Small Steps: Chapters 30–36

by Louis Sachar
In this sequel to the novel Holes, Theodore "Armpit" Johnson is hoping for a fresh start, but he gets caught up in a series of strange adventures when he reconnects with his old friend X-Ray.

Here are the links to our lists for the novel: Chapters 1–9, Chapters 10–18, Chapters 19–29, Chapters 30–36

Here is a link to our lists for Holes by Louis Sachar.
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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. boutique
    a shop that sells women's clothes and jewelry
    She let go of one of his hands but still held the other as she led him into the boutique.
  2. strew
    spread by scattering
    He took a quick look around the sitting area, then went into the bedroom, where Armpit’s clothes were strewn across the floor.
  3. bristle
    a stiff fiber
    He picked up the hairbrush and removed a couple of strands of hair that were stuck to the bristles.
  4. pagoda
    an Asian temple
    Yet when Armpit and Kaira stopped and kissed by the pagoda on Grant Avenue, it seemed to each of them like they were the only two people on the street.
  5. absorb
    take in a liquid
    The wood seemed especially dark and rich, as if it had been absorbing coffee for the last fifty years.
  6. publicity
    a message issued in behalf of some product or cause or idea
    “I know, that makes me sound like an awful person, but I just get creeped out being around someone like that. My manager says it’s good publicity. I don’t know what she wants from me! I’m just a singer. It’s not like I can cure cancer!”
  7. eventually
    after an unspecified period of time or a long delay
    She’d eventually figure out he was Armpit, whether Felix told her or not.
  8. whim
    an odd or fanciful or capricious idea
    The whim of a rich and famous girl.
  9. highfalutin
    pretentious or excessively fancy
    He had mocked her for wanting to charge a thousand-dollar jacket to her room, but maybe that was the reason he came to San Francisco, to live that kind of highfalutin life.
  10. vendor
    someone who exchanges goods or services for money
    He stopped and bought some kind of steamed bun, still piping hot, from a Chinese vendor who didn’t speak English.
  11. oblivious
    lacking conscious awareness of
    Fred moved with determination along the pedestrian walkway on the Golden Gate Bridge, oblivious to the dirty glances from slow-walking tourists as he elbowed his way past them.
  12. conjure
    summon into action or bring into existence
    She’d have to conjure up an imaginary person again for the love songs.
  13. eerie
    inspiring a feeling of fear; strange and frightening
    She saw the eerie image of her business manager/stepfather split into two people, each holding a baseball bat high above his head.
  14. lunge
    make a thrusting forward movement
    Jerome turned away from Kaira and swung just as Fred lunged at him.
  15. anguish
    extreme distress of body or mind
    There was an anguished groan; then Jerome pushed himself up to his knees, took several deep breaths, and stood up the rest of the way.
  16. momentum
    the product of a body's mass and its velocity
    Armpit’s left fist was still gaining momentum as it connected just below El Genius’s nose, flooring him.
  17. retrieve
    get or find back; recover the use of
    Amid the chaos of police, doctors, ambulance workers, TV news crew, Kaira’s hysterical mother, and other people from the tour all trying to figure out what was happening, Armpit managed to retrieve Kaira’s letter from the bar and toss it into the fireplace.
  18. confirm
    establish or strengthen as with new evidence or facts
    Fred was able to speak just enough to confirm Armpit’s innocence, although that really wasn’t much of an issue.
  19. demeanor
    the way a person behaves toward other people
    Maybe it was his demeanor, or the latex gloves on Jerome Paisley’s hands, or the fact that he was the one who had shouted at Rosemary to call the police.
  20. desperately
    with great urgency
    Some people cried, while others were desperately looking for their ticket stubs.
  21. dismay
    the feeling of despair in the face of obstacles
    He slept the whole way home, much to the dismay of the passenger sitting next to him, who kept having to nudge him awake.
  22. rendezvous
    a date or meeting with a love interest
    According to the Austin paper, Kaira had given him a key to her room, and he had come up for a romantic rendezvous when he discovered she was under attack.
  23. exasperated
    greatly annoyed; out of patience
    She sounded exasperated, but Armpit could tell she loved every minute of it.
  24. reluctant
    not eager
    The man who bought the real tickets told me that X-Ray had been reluctant to sell them because he’d promised them to a friend. At the time I thought it was just X-Ray trying to jack him around, but then it hit me...you were the friend.
  25. barely
    in a sparse or scanty way
    She tried to talk but could just barely move her mouth.
  26. raspy
    unpleasantly harsh or grating in sound
    There was something wrong with her vocal cords as well, and she was only able to speak in a kind of raspy whisper.
  27. trace
    a just detectable amount
    Traces of his blood and hair would be discovered in the next letter from Billy Boy.
  28. convict
    find or declare guilty
    “If I was on the jury, even I would have voted to convict me,” he said.
  29. mull
    reflect deeply on a subject
    “A lawyer,” said X-Ray as he mulled it over.
  30. confess
    admit to a wrongdoing
    However, El Genius had pretty much confessed to everything, so it didn’t look like there would even be a trial.
  31. wreck
    something or someone that has suffered ruin or dilapidation
    From everything he’d read in the papers, Kaira’s life was a train wreck.
  32. disguise
    any attire that conceals the wearer's identity
    It’s a lost and lonely kind of feeling,
    To wake up wearing a disguise.
  33. fragile
    easily broken or damaged or destroyed
    Her voice sounded fragile, like fine crystal that might break at any moment, but each note was true and clear.
  34. architecture
    the profession of designing buildings and environments
    Jack Dunlevy wanted him to major in landscape architecture, but Armpit wasn’t sure he wanted to dig holes the rest of his life.
  35. occupational therapy
    therapy based on engagement in meaningful activities of daily life, especially to enable or encourage participation in such activities in spite of impairments or limitations in physical or mental functions
    He was considering studying occupational therapy, so he could help people like Ginny.
Created on Tue Mar 18 17:16:01 EDT 2014 (updated Mon Jul 30 15:22:37 EDT 2018)

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