To allow the brain to focus on the information in the illustrations, this reading will look only at the illustrations and the information they provide to the reader. There are no right or wrong answers in this reading. Enjoy the questions we have provided and feel free to create your own. If the pages are not numbered, page 1 is the first page of text.
Pages 1 – 10:
Look at the series of pages 1 – 10:
~The author doesn’t use much color in his illustrations. What kind of feeling is he trying to create?
~Look at the boy’s face. How do you think he is feeling? Explain.
~What is strange about this setting? (No other people seem to be in the house. No furniture in the house.)
~On pages 1 and 2, do you think that the sun is rising or setting? What does the boy have with him?
~On pages 3 and 4, do you think it is morning or evening?
~On pages 5 and 6, how did his car get into the bathroom?
~On pages 7 and 8, why is the door to the basement open?
~On pages 9 and 10, why is the boy looking into the basement? What might he be thinking?
Pages 11 – 20:
~Now that you are on pages 11 and 12, do you think the sun that was in the first illustration was rising or setting? Look at the boy’s face. How do you think that he is feeling? Use the evidence in the illustration to help explain your answer.
~Why are pages 13 and 14 so full of darkness?
~On pages 15 to 20, why does the boy get out of bed? He seems to be walking through the house. Why might he be walking through the dark house with only his flashlight?
Pages 21 – 28:
~On pages 23 and 24, would you go down the stairs if you were the boy? Explain. Why do you think that the boy goes down the stairs?
~On pages 25 to 26, there is one small dresser in the basement. Is the boy going to open one of the drawers? What could he be looking for in the dresser?
Pages 29 – END:
~On pages 29 and 30, what does the boy find in the dresser drawer?
~On pages 31 and 32, where is the boy? His eyes are shut for the first time. Why?
~On pages 33 and 34, the boy is back in the basement. Why do you think that he has gone back to the basement? Why doesn’t he have his flashlight?
~On pages 35 and 36, look at the last illustration. Do you think that the sun is rising or setting? Compare the first illustration to this illustration. What differences can you find?
~How much time has passed from the beginning of the story to the end? (One full night and one full day).