallies, had students sign all kinds of petitions—from making drinking water safer to protecting the Key Largo woodrat to planting trees throughout the neighborhood.
  30. mesmerized
    having your attention fixated as though witchcraft
    She seemed mesmerized by the group, a huge grin spread across her face.
  31. activism
    a policy of action to achieve a political or social goal
    “And now for some good old-fashioned activism against Wilfrido Pipo,” Vanessa said, motioning for her team of student leaders to pass out materials.
  32. commemorative
    intended to honor the memory of someone or something
    “We don’t want money, sir. Take this flyer, think about your neighborhood, and voice your concerns at the public forum in two weeks. Stand up for our community. Enjoy this commemorative La Cocina de la Isla cap!”
  33. sushi
    cold rice and vinegar topped or rolled with raw fish
    Vanessa gave another flyer to a woman eating festival food—shrimp sushi wrapped in lettuce.
  34. reminisce
    recall the past
    We stayed outside the festival grounds, but we made sure to talk to everyone heading in and out. Most people were happy to speak with us. Reminiscing about the restaurant and about Abuela.
  35. swag
    valuable goods
    In that case, I couldn’t blame them too much. The swag Wilfrido raffled off was pretty cool. Mini-speakers, iPads, more trips to the Caribbean.
  36. digress
    turn aside from the main subject of attention
    And even if you didn’t win those, everyone left with water bottles, cell phone cases, hoodies, and Wilfrido’s book about real estate. Okay, that last one wasn’t cool, but I digress.
  37. lull
    a pause during which things are calm
    Whenever there was a lull, Carmen told me more things about Marti.
  38. indifferent
    showing no care or concern in attitude or action
    Like that he’d said, “We are free but not to be evil, not to be indifferent to human suffering,” or something like that.
  39. hostile
    characterized by enmity or ill will
    If there was ever a moment to declare you like someone, it was with a churro in your hand and a day of protesting a greedy land developer’s hostile takeover of your neighborhood behind you.
  40. valor
    courage when facing danger
    I thought of Abuelo’s letter. Valor. Courage.
Created on Mon Jul 16 17:24:03 EDT 2018 (updated Mon Jul 23 16:29:07 EDT 2018)

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