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Copywork
About This Passage
This is the chapter's clearest example of the double-voice Lowry has been training Annemarie to use. On the outside, Annemarie is a cheeky, slightly rude little girl who is annoyed about being late. On the inside, she is silently begging the soldier not to find the packet. Copying these sentences shows you exactly how brave acting works under pressure — outside calm, inside praying.
Annemarie gave him a withering look. "You know we have no meat," she said insolently. "Your army eats all of Denmark's meat." Please, please, she implored in her mind. Don't lift the napkin.
Full copywork activity with handwriting lines available in the complete study guide.
Discussion Questions
Narration Prompt
Retell Chapter 15 in your own words, paying attention to the order of what the soldier examines (the bread, the cheese, the apple, the napkin, the packet) and how Annemarie responds at each step. What pattern do you notice in how she changes tone as the soldier digs deeper into the basket?
Discussion Questions
- Annemarie deliberately copies Kirsti — chattering about how Mama cooks fish, stamping her foot, getting bossy and cheeky. The text suggests that this is not just acting; it is a strategy. What does the chapter show about why a 'silly little girl' is harder for a soldier to suspect than a calm, watchful one?
- When the soldier finds the packet at the bottom of the basket, Annemarie suddenly cries — and her tears surprise even her. How do you know from the story that this moment of real emotion is what saves her? Why might a calculated act not have worked at this exact moment?
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Vocabulary Builder
Item 1
A look or remark that is so cutting and scornful it makes the other person feel small, as if they were drying up under it.
Item 2
In a rude, disrespectful way that shows you do not care about the rules of polite behavior.
Item 3
Begged earnestly and desperately, often silently in your mind.
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Critical Thinking
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