WORD LISTS

"I Survived the Attack of the Grizzlies, 1967" by Lauren Tarshis, Chapters 10–20

Tue Oct 24 18:26:19 EDT 2023
By Vocabulary.com (NY)Visual Thesaurus Moderator
In this seventeenth book of the historical fiction I Survived series, eleven-year-old Melody Vega — who usually enjoys the peaceful summer nature of Montana's Glacier National Park — encounters an enormous bear that smashes the window of her family's cabin.

Here are links to our lists for the novel: Chapters 1–9, Chapters 10–20
stance
“That’s actually not usually an aggressive stance,” he said. “Bears stand up on their hind legs to get a better look at things. But if you had run...or if it had gotten into the cabin, I really don’t know. Grizzlies are unpredictable. But I’d say you’re lucky.”
embedded
“Last month the rangers found a grizzly near a garbage dump. It had starved to death. It had glass embedded in its teeth. It probably couldn’t eat.”
stalk
There were hundreds of grizzlies in Glacier. What if all of them started stalking people?
rustic
It was a rustic hotel for hikers way up in the mountains.
waver
But Mel didn’t waver. Whatever was happening at Granite Chalet, she wanted to know.
flutter
He pointed at a hummingbird fluttering above a purple flower.
chalet
The Granite Park Chalet was way up in Glacier’s backcountry.
swig
Mel took swigs of cool water from her canteen and munched on nuts and raisins that Pops had packed for her.
apex
“The grizzly is America’s apex predator,” he explained.
Clap, clap.
“That means it can hunt any animal it wants. And no animal wants to mess with it.”
marmot
“They also love marmots,” Steve said.
Clap, clap.
Those were cute little rodents that lived underground.
fib
He eyed the thick roast beef sandwiches Pops had made for Mel and Cassie.
Mel handed him half of hers. “I’m not very hungry,” she fibbed.
fascinated
“How did you first become interested in grizzlies?”
“I’ve always been fascinated by them,” Steve said.
coax
“But why?” Aunt Cassie coaxed.
canteen
Steve took a gulp of water from his beat-up canteen.
gruesome
Mel had heard gruesome stories over the years of hikers slashed and bitten and left half-dead by mother grizzlies.
bluff
“It might make noise, growl, and whoof. It might stand up to get a better look. Or it might do a bluff charge...”
“What’s that?” Mel asked.
“It’s when a bear comes running at you, but it stops short, maybe twenty feet away. It’s just trying to scare you.”
trudge
The last half mile of the hike was torture—a trudge up a steep hill.
stagger
They staggered into the lobby, a big airy room with a rough stone floor and walls made of logs.
airy
They staggered into the lobby, a big airy room with a rough stone floor and walls made of logs.
burly
“Welcome!” said a burly man from behind the front desk.
blister
“Those poor toes!” Aunt Cassie said, looking at Mel’s bubbling blisters.
gush
“Wait until you see!” the mustache man gushed.
clobber
“The bigger one was clobbering the little guy. I thought it was going to rip its head off!”
incinerate
We have to dump our garbage out there. Because what else are we going to do with it? The park service gave me an incinerator back in June so we could burn our trash. But it was way too small.
rant
They were barely out the door when Steve started to rant.
seethe
He was seething with anger.
steep
The dump was right where the mustache man had said it was, in the back of the chalet, down the steep, rocky hill.
queasy
The sight of the garbage made Mel queasy.
grim
The sounds of happy chatter and clinking silverware rang out around them. But the mood at their table was grim.
nauseous
How many of those people were coming to see the grizzlies eat garbage?
Mel didn’t want to know. Thinking about it made her nauseous.
frail
The frail tree shook as the grizzly pounded against it with its paws.
eerie
It became eerily silent. All Mel could hear was the bear’s low, hissing breaths.
stern
Her voice sounded stern. “No more of this. It is not your fault. The people who work here have been feeding grizzly bears! How could this be your fault?”
jumble
Mel studied Steve’s face. It was a jumble of anger and sadness.
tragic
And they’d read Cassie’s new big story in National Geographic: How one tragic night in August would transform the park forever.

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