1. Interpret/explain/explore the context and significance of the last line of the book (230).

             "We didn't keep score". This is the last line of the novel showing that Arnold and Rowdy are friends once again. At the beginning of this scene when the game first begins they were competitive and talked about "crushing" the other in one on one. As the game continues Rowdy describes his new knowledge in the term nomadic. He shows Arnold that he respects him and is happy for him and the fact that he can simply pick up and move off the reservation. Although they were enemies and went through a very hard time they have been able to save their friendship and respect each others choices. They are about to embark on two different life styles but are no longer trying to change each other. It means a lot to Arnold that rowdy can forgive him for abadoning the Rez and even more being happy for him.  This is the first time Rowdy shared his happiness and respect for Arnold. During the book they are both trying to get ahead and put the other one done.  Finally they have matured enough to gain respect and simply play a game of basketball without keeping tabs on how they are doing.  They can enjoy their friendship as well as this game.  They now do not care and are just trying to play around like normal friends. This shows how strong their friendship was and how much they have learned over the year. This is a creative and interesting way to end a book and explain it in one solid line. Have you ever had a friendship that has gone through a hard time? Do you think Rowdy and Arnold will be friends as adults?

Why does Junior feel he wants to get back to school? What happens when he gets there?

After the drunken death of his sister, Arnold couldn't handle the grieving over another person he cared about. He began to try to forget. He felt like he "was in this weird fog" (209). It was like in the story The Stone Boy where the main character, a kid also named Arnold, was so overloaded with the death of his brother to even grieve over him. This situation was the same. Arnold was so overloaded with the emotion that he laughed crazily when his father came to pick him up and he barely remembered anything that happened during the funeral. The funeral itself was something Arnold disliked. Everyone was getting drunk and sad about his sister. No one was "crying and laughing and telling stories about my sister"(212). He couldn't watch everyone get drunk over his sisters death, it was too much for him. So he ran off to school, to a place where it wasn't so sad and didn't have the stench of beer.

At school everyone has already heard that his sister had died. They all felt sad about his loss and "were worried for"Arnold (212). They all wanted to help him but it is hard to relate to what he is feeling. But they did make Arnold feel important and like someone that mattered. To Arnold, it was a new experience for him. Not many people had actually really cared about Arnold. He may not have known what to say to other people during that time but, he definitely felt better at school that day.

Do you think that Arnold should have stayed at the funeral? Do you think his reaction to his sister's death is okay? Have you had a time were you felt like you had lost everything? Why do you think Arnold couldn't stand watching everyone get drunk? Why do you think that Arnold was so surprised that everyone at school cared about him?

1. In this time of grief, why do you think Junior laughs so much? What are the specific moments he laughs the hardest?

I think that Junior laughs, as his way of trying to get over the death of Mary. When the guidance counselor first told him, he said "if i didn't actually accept the truth, then maybe it would become false. He is denying the fact because he doesn't want to accept it." (201)
The first time he laughs hysterically is when his dad pulls up and he sees that his dad is alive and he had no reason to be so worried.
He laughs at himself for being so paranoid and scared. He is also very happy that his dad is alive. He  is sort of making up a reason to 'celebrate' so that he doesn't have to grieve.
The second time he starts laughing is when he is thinking about how his sister was, "TOO FREAKING DRUNK to feel any pain when she BURNED TO DEATH..." (205)
he is mad at his sister, and indians in general for drinking too much, everyone of his family members that died in those few months died because of alcohol. So at that moment he REALLY hated alcohol.
He is laughing because it is so pathetic that people continue to drink and get drunk after so many people have died because of it. He is mad and sad at the same time.
I think all of these times, he is laughing because he has so many emotions jumbled up inside him and he has no idea how to react... so he just laughs and laughs.

Do you agree with me on why he laughs so much? How do different people deal with death and grief in their life? How would you react in this same situation? Do you think Arnold will ever recover from this traumatic period in his life?

#2 What Rowdy Says to Junior at the Funeral

On page 211, at his sister Mary's funeral, Junior spots Rowdy out in the woods. He runs towards him to see he is crying. Their exchange is terse but Rowdy definitely accuses Junior of horrible things.

""It's all your fault," He said. "What's my fault?" I asked. "Your sister is dead because you left us. You killed her."" Rowdy flat out accuses Junior of killing Mary. Not physically, but psychologically.
"But she got married so quickly and left the rez because I hard left the rez first. She was only living in Montana in a cheap trailer house because I had gone to school in Reardan. She had burned to death because I had decided that I wanted to spend my life with white people." -page 211.

Here Junior is blaming himself for Mary's own mistakes. Mary was living in the basement for years. Junior was about to go into high school when he was smart enough to leave the rez. He found a way out through education. Mary saw her younger brother leaving and realized she needed to leave too, blinded by the thrill of the adventure she had only read in her books, and maybe a little ashamed too. Her little brother had gotten out before her.
This isn't where she really went wrong though. It started with her random marriage. Mary saw this man as a way out and jumped without looking first. She moved to Montana with an almost absolute stranger and started to live in a junky trailer. Alcohol is what killed her. She was being reckless and careless. Junior was only the spark to her flames. Had she not had that wild party, she would still be alive. Junior did the right thing to leave because he inspired Mary to get out too. What Rowdy said was out of spite and anger. It was Rowdy's way of saying that Reardan was a huge and regrettable mistake. The funeral was just happening at that point, so of course Junior wanted to feel bad, his sister had just died! With further evaluation, Junior would see he did the absolute right thing as a role model. Mary just made bad choices.

Do you agree? Why or why not? What if that party had not had happened? Would Mary still be alive or would the universe find another way to strike her down? Have you ever blamed yourself that wasn't you fault?

Do you actually think that Rowdy came to Arnold's door because he was bored? If not why do you think he came? Why did Arnold decide to play basket ball with Rowdy, other thank knowing that Rowdy would never change?

I do not believe that Rowdy knocked on Arnold's door just because he was bored.  If Rowdy was just bored he would have found something entertaining to do, rather then going to see his ex-friend's (who he presently hates).  Rowdy realized that he was bored because it was summer and he no longer had his best friend.  In the past, Arnold and Rowdy would spend every minute of every summer together, keeping each other occupied.  On page 17, Arnold says about Rowdy, "It's like he's a family member, an extra brother and son."  Arnold's statement about Rowdy demonstrates the strong relationship between Rowdy and Arnold.  Rowdy also knew that they were best friends...like brothers.  Arnold loved Rowdy and Rowdy loved Arnold.  Although the two of them were not family, they treated each other like family.  They played with each other, they talked to each other when they were down, and they fought each other.  They behaved liked typical siblings; even though they argued and didn't like each other at time, they always loved each other.  Arnold could have said no to Rowdy's offer of playing ball, but I think he knew that would have been the wrong choice and something that Arnold would have regretted for his entire life.  Arnold knew that if he had said "no", Rowdy would have walked away and not given him another chance.  Arnold always wanted to keep his friendship with Rowdy, even if it was not the same as it was before Arnold moved schools.  Both Arnold and Rowdy realized that their lives were too short to lose friendships, especially one as close and strong as theirs.

In this time of grief, why do you think Junior laughs so much? What are the specific moments he laughs the hardest?

              At the beginning of this reading Junior finds out that his sister, Mary, has died in a fire. Junior is fearful that his father might die coming to get him from school. Junior believes this because for Junior life is a constant battle against death. When Junior's father get's to school in one piece Junior is immediately flooded with relief, "I started laughing, I was so relieved, so happy, that I LAUGHED. And I couldn't stop laughing." Another explanation for Junior's laughter is the fact that he has just heard some excruciatingly painful news and we all process pain in different ways, as Junior has touched on before. If you remember the short story, The Stone Boy, the protagonist (ironically named Arnold as well) shuts down emotionally and picks peas after realizing that he is responsible for his brother's death. Junior believes that he has done the same,            "[Rowdy says] 'Your sister is dead because you left us. You killed her.'...Rowdy was right. I had killed my sister."(211) Junior then goes on to explain his reasoning of how he unintentionally killed his sister. Similarly to when Arnold was naked that night and realized what he'd done, at the end of the chapter Junior says, "What do you say to people when they ask you how it feels to lose everything? When every planet in your solar system has exploded?" (213). Junior is just beginning to process what this death actually means. What it means to lose someone so dear to you and blame yourself for it. We also have to remember that Junior is burdened with so much, he has left his home, he has watched his grandmother, father's best friend, and now, his sister die in a few short months. Junior says himself, "I know that death is never added to death, it multiplies." (212).  In conclusion, I think that Junior laughs  because he doesn't know what else to do, nor would any of us in his shoes.
              Do you think that Junior is being "punished" for trying to get ahead in life? Will Junior ever really be at peace with what happened with Mary? Do you think Junior will ever stop believing that he inadvertently killed his sister? Did you make any other connections to The Stone Boy or any other stories that we've/you've read?

In his moment of grief, why did Junior laugh so much?? What were some moments he laughed the hardest?

During his moments of grief, Junior laughs so much ^ because he is realizing how lucky and happy he is and should be that he still has parts of his family. This sort of fits into the 5th stage of grieving over death, acceptance. He has accepted the fact that he's indian, that his culture has issues with alcohol, and now he's happy that he still has the people in his life that he does have. Those people may include: His mom, dad, Rowdy, Penelope, Gordy, and other assorted people. One more explanation is that he is so sick and tired of going to funerals and having people die that he has gone a bit crazy from it, and now, he can't cry, he can only laugh, maybe at how crazy and terrible his life is. A few of the assorted times he breaks out in HEAVY impromptu laughter are: [But you're alive. I laughed and laughed. I couldn't stop laughing. I felt like I might die of laughing, 204] This is on the car-ride home, when he has just received the news his sis is dead. Another time is [I started pounding the dashboard and stomping on on the floor. I was going absolutely insane with laughter, 206] This is in the same car-ride, when he spits out a bit of cantaloupe. One more is [He was my best friend and I needed him. But I couldn't stop laughing. I looked at Rowdy and he was crying hard now, 210] This is when Junior runs into Rowdy after the funeral, and feels so sad, but can't stop laughing. 

1: Do you view a funeral as a time to remember what a person has done, or be sad over what more they could have done?

2: Why does Rowdy insist that Mary dying is Junior's fault?

3: Do you think it WAS Junior's fault in any way?

4: Based on this reading, do you think that Alcohol Abuse is a main issue in this book? Why?

5: Why was Rowdy watching Mary's funeral?