Louder than Hunger: List 1

by John Schu
In this novel in verse, 13-year-old Jake struggles with anorexia and learns to understand his own worth during treatment at a residential facility.

This list covers vocabulary from "This Notebook Belongs to Jake Stacey" –"Room 156."

Here are links to our lists for the book: List 1, List 2, List 3, List 4, List 5

20 words 185 learners

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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. cursive
    handwriting in which letters are connected within words
    I write
    gake
    in
    cursive
    over
    and
    over
    and
    over.
  2. soothing
    freeing from fear and anxiety
    It’s
    soothing.
  3. repulsive
    offensive to the mind or senses
    The Voice says,
    YOU—ARE—REPULSIVE!
  4. wretched
    very unhappy; full of misery
    I imagine
    feeding the
    garbage
    disposal
    pretzels,
    pepperoni, and
    these
    wretched
    worksheets,
    watching
    it
    grind
    everything
    into
    tiny
    bits.
  5. negative
    having the quality of something harmful or unpleasant
    The
    negative
    Voice
    inside
    my
    head
    talks
    nonstop.
  6. punish
    impose a penalty on
    I
    punish
    myself
    day
    after
    day.
  7. recite
    repeat aloud from memory
    Happy when she told knock-knock jokes,
    sang silly songs,
    recited poems about chicken soup with rice.
  8. concoction
    any foodstuff made by combining different ingredients
    Oh, your favorite concoction! I remember how proud you were the
    first time you made it.
  9. pace
    walk with slow or fast steps
    I pace around the kitchen,
    repeating inside my head:
    You can eat spaghetti.
  10. terminal
    a device providing access to a computer
    I find
    the most isolated
    computer terminal.
  11. grotesque
    distorted and unnatural in shape or size
    In the mirror
    is an ugly, grotesque blob
    staring back at me,
    telling me I’m a
    waste of space,
    pathetic, worthless.
  12. cherub
    an angel portrayed as a winged child
    She sees everyone
    as she protects
    the four cherubs
    gathered
    beneath her.
  13. roam
    move about aimlessly or without any destination
    Grandma and I sing about
    witches
    and wolves
    and worrying about giants roaming around in the sky.
  14. resident
    someone who lives at a particular place for a long period
    I visit Ms. Burns,
    my favorite resident
    at the Tinley Terrace,
    to read aloud
    the latest book
    in her favorite
    mystery series.
  15. sense
    become aware of instinctively
    Ms. Burns: I can feel something is wrong.
    I can sense it.
  16. expansive
    able or tending to extend in one or more directions
    They trap me inside
    a small intake room with a
    poster of an eagle
    soaring over an expansive green forest.
  17. plead
    appeal or request earnestly
    I plead with the bird,
    asking it to help me
    SOAR.
  18. counselor
    someone who gives advice about problems
    I’m a counselor in the eating disorders program.
  19. contraband
    goods whose trade or possession is prohibited by law
    I’m looking for contraband. I’m looking for anything you could
    use to hurt yourself. I’m looking for bruises and marks on your body.
  20. dread
    fearful expectation or anticipation
    There’s
    a bed,
    a dresser,
    a desk,
    a chair,
    a closet,
    a shut door,
    a feeling of dread.
Created on Wed Apr 09 07:03:01 EDT 2025 (updated Mon Apr 14 11:23:24 EDT 2025)

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