Wintergirls: Chapters 030.00–044.00

by Laurie Halse Anderson
After her best friend dies, Lia spirals deeper into her eating disorder and self-destructive behavior.

Here are links to our lists for the novel: Chapters 001.00–014.00, Chapters 015.00–029.00, Chapters 030.00–044.00, Chapters 045.00–065.00

Here are links to our lists for other works by Laurie Halse Anderson: Chains; Fever 1793; Speak; Speak: The Graphic Novel; Shout
35 words 16 learners

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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. crest
    the top or extreme point of something
    The crest of the hill is covered with hundreds of black-backed beetles gathered for the carrion feast: kids from school, teachers, the parents who show up at everything.
  2. carrion
    the dead and rotting body of an animal; unfit for human food
    The crest of the hill is covered with hundreds of black-backed beetles gathered for the carrion feast: kids from school, teachers, the parents who show up at everything.
  3. pavilion
    a large and often sumptuous tent
    We make our way through the crowd towards the white pavilion tent.
  4. calligraphy
    beautiful handwriting
    We took turns scraping away the new mulch and digging a hole between two bushes, one marked Mordent Blush, the other Nearly Wild, each sign handwritten with a calligraphy pen.
  5. spectacle
    something or someone seen, especially a notable sight
    My mother cried without crumpling up her face because Nanna didn’t like it when people made a spectacle of themselves in public.
  6. castanets
    pair of hollow pieces of wood or bone made to click together
    The doctors gave Dad and Jennifer a black slippery bag filled with jingle-bell bottles of crazy seeds, perfect mini-castanets, shooka, shooka, shooka.
  7. prune
    cultivate, tend, and cut back the growth of
    The bushes are pruned down to thorny spikes for winter, wrapped in burlap sacks, summer dreams of fat blossoms pulled deep into the roots.
  8. stalk
    walk stiffly
    She dumps the cooked eggs on a clean plate along with two muffins, stalks across the kitchen and puts it in front of me.
  9. hangar
    a structure where aircraft can be stored and maintained
    I swallow yellow and grease, pick up another forkful and open wide for the airplane buzzing into the hangar.
  10. ulcer
    an inflammatory lesion resulting in decay of tissue
    “No, nothing illegal, but she was on two antidepressants, a mood stabilizer and ulcer medicine...."
  11. distend
    swell from or as if from internal pressure
    “Cassie had liver damage, her salivary glands were a wreck, and her stomach was distended.”
  12. necrosis
    the localized death of living cells
    “A healthy stomach is this big. It can stretch to hold about a quart. Cassie’s could hold three. Plus her stomach walls had thinned and were showing early signs of necrosis.”
  13. electrolyte
    a solution that conducts electricity
    “So it was a heart attack? Because her electrolytes were messed up?”
  14. esophagus
    the passage between the pharynx and the stomach
    Mom pulls the afghan up to her chest. “No, honey. Cassie’s esophagus ruptured.”
  15. coarse
    rough to the touch
    Step into a tanning booth and fry yourself for two or three days. After your skin bubbles and peels off, roll in coarse salt, then pull on long underwear woven from spun glass and razor wire. Over that goes your regular clothes, as long as they are tight.
  16. anesthetic
    a drug that causes temporary loss of bodily sensations
    But then the anesthetic turns into poison and by then it’s too late because you are mainlining it now, straight into your soul.
  17. perennial
    a plant lasting for three seasons or more
    When Dad left, she hired landscapers to turn the vegetable garden into a bed of perennials, something that she wouldn’t have to fuss over or water much.
  18. compost
    a mixture of decaying vegetation and manure
    The compost pile was taken away, the herb garden went to seed, and the special plot of the strawberry plants turned into a walkway.
  19. crochet
    needlework by interlocking stitches with a hooked needle
    She taught me how to knit and Cassie how to crochet, the endless lengths of yarn spooling over her paper hands and around her crooked fingers.
  20. weathered
    worn by exposure to the elements
    I am covered with a heavy Marrigan-woman quilt, patchworked with scraps of ancient dresses and weathered skirts.
  21. mason
    a craftsman who works with stone or brick
    She knocked down a couple of walls, redesigned the space on every floor, put in new windows, and moved the doors. We spent two years stepping over carpenters and masons and dust-covered guys who swore a lot.
  22. implode
    burst inward
    It takes too much energy to gather all the bits together, so I just sit there and watch him implode. It’s not like he can punish me any more. What’s he going to do?
  23. vital
    urgently needed; absolutely necessary
    It is important/vital/critical/imperative/necessary/essential/crucial that I call her back.
  24. imperative
    requiring attention or action
    It is important/vital/critical/imperative/necessary/essential/crucial that I call her back.
  25. consignment
    the delivery of goods for sale or disposal
    I buy old sweaters from consignment shops, the older the better, and unravel them.
  26. tinker
    try to fix or mend in an unskilled manner
    I perform surgery on the Blubber-O-Meter 3000 scale, tinkering with it until it shows that I weigh 104.50.
  27. adrenaline
    hormone secreted by the adrenal gland in response to stress
    Adrenaline kicks in when you’re starving.
  28. mallet
    a tool resembling a hammer but with a large head
    To get there I’ll need to crack open my bones with a silver mallet and dig out my marrow with a long-handled spoon.
  29. deficit
    an amount that is less than expected or required
    I am 093.50 and have a 1,500-calorie deficit for the day.
  30. queasy
    feeling nausea
    “Um, I’m feeling kind of queasy. I don’t think driving is a good idea.”
  31. hallucination
    an object perceived during a delusional episode
    “You deserve the best,” she continues. “Skilled people who know how to bring your mind back into balance. When the hallucinations and delusions are under control, it will be easier for you to work on your self-image issues and the relationships that cause you so much pain.”
  32. tacky
    tastelessly showy
    I leave school early (cramps—ha) and spend Friday afternoon baking, because Emma signed her mother up to bring something to the Holiday Bake Sale, and Jennifer went out and bought cheap cookies with tacky red-and-green icing.
  33. truffle
    creamy chocolate candy
    There are truffle brownies, cinnamon wafers, peppermint fudge.
  34. hypocrite
    a person who professes beliefs that he or she does not hold
    I am an ugly, nasty hypocrite.
  35. cesspool
    a covered cistern for waste water and sewage
    ...the cesspool won’t empty.
Created on Mon May 13 14:38:20 EDT 2019 (updated Wed May 15 15:05:39 EDT 2019)

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