The Night Diary: July 14, 1947–August 1, 1947

by Veera Hiranandani
In 1947, British India was divided into two separate and independent countries: India, a mostly Hindu nation, and Pakistan, a predominantly Muslim nation. The partition leaves Nisha, a girl with both Hindu and Muslim heritage, without a clear place to call home. She and her family must make a treacherous journey to try to find a safe haven in a country rocked by turmoil and violence.

Here are links to our lists for the novel: July 14, 1947–August 1, 1947; August 2, 1947–August 8, 1947; August 15, 1947–August 20, 1947; August 21, 1947–August 30, 1947; August 31, 1947–November 10, 1947
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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. etch
    carve or cut a design or letters into
    Amil and I usually sleep through our birth minutes and then when we wake up, we stand next to the last mark we etched into the wall with a sharp rock.
  2. bangle
    jewelry worn around the wrist for decoration
    Now I have two gold bangles, two gold rings, small emerald-and-gold hoop earrings, and the ruby necklace.
  3. sequin
    a small disk of shiny material used to decorate clothing
    The diary is covered in purple and red silk, decorated with small sequins and bits of mirrored glass sewn in.
  4. prosperous
    in fortunate circumstances financially
    Normally on our birthday he only gives me the jewelry and we do puja at our temple and offer the gods handfuls of leaves and sweets for a prosperous year, but Papa did not talk about it this morning.
  5. headmaster
    presiding officer of a school
    I hope our headmasters don’t send a messenger with a note.
  6. cricket
    a game played with a ball and bat by two teams of 11 players
    I remember he was the first person to teach Amil how to play cricket in the front of the house, how to throw and bat and catch.
  7. mortar
    a vessel in which substances can be ground with a pestle
    I know how to sort the lentils, grind the spices with his marble mortar and pestle, clarify the butter for ghee, and mix the dough for chapatis.
  8. pestle
    a hand tool for grinding and mixing substances in a mortar
    I know how to sort the lentils, grind the spices with his marble mortar and pestle, clarify the butter for ghee, and mix the dough for chapatis.
  9. clarify
    make clear by removing impurities or solids, as by heating
    I know how to sort the lentils, grind the spices with his marble mortar and pestle, clarify the butter for ghee, and mix the dough for chapatis.
  10. composition
    an essay, especially one written as an assignment
    I have the neatest handwriting in my class and get the highest marks on all my compositions. You would be very proud of me.
  11. partition
    separation by the creation of a boundary that divides
    I turned over the words like puzzle pieces in my head, wondering how they were supposed to fit together: Pakistan, Jinnah, independence, Nehru, India, British, Lord Mountbatten, Gandhi, partition.
  12. bungalow
    a small house with a single story
    We have our bungalow, and a coop for the chickens, the flower and vegetable gardens, and the cottages where Kazi and the groundskeeper, Mahit, live.
  13. garland
    a circular band of flowers or other foliage
    There is one large picture of you that Papa keeps on his bookshelf, with a garland draped over it.
  14. sliver
    a thin fragment or slice that has been shaved from something
    “Your papa told me,” Kazi said, reading my mind. He moved on to a pile of green chilies, slicing them into tiny slivers.
  15. ostracize
    expel from a community or group
    “Their families were completely against their marrying. Papa’s old school friend, a Hindu priest, agreed to marry them in secret. When they first came here, they were ostracized from the community, even though all kinds of people get along here. But marriage has always been different.”
  16. desperate
    showing extreme urgency or intensity because of great need
    I was getting desperate, so I decided to knock on the door nobody wanted to knock on.
  17. knead
    use the hands to mix and work something into a uniform mass
    Then he told me not to knead the dough too hard or it would fry up like a rock.
  18. hobble
    walk unevenly due to pain, injury, or weakness
    Then Amil hobbled slowly out of one of the hospital rooms on crutches.
  19. provoke
    call forth, as an emotion, feeling, or response
    “Are you doing anything to provoke them?” Papa asked.
    Amil’s face reddened. “No, Papa.”
  20. abacus
    a manual calculator with counters on rods or in grooves
    Dadi told us to stay at the table, and we did some simple addition problems on the abacus until Dadi started making her funny teeth-sucking noises and waved us away.
  21. stethoscope
    a medical instrument for listening to sounds inside the body
    There’s Papa with his stethoscope and Kazi stirring a pot of something.
  22. soothing
    freeing from fear and anxiety
    I didn’t mind sweeping. I like the soothing brush brush sound.
  23. tangy
    having a strong tart, sour, or piquant taste
    The tangy scent of chickpeas soaking in a bowl.
  24. veranda
    a porch along the outside of a building
    Some of our neighbors would come, and Papa would smoke cigars or his pipe with the other men outside on the veranda.
  25. mutton
    meat from a mature domestic sheep
    Then we’d all have a huge feast with mutton biryani, dal, curries, poori, paratha, and pakora.
Created on Tue Dec 04 18:56:17 EST 2018 (updated Fri Dec 14 09:47:40 EST 2018)

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