There Goes the Neighborhood: Chapters 15–23

by Jade Adia
When her Los Angeles neighborhood starts developing and reducing the amount of affordable housing, fifteen-year-old Rhea leads her friends in creating fake news about gang activity in order to scare away invasive investors.

Here are links to our lists for the novel: Prologue–Chapter 5, Chapters 6–14, Chapters 15–23, Chapters 24–30, Chapter 31–Epilogue
40 words 10 learners

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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. sassy
    improperly forward or bold
    The cops questioned everyone working in the restaurant that night and were met with a bunch of blank stares and the sassy frown of the manager, who was probably thinking that she don’t get paid enough to deal with this...
  2. canvass
    get opinions by asking specific questions
    “It’s their fault for canvassing our neighborhood without a single cop who speaks Spanish. South LA ain’t all white yet,” she had said.
  3. flounder
    have difficulties; behave awkwardly
    “They got any suspects yet?” I ask Zeke once we’re all caught up.
    “I don’t think so. From what I hear, they’re just floundering.”
  4. necessarily
    as a highly likely consequence
    It’s not necessarily a bad thing that people think SOSI is capable of something like this—for better or worse, that means our plan is working.
  5. implicated
    culpably involved
    We just need to make sure that it keeps working without getting any of us implicated.
  6. incredulously
    in a disbelieving manner
    Malachi laughs incredulously. “Do you know how crazy you sound right now?”
  7. affiliate
    a subordinate or subsidiary associate
    “We’ve got eyes on the suspect, copy. Latino, male, fifteen years old. Shoulder-length hair. Suspected affiliate of SOSI—”
  8. flustered
    thrown into a state of agitated confusion
    He gives me his signature flustered shrug that sends beads of perspiration flying from his sheepdog haircut.
  9. muster
    summon up, call forth, or bring together
    “You can tell us anything,” I reply in the most sincere voice that I can muster, glancing at Malachi at the end to make sure he’s taking notes on how a normal friend responds.
  10. epitomize
    embody the essential characteristics of
    “Because I didn’t do it!”
    I fight the urge to point out the obviousness of Zeke’s statement, epitomized by the fact that he’s wearing a coral-pink shirt right now that says “Make Empanadas, Not War.”
  11. deadpan
    speak in a deliberately impassive or serious manner
    “Something worse than seeing a dead body?” Malachi deadpans.
  12. explicitly
    in a clearly expressed manner
    “It’s all over the news, all over social.” I keep scrolling. “SOSI’s either explicitly mentioned or referenced in every source.”
  13. accentuate
    put stress on
    The bright lights of the ambulance against the beige stucco building exterior accentuate how dingy the place is—the paint’s chipping in various places and the grass (dead, as always) is mostly dirt.
  14. infiltrate
    pass into or through by filtering or permeating
    But on the other hand, there’s a tiny, dark glimmer of pride at the thought that everyone is taking SOSI so seriously. If our plan continues to infiltrate the psyche of the city and people respond accordingly, we really can save Zeke.
  15. spoof
    a humorous imitation of another work or style of work
    The breaking-news theme music that sounds like a Law & Order spoof plays alongside generic photos of palm trees and the beach.
  16. unprovoked
    occurring without motivation or incitement
    The innocent victim had been walking alone when he was shot to death by the killer. While there were no eyewitnesses, police have identified a violent new gang in the area, known as ‘SOSI,’ as the culprit in this unprovoked, malicious tragedy.
  17. distraught
    deeply agitated especially from emotion
    The newscast switches to an interview with a blond woman who looks distraught.
  18. indifferent
    showing no care or concern in attitude or action
    “I’ll be right back,” he says to me, and me only.
    “Okay,” I say, trying to sound indifferent.
  19. residue
    something left after other parts have been taken away
    Her Amy Winehouse–esque wingtip eyeliner frames her eyes, streaked red with the residue of sleeplessness.
  20. exploit
    use or manipulate to one's advantage
    After an animated argument about whether their food is so bad that it’s practically a hate crime, we decide to meet Jamal and Jabron at Colony Cantina to avoid heatstroke. Not my first choice, but I guess if Colony Cantina is gonna exploit our neighborhood, we can at least exploit their AC.
  21. unsolicited
    not asked for
    Never in my life would I have imagined myself in this situation: facing a white man boldly and unsolicitedly mansplaining Black culture to a group of melanated teenagers while wearing a baseball cap with a sombrero on it, serving people wet tacos with a side of ketchup.
  22. solemn
    dignified and somber in manner or character
    He turns to leave while Jabron gives the table a solemn nod.
  23. stoic
    seeming unaffected by pleasure or pain; impassive
    Troy waits for our blank expressions to turn into something more helpful to him, but we stay stoic, genuinely confused.
  24. concession
    refreshments purchased at a small stand in a larger business
    Lance’s face turns the color of those crusty strawberry shortcake ice cream pops that are always at concession stands even though I’ve never actually seen someone buy one.
  25. frazzle
    exhaust physically or emotionally
    When I took the headband in my hand, he practically bolted out of the room. There was something about how frazzled he seemed that made the moment sort of funny to me.
  26. intricate
    having many complexly arranged elements; elaborate
    I was a little bit surprised by our placement at first, but when I thought about how much time the four of us spent together in life—burning grass stains onto the knees of our jeans, wearing out the springs in pogo sticks, building intricate universes in Minecraft—it made sense why we’d be among those closest to Dante in death.
  27. zany
    ludicrous or foolish
    Zeke’s zany voice was so high-pitched that it used to make even our fifth-grade teacher Ms. Flores giggle, but it sounded different that day.
  28. pallbearer
    one of the mourners carrying the coffin at a funeral
    We returned to our seats just in time for the boys to walk alongside Dante’s father, brother, and uncles to serve as pallbearers as they brought Dante’s casket, and his body within, down the church aisle and out into the hearse.
  29. subtle
    difficult to detect or grasp by the mind or analyze
    Maybe that’s what loss does to you—makes you older than you are without changing a thing about how you actually look. It’s an energy shift, something subtle, but something that cannot be undone.
  30. guffaw
    laugh boisterously
    Her phone chirps and she guffaws. “Did you literally put ‘bribe’ as the description?”
  31. discreet
    heedful of potential consequences
    I sigh, pulling out my phone to send another $5. This time though, I search for a more discreet payment description. I pick the little cartoon detective emoji and send the payment.
  32. whimsical
    determined by chance or impulse rather than by necessity
    Ms. Allen looks like your classic middle-class, middle-aged, professional Black woman who plays the responsible, though vaguely whimsical, mother in an NBC sitcom.
  33. devoid
    completely wanting or lacking
    I look over at Marley to gauge how she’s feeling, but her face is cold—devoid of any of her usual warmth.
  34. digest
    arrange and integrate in the mind
    At first, I skim the article so quickly that I don’t digest any of the information.
  35. gradient
    a graded change in the magnitude of something
    The sun has begun its descent behind the hills, painting the sky a hazy gradient of desert oranges and pinks.
  36. eyesore
    something very ugly and offensive
    “You think they’re finally going to knock down this place?” Malachi asks.
    As much as I’d like to see this eyesore go, the idea of a luxury pet spa potentially being erected in its place makes me defensive.
  37. pique
    call forth, as an emotion, feeling, or response
    “I admit that this detail piques my interest.”
  38. misogyny
    hatred of women
    Using the old man’s internalized misogyny buys us at least a few extra minutes—he’ll feel too awkward to look for her right away.
  39. savvy
    marked by practical hardheaded intelligence
    It’s one of those default settings that most people don’t bother, or don’t know how, to turn off. I doubt a single guy Staples’s age without any tech- savvy kids knows how to dig through his settings to deactivate it.
  40. proximity
    the property of being close together
    When we stand, Malachi hovers close to me—the typical space between us made ever so slightly smaller by the forced proximity of our hiding spot.
Created on Mon Apr 08 16:28:33 EDT 2024 (updated Tue Apr 09 15:54:38 EDT 2024)

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