BookBright
ABOUT THE BOOK
NO SPOILERSJulianna Reed lives on a farm in western Oregon with her parents, her little sister Stella, Penny the cat, three goats and some chickens. Riding home from 4-H one day, she finds Carson, a boy she knows from 4-H, in the woods with two other boys and a bag of fireworks, and she warns them about the burn ban. That evening the air smells like smoke. Dad races home with evacuation orders, and the wildfire destroys their house. Soon the family is starting over in a rented house in Portland, with donated furniture and a small yard, and Julianna wants to build a pen there so the goats can join them. At her new middle school she makes two friends, Emilia and Ezra, who invite her to the Conservation Club, nicknamed Club Connie. She does not want anyone to know she is "the lost-everything-in-a-fire girl." Then, in PE, she finds herself running laps next to Carson. He admits he was with the boys that day and lit some fireworks, though he says he did not light the one that started the fire. He begs her to keep quiet, and since Julianna has a secret of her own, she agrees.
Free Battle of the Books questions for Wildfire
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 Wildfire. 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 brag that she is "western Oregon's newest farrier"?
✓ Answer
Wildfire by Breena Bard
Back home from 4-H, Julianna shows off to Stella by calling herself western Oregon's newest farrier, explaining that farriers put shoes on horses. Earlier that day, a voice in the barn praised the way she de-shoed a horse.
- First half
In what book does a science teacher trace her love of nature to picking wild strawberries with her mother?
✓ Answer
Wildfire by Breena Bard
Ms. Sanchez starts the introductions by saying she has taught science at the school for 20 years, joking "I know, I'm a legend." Her passion for the environment goes back to picking wild strawberries with her mother as a young child.
- First half
In what book do three kids haul scrap lumber home in borrowed wagons?
✓ Answer
Wildfire by Breena Bard
When Ezra's uncle asks if they have a truck, Ezra reminds him, "Unc, we're 13," so the uncle lends them wagons. Julianna, Emilia and Ezra pull three wagons piled with lumber to Julianna's backyard.
- Second half
In what book does a park ranger tell students "Smokey Bear isn't going to save us"?
✓ Answer
Wildfire by Breena Bard
Ranger Hall says burn bans, firework restrictions and campaigns like Smokey Bear help prevent fires. But she tells the students it will take meaningful, widespread changes to stall the effects of global warming.
- Second half
In what book does a dog walker promise a girl she'll get her goats because she's an animal lover?
✓ Answer
Wildfire by Breena Bard
While Julianna reads on the front steps, a woman walking a Boston terrier named Hammy stops to chat, and Julianna pets him. When Julianna mentions the goat pen, the woman says there's no keeping an animal lover away from their animals.
- Near the end
In what book is a little sister glad she bothered to pack her Nature Pals?
✓ Answer
Wildfire by Breena Bard
Relaxing on the couch with Penny after helping build the goat pen, Stella tells Julianna she's still a little scared but glad they have each other. She's also glad she packed her tiny Nature Pals the night the family had to leave.
