Grades 5/6
Based on your reading of, The Marvels, respond to one of the questions below in writing. You can email me your response or bring it to our next live class on Tuesday. mhealy@ersd.org

How do the early experiences of Billy Marvel in this family saga foreshadow events in the later generations as well as experiences that Joseph has over two centuries later?
 Discuss the first line of text on p. 392 — “Joseph was lost.” Can you find more than one meaning to this sentence? Why does Joseph run away from school? Why do you think he chooses to run to the house of an uncle he has never met?
 What is Joseph’s first impression of 18 Folgate Street? What is his first impression of Uncle Albert? Compare what Joseph finds in the house to the watch his grandfather gives him and the image Blink shows him of the insect trapped in amber. Discuss the comment “Maybe trouble with time ran in their family.” (p. 422) How does the theme of time run through the novel?
 What convinces Albert to finally tell Joseph the truth about the Marvels? How did you feel about this discovery? When Joseph repeats Penney’s words, “Stories aren’t the same as facts,” Albert replies, “No, but they can both be true.” (p. 534) What does Albert mean by this?
 Discuss the images of fire in the picture and word stories. What does fire represent to Joseph and to Albert, and in the book as a whole?
 When Joseph first sees the phrase “Aut Visum Aut Non” (You either see it or you don’t), it seems to be a warning. Later he says it feels like an invitation. Discuss the different qualities that the phrase takes on for Joseph as he unravels the mystery of the house. What does the phrase mean to Albert? How does it affect your reading experience?
 What does Frankie’s father mean when he says, “It’s what we all need in life. A direction”? (p. 563) Discuss the ways in which different characters in this story find a direction for their lives. What is the significance of the last line of text, “So Joseph turned the page”? (p. 603)

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