TERM- II

SUMMARY AND IMPORTANT QUESTIONS FOR REVISION

CLASS- IX

PACKING
Summary
As Jerome, Harris, and George are ready to set out on a journey, they start packing
for it. Being the narrator, Jerome describes how the packing experience went. We can
see that Jerome is quite confident with his packing skills as he handles it all alone.
While in reality, he wishes to simply supervise the packing session while making his
friends do the work under him. However, they listen to him and let him handle it all
by himself, while they sit and relax. This does not impress Jerome; nonetheless, he
gets to it.

Finally, after a long packing session, he packs the bag up while his friends watch him
quietly do all the work. Soon, Harris tells him about the shoes that he did not pack
and Jerome will have to reopen the bag to make space for them. Thus, after learning
about the shoes, Jerome remembers his toothbrush which he did not pack. In order
to find it, he empties the whole just for one toothbrush. Alas, he finds it inside a boot
and packs the bag again.

After that, we see that one more query arises for the soap by George. Consequently,
this irritates Jerome so much that he does not pay heed to it and packs the bag
anyway. However, to his mistake, he has to reopen it again due to his spectacles
being locked inside the bag. This packing session finally concludes at 10 o‟clock.

So, we see that after taking such a long time to pack, Jerome‟s other two friends pack
the hampers themselves to show him how it‟s actually done. However, they are also
similarly gawky and break many things including a cup into pieces. Further, they
squash tomatoes and tread on butter while also smashing the pies. In addition, there
is salt flying here and there during this process. Thus, after much chaos, they try to
put things back in order.

However, it is not as successful as their pet dog, Montmorency, worsen things. He sits
on things meant to be packed and climbs into the jam as well as crushes lemons as if
they were rats. But, finally, the final packing ends at around 12:50 in the night. After
a tiring packing session, they decide the time to get up for the next morning and
George dozes off before engaging in this conversation. In the end, Jerome and Harris
mark 6:30 as the wake-up time and go off to sleep.

Questions-

1. 1.The author remarks, -It„s my energetic nature, I can„t help it.‖ What did he
mean
2. by it?
3. How did George and Harris feel while packing?
 4. What happened when George and Harris tried to pack the butter?
5. How did Montmorency add to the confusion and chaos?
6. What did the narrator and his friends do after the packing was over?
Questions- (100 – 120 words)
1. How many times did the narrator reopen the bag while packing things and why?
2. The narrator Jerome pride himself on his Packing abilities. Did the events
justified his claim?

REACH FOR THE TOP I & II

SANTOSH YADAV
Reach for the Top divides into two parts where each part tells us about Santosh
Yadav and Maria Sharapova respectively. The first part begins with Santosh. This
story was written when Santosh was the only woman in the whole world to have
scaled the Mt. Everest twice. It begins by telling that she was born in a society that
considered girls to be a curse. We learn that Haryana is her birthplace and she defies
the societal norms to own herself.

She suffered gender discrimination from an early age and then decided she would
carve her own way. She went to get admission in Delhi and funded her education all
by herself by working part-time jobs. After that, she went to stay in a hostel in Jaipur
where life changed for her. She joined mountaineers in an expedition and there was
no looking back then. She worked hard for it and took a professional course where
she excelled.

Then, in 1992, she climbed Mount Everest just at the age of 20. She became the
youngest woman to do so and even saved a fellow climber by sharing her oxygen. She
made India proud by creating history and was awarded the Padmashri award by the
government of India.

MARIA SHARAPOVA

After that, we have part II, which focuses on the famous tennis player, Maria
Sharapova. We learn about her journey to become the number one women‟s tennis.
She became a top tennis player through hard labor, rigorous training and a lot of
sacrifices.

The inside story of her life shows us that she started at an early age to become the top
tennis player. She belongs to Siberia, Russia, and left her home only at the age of 9,
to begin training for her dream. She had to separate from her mother at just 9 years
old and move to Florida with her father. Her father worked hard to fund her training
and even suffered bullying for being a foreigner. We learn about her hobbies of
dancing, singing, and fashion. Finally, we learn that she believes while money does
play a big part, she always aimed to become number one.

QUESTIONS-
1. How did Santosh save the life of a fellow climber, Mohan Singh?
2. What did her seniors think about Santos‟s ability as a climber?
 3. How did Maria„s father contribute to the success of Maria?
4. How was Maria treated by her fellow students at Florida?
QUESTIONS- (100 – 120 words)
1. How did Maria Sharapova steadfastly pursue her dream and never thought of
quitting?
2. -…If I choose a correct and rational path, the other around me had to change,
not me, said Santosh Yadav. How did her life justify her words?

THE BOND OF LOVE

The Bond of Love is about the emotional bond which the author‟s wife and her pet
bear share between them. The author rescued the baby bear in an accident and gifted
it to his wife. After that, they were bonding like he was their child and the author‟s
wife loves him a lot. We see that the family nourished him and helped him grow. As
Bruno starts growing up, he bonded with everyone, from the children to the pet dogs.
He had his own bed and would play around with the little ones all day.

However, in an accident, one day he ate poison which was to kill rats. After
consuming poison, Bruno got paralysed and after proper treatment, they were able to
save him. Soon, life became normal when in another incident; he drank up a whole
gallon of old engine oil meant for termites. But, surprisingly, it did not affect Bruno.
Thus, Bruno started growing in size but was equally sweet and playful. Upon growing,
they changed his name to „Baba‟ which meant „a small boy‟ in the Hindi language. He
picked up a few tricks growing up and entertained everyone. Nonetheless, his size
was a problem and being an animal, he was a threat to the children.

Therefore, everyone except the wife was ready to send him to a zoo as he was not fit
as a pet now. While she did not agree initially, she had to give in for everyone‟s safety.
After the official paperwork, he was ready for the Mysore Zoo. The wife missed him
terribly and asked everyone to visit the zoo about his well-being. She learned that
Baba was not eating well and remained sad all day. So, after three months, she
decides to visit him herself. Although everyone told her that Baba would not recognize
her, he surprised everyone by recognizing her in a jiffy.

After that, she petted and pampered him and spent a lot of time with him. However,
she could not leave him so she decided to take him back. After the formalities, she
finally brought him back home and made a special island for him with deep dry pit
and his belongings. So, she finally reunited with Baba and spent her days petting him
and making him sleep in her lap, sharing the true bond of love.

QUESTIONS-
1. How did the author„s wife react to the proposal of sending Bruno to
Mysore?
2. How did Bruno and the author„s wife react when they met at Mysore
zoo?.
3. How was Bruno found by the author?
4. What were the things that Bruno ate?
5. What efforts did the author„s wife make to take Baba back from Mysore
zoo?
QUESTIONS- (100 – 120 WORDS)
1. Love begets love. Do you agree? Can the company of an animal give undiluted
pleasure to a human being? Give some examples from the story The Bond of Love.
2. Love is mutual. Do you agree? Illustrate this with reference to The Bond of Love„.

IF I WERE YOU
If I Were You starts with the playwright, Gerrard, preparing to leave his home to
attend a rehearsal. After talking on the phone, he starts to pack his travel bag when
he notices an intruder enter from his right side.

Gerrard notices that he has a stark resemblance to Gerrard and is holding a revolver
in his hands. Thus, he learns that he is a criminal who directs him to put his hands
in the air. However, Gerrard is surprisingly cool even at a gunpoint and chats
pleasantly with him. Finally, the intruders make Gerrard sit on a chair.

After hearing their conversation, we learn that Gerrard is a man who lives alone and
owns a car. It is clear that he is kind of mysterious in some ways because he is
constantly in and out. We see that Gerrard stays at his home and for some days isn‟t
there.

Moreover, he only talks on the phone without really meeting his tradesmen. After
learning all this, we come to know about the intruder too. He is a criminal who is
mainly a jewelry robber. After killing a policeman, he is fleeing from the police and
due to this resemblance to Gerrard, he plans to kill him and assume his identity to
get rid of the police.

Gerrard makes out that the intruder is not so smart but only over-confident. Thus, he
plans something witty and lies to the intruder. He makes up a story that Gerrard is
also a criminal and murderer himself. Much similar to the intruder, the police are
also after him and if he ends up killing Gerrard, the intruder will be killed either way.

So, the intruder believes his story and Gerrard convinces him to go in the garage from
where they both can flee in his car. After opening the garage door, we learn that it was
actually a cupboard in which Gerrard locks up the intruder and informs the police of
his whereabouts. Thus, we see that how a little alertness and cleverness saved
Gerrard‟s life.

QUESTIONS-
1. Why does the Intruder intend to kill Gerrard?
2. Why does the Intruder not kill Gerrard immediately?
3. Who was the Intruder in Gerrard‟s house? Why did he break into his house?
4. Why did the Intruder say, -They can„t hang me twice?‖
5. How did Gerrard convince the Intruder that he was also wanted by the
police?
QUESTIONS- (100 – 120 WORDS)
1. Why has the Intruder chosen Gerrard as the man whose identify he wants to
take?
2. The Intruder announced, -I„m going to kill you‖. Was Gerrard nervous? How
would you describe Gerrard‟s reactions?

POEMS
NO MEN ARE FOREIGN
Summary – This poem „No Men are Foreign‟ is all about human beings. Also, it tells
that every human being that lives on this earth are brothers and are same. Moreover,
we all have some kind of body and needs sun, air, water, and clothes to cover us. We
all walk the land and feed ourselves with the harvest of this earth. Upon death, people
will bury us in this same land. In addition, we all do work and sleep and wake up,
loves, and wants to love in return for others. But we (human beings) hate each other
and because of this, we live on by hating and fighting with one another. Further, it is
humans who pollute the environment by taking into consideration its bad impact on
other people.

QUESTIONS-

1. How are all the people of the world brothers?

2. How can we be one people though we belong to different nations?

3. What does the poet mean when he says “by war’s long winter starv’d”?
4. What do you understand by “Their hands are ours”? What are their lines?
5. How can we conclude that their labour is same as ours?

QUESTION IN 100-120 WORDS-

1. In the James Kirkup"s poem “No Men Are Foreign” explain the poet’s use of
the word uniform.

ON KILLING A TREE
On Killing a Tree raises awareness among the readers regarding trees. Here the poet
sensitizes the reader regarding trees by emphasizing the fact that trees are living
things. Furthermore, the author makes a comparison between trees and humans. He
does so by equating the trees with humans. By doing this, the author tries to convey
the message that one should not cut trees because they are just like humans.
Moreover, the author tries to explain that killing the trees is just like killing humans.
Moreover, the author tells that trees do not die by merely cutting them. This is
because the trees have a tendency to regrow from the point it is cut. Most noteworthy,
one must completely uproot the tree in order to destroy it. This uprooting of the tree
would certainly mean death. This is because the tree would be separated from the
Earth which supports it.
QUESTIONS-
1. How does a tree become strong?
2. “So hack and chop/ But this alone won’t do it.” What won’t this do? Why
won’t it do it?
3. What is the meaning of “bleeding bark”? What makes it bleed?
4. Why does the poet use the word „kill" rather than „cut"?

QUESTION IN 100-120 WORDS-

1. How does the poet personify the tree?
THE SNAKE TRYING
In the poem the snake trying, the poet talks about a snake. The poem revolves
around a snake that is struggling after being hit by a stick. Furthermore, the stick is
held by a person who intends to kill this snake. Moreover, the snake is trying to
escape from this predicament. The message that the poet wants to convey is that not
all snakes are harmful. Humans have this belief that all snakes are dangerous. Also,
humans have this tendency to rush to kill a snake as soon as they spot one. The
author tries to tell us that such thinking is not good and is harmful to the snake. Even
if the snake is poisonous, it does not mean that it will necessarily harm us. The author
tells us the condition of a harmless green-coloured snake as it tries to hide behind the
green bushes. The snake hides to save itself.

1. What is the snake trying to escape from?

2. Is the snake harmful?
3. What do you learn about the person attacking the snake?
4. What does the poet wish for the snake?

QUESTION IN 100-120 WORDS-

1. Why does the man want to kill the snake? How does the snake protect
itself?

SUPPLIMENTRY READER (MOMENTS)

WEATHERING THE STORM…

Prashant was a young boy of nineteen years of age. He belonged to Kalikuda, a
village in the coastal state of Odisha. He had lost his mother seven years ago. On
27 October 1999, when he was visiting a friend in Ersama, a super cyclone hit the
area. There was large scale devastation. The gushy winds and rains continued for
two days. They remained on the rooftop of the house and survived on the tender
coconuts from the coconut trees that had fallen on the roof. As the rain stopped,
Prashant left for his home as he feared the worst for his family. He took a stick to
help him find the road. At times, he had to swim through the flood waters. On the
way he met two friends and their uncle and the group moved together. They came
across dead bodies of human beings and animals which floated with the current.
As they crossed villages, not even a single house could be seen. Prashant‟s house
was shattered too and he saw the belongings hanging on the branches of the trees.
He wept as he felt that he had lost his beloved. He went to the Red cross shelter in
search of his family. There Prashant met his maternal grandmother. She was elated
to see him alive as they had not expected that he would have survived the storm.
Prashant saw a crowd of 2500 people at the shelter. Many had lost their families in
the disaster. They were grief stricken as the catastrophe had snatched everything.
For the last 2 days they had survived on coconuts but they were running out of
stock. Prashant took control of the situation. He formed a group with some elders
and young people. They forced the merchant to give them the stock of rice and were
successful. After 4 days the crowd ate a meal. Then the group of volunteers cleaned
the shelter and tended to the injured people. Prashant engaged the widows to work
in the NGO named “Food for work”. He engaged the children by arranging sports
matches for them. The volunteers managed to set up foster families comprising of
the widows, orphaned children and lone men who would form a family and support
each other. Like this Prashant overcame his grief and learnt to smile even in the
face of adversities.

QUESTIONS-
1. Why had Prashant gone to Ersama? What happened there?
2. Describe the storm that hit Ersama on the 27th of October, 1999?
3. How long did the cyclone last? How did Prashant and his friend"s family
spendthe stormy night?
4. Why did Prashant"s heart sink on reaching his village?
5. Why did the two days seem like two years to Prashant?
6. What havoc had the super cyclone wrecked in the lives of the people of
Orissa?

QUESTION (100-120 WORDS)

1. How has Prashant, a teenager, been able to help the people of his village?

THE LAST LEAF

This article provides information on the last leaf summary. The Last Leaf is a short
story by O. Henry. It was published in 1907 in his collection The Trimmed Lamp and
Other Stories. “The Last Leaf” is a story of Johnsy, a poor young woman who is
critically ill due to pneumonia. She believes that when the ivy vine on the wall outside
her window would lose all its leaves, she would die too. However, her neighbor,
Behrman, an artist, tricks her by painting a leaf on the wall. Johnsy recovers.
However, Behrman caught pneumonia while painting the leaf. As a result, he dies.

QUESTIONS-
1. Where did Sue and Johnsy stay? What was their profession?
2. Why was Sue worried when Johnsy fell ill?
3. What worried the doctor?
4. How did the sight of the last leaf affect Johnsy?
5. Why had Behrman felt the need to paint the leaf on the creeper?

QUESTIONS (100-120 WORDS)

1. Do you think Johnsy was a good friend? Give reasons for your answer?
2. Compare and contrast the characters of Sue and Johnsy?

A HOUSE IS NOT A HOME

The story revolves around Zan. He was sad as he got into a new high school. He did
not have his old friends and was a junior there. He missed the old school and
would visit it often. He had enjoyed being a senior there. To add to his miseries, one
Sunday afternoon, his house caught fire. Other than a few papers and photos of his
father that were retrieved by his mother, they lost everything. Zan did not even
have a pair of shoes. His pet cat was also missing.
Zan got depressed and did not want to attend school. He realized that he could not
soak up in his sadness as they had to rebuild their life. They needed a new house,
clothes, books, etc. They did not have any cash, credit cards or identity proofs and
had to borrow money from his grandparents.
One day at school, Zan was astonished to see a table full of things – books,
stationary items, clothes, etc which had been collected by his classmates. They
were helping Zan. Zan was overwhelmed and made friends. He came out of the
depression and realized that life was beautiful. Zan saw his house being rebuilt and
felt that same was happening with his life too.
A kind woman returned his cat which had run away on being scared of the fire.
Zan became full of life when he realized that life was not about material
possessions but about love, affection and being with one‟s loved ones.

QUESTIONS-
1. What advice did her junior high teachers give her?
2. What was the psychology behind the teachers" advice?
3. How do we know that her cat was very playful?
4. Why was the cat so attached to the writer?

QUESTIONS (100-120 WORDS)

1. What are the changes observed in the writer’s attitude from the time her
house is burnt, till it is rebuilt?
2.What kind of a relationship did the writer share with her mother? Give
reasons to support your answer.

THE BEGGAR
„The beggar‟ is the story of a beggar named Lushkoff. While begging, he met an
advocate, Sergei who gave him work. Sergei asked him to cut wood at his house. He
asked the cook to show him the shed where wood was kept. The beggar was too
weak and was under the influence of alcohol. He could barely stand on his feet.
Still the cook, Olga told Sergei that the wood had been chopped. Sergei was glad
that the man worked and paid him 50 copecks for chopping the wood. He asked
him to come on the first day of every month for it. Sometimes he asked him to
shovel the snow or to set the wood in the shed or to dust the rugs. He would pay
between 20 to 40 copecks and once, gave his old trousers to him too.
When Sergei shifted his house, he employed the beggar to help in transporting the
articles. The beggar had changed as he was sober that day and Sergei felt satisfied
that his efforts had paid in reforming a drunkard. As he could read and write,
Sergei asked his name, offered him better work and shook hands with him. After
that day, Lushkoff the beggar was never seen.
After two years, Sergei was buying a ticket outside a theatre and spotted Lushkoff.
Lushkoff was well dressed and was buying a ticket of the gallery area. Sergei was
glad to see him and called him. Lushkoff was now working as a notary and earned
35 Roubles a month. He thanked Sergei for helping him out of the pit, for his
kindness. Lushkoff told Sergei that it was not for him but for his cook, Olga that he
was a changed man. She would scold him, cry for him and chopped the wood for
him. Her behaviour transformed Lushkoff. With this, he went to the theatre.

1. What is the excuse that the beggar gives Sergei for begging when he meets
him for the second time?
2. How did Sergei respond to the beggar"s request for money?
3. How did the narrator realise that the beggar had not come willingly with
him?
4. How do we know that the beggar had no previous experience of cutting
wood?
5. Is Lushkoff a willing worker? Why does he agree to chop wood for Sergei?
6. Sergei says „I am so happy that my words have taken effect". Why does he
say so? Is he right in saying this?

QUESTIONS (100-120 WORDS)

1. Discuss the title of the story. Is it appropriate?