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ABOUT THE BOOK
NO SPOILERSTwelve-year-old Aniana del Mar — Ani — lives on Galveston Island, Texas, and loves swimming more than almost anything. Named after a Dominican water activist, she feels most alive in the water, gliding through lap after lap at the YMCA with her swim team. The problem: her mother, Mami, is terrified of the ocean after losing her brother to a hurricane flood years ago, so Papi has been sneaking Ani to practice and swim meets for months, calling their trips "daddy-daughter dates." When Ani's joints begin swelling and aching every morning, leaving her stiff and stumbling like the Tin Man, she hides the pain from everyone — until the symptoms become impossible to ignore and the secret unravels all at once.
Free Battle of the Books questions for Aniana del Mar Jumps In
SPOILERSEvery one of these has the same answer, and that is the point. In a real battle the question is read aloud with a dozen other books in play, and students have a few seconds to place it. Here is what a battle might ask about Aniana del Mar Jumps In. Use them as a quiz, a trivia round, or BOTB practice.
Where in the book they come from
- Early in the book
In what book does a father hide swimming medals in his garage toolbox so the mother won't find them?
✓ Answer
Aniana del Mar Jumps In by Jasminne Mendez
After every secret meet, Papi stows his daughter's medals in his toolbox in the garage. He knows Mami will never look there. The collection of hidden medals shows how long the secret has gone on.
- First half
In what book does a girl get her first professional pedicure and choose a polish called "ocean shimmer"?
✓ Answer
Aniana del Mar Jumps In by Jasminne Mendez
On Mami's birthday weekend, she takes the narrator to Bella Nails and Spa for a surprise mami-daughter date. The narrator picks light blue ocean shimmer while Mami picks a pale pink she can hide under shoes and socks so las hermanas never find out.
- First half
In what book does a girl receive the diagnosis Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis from a Houston specialist?
✓ Answer
Aniana del Mar Jumps In by Jasminne Mendez
Dr. Castro, a rheumatologist in Houston, finally names the illness. The narrator's legs tremble as if each word were an earthquake. Mami hears the diagnosis over the phone while Papi is at work.
- Second half
In what book does a godmother braid a girl's hair while a friend draws a sad face in the sand?
✓ Answer
Aniana del Mar Jumps In by Jasminne Mendez
On Ani's birthday beach trip, Madrina braids her hair and brushes her curls back the way Mami used to before the baby blues, while Maria Tere doodles in the sand. The scene is one of the few moments of peace in a chapter full of betrayal and family fights.
- Second half
In what book does a little brother raise an Aquaman action figure at a birthday toast and shout, "To Aquaman!"?
✓ Answer
Aniana del Mar Jumps In by Jasminne Mendez
Matti steals the moment during the birthday toast at the family dinner. Everyone laughs, but the older sister can only think about how her health and life may never match Papi's definition of "good" again.
- Near the end
In what book does a girl write a school biography about her revolutionary Dominican namesake?
✓ Answer
Aniana del Mar Jumps In by Jasminne Mendez
For a history assignment about a lesser known historical figure, the narrator picks Aniana Vargas, an anti-Trujillo activist and environmentalist known as Madre de las aguas. Researching her namesake gives her the courage to take control of her own life.
