BookBright
ABOUT THE BOOK
NO SPOILERSThirteen-year-old Will Parker lives in a future England that looks almost medieval, where giant three-legged machines called Tripods rule the world and every person, when they reach adulthood, receives a metal Cap that controls their mind forever. When a mysterious wanderer reveals to Will that free people still exist far to the south, Will faces a choice that could change everything: stay home and be Capped like everyone else, or slip away in the night and attempt the long, dangerous journey to a place called the White Mountains.
Free Battle of the Books questions for The White Mountains
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 The White Mountains. 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 giant metal tentacle curl around a boy's waist and lift him into a hemisphere?
✓ Answer
The White Mountains by John Christopher
On Capping Day, the Tripod's burnished tentacle gently lifts Jack up from the village street and into the opening in its hemisphere. Will watches in fear, knowing that next year it will be his turn. The whole village stands in silence during this solemn ceremony.
- First half
In what book does an injured boy wake to find his companion gone and the food pack missing?
✓ Answer
The White Mountains by John Christopher
Will wakes in the hut to find Henry and the pack both gone. He assumes Henry has abandoned him and stolen the food. He sits against the wall wallowing in anger until Henry returns with a loaf, roast beef, and a pork pie he stole from a nearby farmhouse larder.
- First half
In what book does a boy break his leg trying to put springs on stilts?
✓ Answer
The White Mountains by John Christopher
Among Beanpole's many failed inventions is a pair of stilts fitted with springs. He broke a leg the previous year testing them out. The story shows his fearless curiosity and willingness to experiment, traits that also make him reckless when his scientific interest is aroused.
- Second half
In what book do two boys pretend to be deaf-mutes to hide that they speak a foreign language?
✓ Answer
The White Mountains by John Christopher
Beanpole invents a cover story for Will and Henry, since neither of them speaks the local language. If they pretend to be deaf-mutes, no one will expect them to talk or respond. The plan works until Will, sick with fever, says out loud in English that he must not talk.
- Second half
In what book does a boy snatch a girl's head covering and discover a metal mesh underneath?
✓ Answer
The White Mountains by John Christopher
Will playfully grabs Eloise's turban in a triangular garden overlooking a river. He is shocked to see the silver mesh of the Cap on her head, under a short dark fuzz of hair. The act is deeply offensive in her culture, and he could have been flogged or worse.
- Near the end
In what book does a boy find a small metal disk embedded in the skin under his arm?
✓ Answer
The White Mountains by John Christopher
When Will's shirt tears on a thorn bush, the others spot something metallic under his arm. He touches a smooth, hard button with a faint mesh pattern, fused to his skin. The Tripod planted it when it caught him as he fled the castle.
