Number the Stars — Chapter 13

About This Passage

Mama has just walked Jewish neighbors through the dark to a fishing boat, broken her ankle on the way home, and crawled the last of the path. Yet she chooses to tell the story plainly, even teasing herself for being clumsy. Copying her words slowly helps you hear how a brave grown-up sounds when she has just done something dangerous: not boastful, not afraid, but quietly grateful.

Narration Prompt

Retell the chapter in your own words. Begin with Annemarie racing down the stairs to her injured mother, move through the discovery of the dropped packet, and end with Annemarie taking the basket and turning toward the path.

Discussion Questions

1. When Mama plans to tell the doctor that she "fell on the stairs," she is choosing to lie. What in the story tells you why this lie might actually be a kind of protection? How do you know Mama is not lying for an easy or selfish reason?
2. After Mama is hurt and worried about the lost packet, Annemarie picks up the packet and says, "I will take it," before Mama even asks. What in the story tells you that Annemarie has changed since the beginning of the book? How do you know she is no longer the same girl who once worried mostly about cupcakes and Kirsti's tantrums?

+ 3 more questions in the complete study guide