BookBright
ABOUT THE BOOK
NO SPOILERSJade Butler is a junior at St. Francis, the best private school in Portland, where she has a full scholarship and most of the students are white. She rides the 35 bus there from North Portland, where she lives with her mom and her uncle E.J., a deejay. Jade makes collages from everyday scraps like candy wrappers and receipts, and she studies Spanish because "language can take you places." She is sure her counselor, Mrs. Parker, is about to nominate her for the school's study abroad program. Instead, Mrs. Parker hands her a folder for Woman to Woman, a mentorship program for African American girls, and pairs her with Maxine, a St. Francis graduate from a very different world who doesn't show up to their first meeting. Between her best friend Lee Lee, a poet at the neighborhood high school, and Sam, a new girl who reads on the bus, Jade tries to work out where she belongs and how to speak up for herself.
Free Battle of the Books questions for Piecing Me Together
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 Piecing Me Together. 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 girl sneak cookies, chips, grapes, and strawberries from a snack table into her backpack?
✓ Answer
Piecing Me Together by Renée Watson
At the first Woman to Woman meeting, held at a library, Jade wraps five cookies in a napkin and keeps sneaking snacks into her backpack when no one is looking. It is a habit she learned from Mom, who wraps up food in foil at all-you-can-eat buffets.
- First half
In what book does a classmate offering a ride hear "North Portland" and say, "That makes so much sense now."?
✓ Answer
Piecing Me Together by Renée Watson
Kennedy, the classmate Jade used to call Glamour Girl, offers Jade a ride, thinking she walks to school. When Jade explains that she takes the bus from North Portland, Kennedy reacts like lightbulbs are flashing in her head, and Jade isn't sure she even wants to go to lunch with her anymore.
- First half
In what book does a best friend joke about taking "a canoe, a plane, and a bus to school"?
✓ Answer
Piecing Me Together by Renée Watson
Lee Lee runs into Jade and Sam at Frank's Corner Store and teases Jade for being too busy to see her, since St. Francis is so far across town. If Jade would just be regular, Lee Lee says, they'd see each other every day.
- Second half
In what book does a symphony melody sound like an intricate collage to a teen?
✓ Answer
Piecing Me Together by Renée Watson
Still upset by the volunteer's stereotypes, Jade closes her eyes and really listens to the orchestra. She hears the viola, cello, flute and clarinet each lying next to the other to complete one picture, the way her collages are built.
- Second half
In what book does a host's son copy a guest's wrong fork with a wink?
✓ Answer
Piecing Me Together by Renée Watson
At the Winters family's elegant dinner, Maxine whispers to Jade that she has used the wrong fork. Nathan tells her it's okay, picks up the wrong fork too and winks at her, though Jade watches Maxine's every move for the rest of the meal.
- Near the end
In what book does a board member cut off a man who calls a teen articulate?
✓ Answer
Piecing Me Together by Renée Watson
At the fundraiser, a man with a perfect smile tells Jade she is so articulate and so well spoken. Gina, a Woman to Woman board member, cuts him off by asking "What did you expect?", and Maxine adds that she's lucky to work with girls like Jade.
