BookBright
ABOUT THE BOOK
NO SPOILERSEleven-year-old Calder Pillay and his neighbor Petra Andalee are sixth graders at a school in Chicago's Hyde Park neighborhood who have never really been friends, but a strange series of coincidences begins pulling them together. Calder carries a set of twelve puzzle pieces called pentominoes everywhere he goes and believes they send him messages. Petra loves to write and collects unusual ideas. When their teacher, Ms. Hussey, leads the class on a field trip to the Art Institute to study letters in old paintings, both kids become fascinated with the work of Dutch painter Johannes Vermeer. Then a priceless Vermeer painting called A Lady Writing is stolen on its way to Chicago, and Calder and Petra realize they may have stumbled onto clues no one else has noticed. Determined to solve the mystery before anyone gets hurt, the two new friends start chasing down leads through the streets, basements, and old buildings of their neighborhood, never knowing how close to danger they really are.
Free Battle of the Books questions for Chasing Vermeer
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 Chasing Vermeer. 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 boy carry plastic puzzle pieces in his pocket that clack when he walks?
✓ Answer
Chasing Vermeer by Blue Balliett
Calder Pillay constantly fiddles with his pentominoes, twelve flat shapes named after letters of the alphabet. He uses them like a personal code, often pulling one out to spark an idea.
- First half
In what book do two kids use blue M&M's as a private symbol of secrecy?
✓ Answer
Chasing Vermeer by Blue Balliett
Calder offers Petra peanut M&M's after a trip to the library, and they decide blue ones will represent their pact. They save them in his wooden box and eat one at special moments in the hunt.
- First half
In what book does a famous painting get stolen during transit between Washington and Chicago?
✓ Answer
Chasing Vermeer by Blue Balliett
A rare seventeenth-century Dutch painting disappears on its way to a new exhibit at the Art Institute. The shipping case arrives with armed guards but turns out to be completely empty.
- Second half
In what book does a girl overhear her teacher weeping on the phone, saying "it is here"?
✓ Answer
Chasing Vermeer by Blue Balliett
Petra goes back to her classroom to grab a forgotten book and hears Ms. Hussey crying into the phone. The fragments she catches leave her afraid that her teacher may be in real danger and tangled up in the theft.
- Second half
In what book is a boy locked alone in a school basement holding what he hopes is a stolen treasure?
✓ Answer
Chasing Vermeer by Blue Balliett
Calder hides in the basement supply room with what he thinks is the missing masterpiece. Trapped in pitch darkness, he passes the time making puzzle solutions in his head while Petra races to find a way to free him.
- Near the end
In what book does a thief threaten to destroy a stolen painting by January 11?
✓ Answer
Chasing Vermeer by Blue Balliett
The thief writes a final letter to the National Gallery demanding the museum publicly support his views about attribution. He warns that if the changes are not made by January 11, he will burn the masterpiece as a sacrifice.
