BookBright
ABOUT THE BOOK
NO SPOILERSSam Gribley has been living self-sufficiently in a hollowed-out hemlock tree in the Catskill Mountains for more than two years, hunting with his peregrine falcon Frightful and sharing his mountain home with his inventive younger sister Alice. Then in one morning, everything changes: a conservation officer arrives and confiscates Frightful, explaining that keeping an endangered peregrine falcon is a federal crime. Before Sam can even process the loss, he discovers that Alice has silently packed her maps and her pig, Crystal, and slipped away to find her own place in the wilderness, leaving behind only a short note and a trail of cryptic clues for Sam to follow.
Free Battle of the Books questions for On the Far Side of the Mountain
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 On the Far Side of the Mountain. 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 man in a green uniform confiscate a boy's peregrine falcon?
✓ Answer
On the Far Side of the Mountain by Jean Craighead George
A stranger in a green uniform arrives at Sam's mountaintop home, calls himself conservation officer Leon Longbridge, and takes Frightful, warning Sam that keeping an endangered species is against the law. Sam tries everything to stop him, from pity to philosophy to pulling a knife, but the man is a skilled falconer and Sam cannot save his bird.
- First half
In what book does a horse help raise a waterwheel into place using a rope over a tree limb?
✓ Answer
On the Far Side of the Mountain by Jean Craighead George
To install the waterwheel, Sam and his friends throw a rope over a tree limb, tie one end to the wheel and the other to Slats the horse. Mrs. Strawberry leads Slats away, lifting the wheel into the air. Then everyone guides it into position while the horse slowly backs up.
- First half
In what book does a boy check which boots, maps, and T-shirts are missing to figure out his sister's plans?
✓ Answer
On the Far Side of the Mountain by Jean Craighead George
After finding Alice's goodbye note, Sam inventories her tree house. Her boots are gone but not her tennis shoes, meaning rough terrain. She took her maps from the orienteering course, her backpack, the water carrier, gloves, and her Swiss Army knife. She left her books. All of this tells Sam she won't be back soon.
- Second half
In what book does a character recognize a covered campsite because the wet dark undersides of leaves are facing up?
✓ Answer
On the Far Side of the Mountain by Jean Craighead George
Sam nearly walks past Alice's campsite under the dead oak because she covered it with leaves when she left. But Sam notices the displaced leaves have a distinctive look, with their wet dark bottoms facing up instead of down, which is a telltale sign of a concealed campsite.
- Second half
In what book does a pig recognize a family member's scent even though they have never met?
✓ Answer
On the Far Side of the Mountain by Jean Craighead George
At the 4-H fair, Sam cannot tell which pig is Crystal among three spotted pigs in a pen. One pig sniffs the air and runs toward him, recognizing the family scent. Sam explains that all animals recognize family members by their distinctive aroma, like a clan plaid.
- Near the end
In what book does a coyote use a dead bird as bait to lure a crow close enough to catch?
✓ Answer
On the Far Side of the Mountain by Jean Craighead George
While hiding in a hemlock tree waiting for Alice, Sam watches an eastern coyote drop a dead bird and vanish. A crow cautiously approaches the bait and starts pecking. In a gray streak, the coyote reappears, snaps her jaws, and kills the crow. Sam calls her a clever hunter.
