A Field Guide to Getting Lost: Chapters 13–20

by Joy McCullough
When her divorced father and his widowed mother start planning family dates in Seattle, Sutton Jensen (a nine-year-old girl who loves science) and Luis Paz (a ten-year-old boy who loves writing) must figure out how to get along.

Here are links to our lists for the novel: Chapters 1–7, Chapters 8–12, Chapters 13–20, Chapters 21–27
35 words 7 learners

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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. vehemently
    in a forceful manner
    Sutton shook her head vehemently and consulted the plans.
  2. misconception
    an incorrect assumption
    “You’re so smart. All I know about penguins is they mate for life!”
    Sutton didn’t bother telling Mrs. B this wasn’t actually true of emperor penguins. It was such a common misconception; it was like the number of people who thought being homeschooled meant she never interacted with any other children.
  3. stationery
    paper cut to an appropriate size for writing letters
    A few years ago, Sutton’s grandmother had given her some stationery—with penguins, of course—and Sutton had buried it in the back of her closet with the rest of the penguin junk people gave her. Who was she going to write a letter to, anyway?
  4. dastardly
    extremely wicked
    The trouble was, before he could figure out how Penelope and her friends were going to expose their Alistair Academy foes’ newest dastardly plans, Luis was in full-blown immune-system freak-out.
  5. decrepit
    lacking bodily or muscular strength or vitality
    “You can have my room, and I’ll crash on the couch. That way we can make sure you’re taken care of.”
    “But then I’ll feel like a decrepit old lady,” she said, pulling Moti into her lap.
  6. busk
    play music in a public place and solicit money for it
    They were heading toward Sutton’s favorite plant vendor when a busker called out, “Hey, Martin!”
    Sutton’s dad went to talk to the fiddler sitting on the sidewalk next to his open case, which held scattered coins and a few dollar bills.
  7. delicate
    easily broken or damaged or destroyed
    He led her to the delicate orchids arranged in the back of the booth, away from the curious hands of toddlers who might snap off a bud without realizing how much care and patience these finicky flowers required.
  8. finicky
    fussy, especially about details
    He led her to the delicate orchids arranged in the back of the booth, away from the curious hands of toddlers who might snap off a bud without realizing how much care and patience these finicky flowers required.
  9. bristle
    react in an offended or angry manner
    “Oh, Martin, how great to run into you! And look at your little one! She’s not a toddler anymore!”
    Sutton bristled. She was almost ten. And tall for her age.
  10. diplomatic
    marked by tact in dealing with sensitive matters or people
    While he looked for a diplomatic way to respond, Sutton took matters into her own hands.
  11. artful
    marked by skill or cunning in achieving a desired end
    There was exactly enough room for the battered old Honda, and all around it, artfully stacked, were boxes and piles of stuff.
  12. graze
    scrape gently
    He could reach the car seat and flowerpots where they were jumbled atop the bike, and the tips of his fingers could barely graze the bottom of the crutches, if he really stretched.
  13. jostle
    come into rough contact with while moving
    He stepped on the box, reached past the bike and the pots and the car seat, wrapped a hand around the crutch to jostle it—okay so far—and then it all went wrong.
  14. giddy
    lacking seriousness; given to frivolity
    His mom was in the doorway, her hair a wild halo, all giddiness from her evening chat with Martin washed away in an instant of terror.
  15. sift
    check and sort carefully
    She sifted through a few more things in the box and pulled out a yellowed piece of paper.
  16. reverent
    feeling or showing profound respect or veneration
    But then something in the box caught her eye. “Oh!” She brought it out reverently.
  17. mantel
    a shelf that projects from the wall above a fireplace
    Luis didn’t really remember, but there were pictures on the mantel from a trip when he’d been around two, shortly before his dad got cancer.
  18. quirk
    twist or curve abruptly
    Dad’s voice had a warning edge to it, but the corners of his lips were quirking up.
  19. regale
    occupy in an agreeable, entertaining or pleasant fashion
    Aunt Lindsay was over for Sunday-night dinner and Sutton had been regaling her with the story of the nosy lady at the farmers’ market since she arrived.
  20. neutral
    having no personal preference
    Just that Liz and I were talking, and we want to try another family date. The MoPOP maybe wasn’t quite fair. It was somewhere Luis was comfortable, but you weren’t, pumpkin. So we want to try again on neutral ground.
  21. glitch
    a fault or defect in a computer program, system, or machine
    “Clear the table, hon, and then maybe your aunt can help you figure out the glitch in your robot.”
  22. savvy
    marked by practical hardheaded intelligence
    Aunt Lindsay was more tech- savvy than Sutton’s dad, but only a little.
  23. pore
    direct one's attention on something
    Luis began his Monday morning by sitting on his bed with his dad’s sketchbook, poring over the pages with his heart thumping a drumbeat in his chest.
  24. abstract
    not representing or imitating external reality
    Some of the sketches were in the familiar style of his dad’s art that hung around the house—bold lines and shapes that looked abstract, but if you looked more closely, figures started to emerge.
  25. trepidation
    a feeling of alarm or dread
    If they could get the car started, they were going on a hike through Discovery Park—534 acres, twelve miles of trails, and a 100 percent chance of bees. There was some trepidation at this revelation, but mostly Luis was elated.
  26. elated
    full of high-spirited delight
    If they could get the car started, they were going on a hike through Discovery Park—534 acres, twelve miles of trails, and a 100 percent chance of bees. There was some trepidation at this revelation, but mostly Luis was elated.
  27. ration
    the food allowance for one day
    She checked her backpack: rain gear, trail rations, water bottle, first aid kit, and bear spray.
  28. thicket
    a dense growth of bushes
    The parents kept hovering, but Sutton looked where he was pointing—at a narrow opening in a dense thicket of bushes up ahead.
  29. thwart
    hinder or prevent, as an effort, plan, or desire
    Unfortunately, Martin was thwarted by the fact that the tunnel was far too small for an adult.
  30. fend
    try to manage without help
    Going through a portal to have an adventure with a traveling companion was one thing; going through a portal to fend for oneself in a foreign, magical land was totally different.
  31. appeal
    be attractive to
    Luis decided he’d appeal to her scientist side instead.
  32. standoffish
    lacking cordiality; unfriendly
    Luis was trying, even after Sutton had been so standoffish the last time they were together.
  33. hypothesis
    a tentative insight that is not yet verified or tested
    Scientists like his mom made hypotheses, which was a big word for guesses. Then they gathered facts and did experiments to see if their guesses were right. They were really, really big on proof.
  34. prod
    poke or thrust abruptly
    But now he couldn’t see where it would end, and the branches poked and prodded on every side.
  35. bramble
    any of various rough thorny shrubs or vines
    But a bramble caught the back of his shirt and dug into his skin whenever he tried to turn.
Created on Thu Mar 16 15:35:00 EDT 2023 (updated Sat Mar 18 10:59:28 EDT 2023)

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