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ABOUT THE BOOK
NO SPOILERSToasty the goldfish lives in a fancy antique fish tank at Number 3 Ramshorn Drive, and he has always been the only pet in the house, but not the favorite. That spot belongs to Ivy, a small houseplant that Jillian picked out at the store. When Jillian brings home a second plant named Ollie, and a spider named Arthur gets stuck in the family's old typewriter, the house on Ramshorn Drive suddenly feels very crowded. Then one ordinary morning, after Toasty splashes some water on Ivy the way he always does, something strange begins to happen that none of them can explain. With the Tupper family also worried about money and a mysterious buyer showing an unusual interest in one of their antiques, Toasty, Ivy, Ollie, and Arthur are about to discover secrets hidden in their own tank and pots, and a bit of magic that will test what it really means to be friends.
Free Battle of the Books questions for Growing Home
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 Growing Home. 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 houseplant tell a spider that her name is Esmerelda?
✓ Answer
Growing Home by Beth Ferry
Ivy has always thought her real name is boring and blurts out a fancier one when Arthur finally asks. He believes her and says the name suits her because she is the loveliest shade of green, like an emerald, which she gobbles right up. Toasty spoils the whole thing later by announcing her real name.
- First half
In what book does a small plant reveal he is a violet, finishing a rainbow color hunt?
✓ Answer
Growing Home by Beth Ferry
Ollie mentions it almost by accident at bedtime, and Ivy cheers because it completes her ROY G BIV list on the very first day she meets him. What Ivy does not realize is that Ollie has no blooms yet and is deeply ashamed of it.
- First half
In what book does a girl blow a dandelion puff without picking it inside an antique store?
✓ Answer
Growing Home by Beth Ferry
Jillian is careful to leave the plant rooted, and the tiny white snowstorm swirls around the stacks of books in the shop. She makes a wish that is not for a puppy or a trip, and the narrator teases us by saying she had bigger fish to fry.
- Second half
In what book does a goldfish splash wildly in his tank trying to put out a kitchen fire?
✓ Answer
Growing Home by Beth Ferry
Toasty later swears he was only trying to get the firefighters' attention, but Ivy sees him splashing before anyone arrives. It is the first real proof that the grumpy fish has a good heart hiding under all his complaining.
- Second half
In what book does ugly green paint flake off a birdcage and reveal gold underneath?
✓ Answer
Growing Home by Beth Ferry
Mrs. Tupper brushes the cage clean at the family antique store and the flakes fall like green snow. Underneath she finds a small mark shaped like a pair of eyes, which turns out to be the sign of the alchemist Augustus Octothorpe.
- Near the end
In what book does a spider leap at a burglar's face and land below his right eye?
✓ Answer
Growing Home by Beth Ferry
The ottoman trap fails because Brookstone has eyes for nothing but the tank, so Arthur throws himself at the man instead. Brookstone flicks him away so hard that Arthur slams into the wall and four of his legs crumple.
