Son of a Trickster

Reading Check and Short Answer questions on key plot points are designed for guided reading assignments, in-class review, formative assessment, quizzes, and more.

Chapters 1-6

Reading Check

1. What does Jared’s maternal grandmother call him?

2. What unusual interaction does Jared have after meeting David at the mall?

3. What does Jared find in his wall, and what does he think it means?

Short Answer

Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.

1. What are some signs that Jared’s family is dysfunctional?

2. How does Jared avoid suspicion when selling weed?

Chapters 7-11

Reading Check

1. Where is Jared’s father when he goes to visit him?

2. How does Jared improve his relationship with Richie?

3. What is Jared’s motive for selling weed cookies?

Short Answer

Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.

1. What evidence does the author provide that would indicate Phil’s family is dysfunctional?

2. How is Jared’s behavior more responsible than his parents’?

Paired Resource

“Addiction and the Family System”

• This 5-minute video describes addiction and the role of codependency in the family.
• What is codependency? How does it relate to Jared and the relationship between his mother and father? How does this connect to the novel’s theme of Addiction in Dysfunctional Families?

Chapters 12-18

Reading Check

1. Why does Jared feel obligated to help the Jaks family?

2. What does David do when he finds Jared’s report card?

3. Why does Maggie fly into a violent rage?

Short Answer

Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.

1. How does Jared’s assistance with his father’s rent create a potential problem?

2. In what ways does Jared cope with the volatile family situations he finds himself in?

Paired Resource

“Forms of Escapism”

• This article describes different forms of escapism.
• What are some healthy and unhealthy forms of escapism? What form of escapism does Jared participate in? How does Jared’s escapism relate to Addiction in Dysfunctional Families and The Danger and Risk of Supernatural Powers?

Chapters 19-23

Reading Check

1. What excuse does Jared give for the strange things he encounters, such as the woman who offers him a ride who has something beneath her face?

2. What does Jared ask Nana Sophia?

3. Why does Jared go to George’s house?

Short Answer

Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.

1. Why does Jared suspect his mother has left him?

2. After Sarah leaves Jared’s house because she is angry, Jared says there is no one left to miss him if he leaves the house. What does he mean by this?

Chapters 24-28

Reading Check

1. What does the woman with the magic behind her face tell Jared when he encounters her in a dream?

2. Why does Jared go to Pizzarama?

3. What is Maggie’s explanation for her drug binge?

Short Answer

Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.

1. Why does Jared want to stay at the Jakses’ home?

2. What does Jared mean when he says, “He was running a distant second to whatever she was using, so far back it was like they weren’t even running the same race”?

Paired Resources

“Shaman”

• This article describes what a shaman is and the duties a shaman performs.
• What is a shaman? How is this related to the novel’s themes of Native Identity and Culture and The Danger and Risk of Supernatural Powers?

“Raven the Trickster”

• This brief article describes Raven, a trickster character in traditional Northwest Coast Native mythology.
• What is the connection between the raven in Son of a Trickster and the character in Northwest Coast Native culture? How does this article connect to the novel’s themes of Native Identity and Culture and The Danger and Risk of Supernatural Powers?

Chapters 29-32

Reading Check

1. What does Sarah see around Jared’s head?

2. What does Jared’s inner voice tell him when he tries to watch TV with the ape men in the room?

3. Why is Jared having second thoughts about staying with his Nana Sophia?

Short Answer

Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.

1. Why does Sarah feel her family members don’t like her, and what does it say about her?

2. When Maggie sees the gun Jared is carrying, she tells him that if he has to choose between someone else’s life and his own, he should choose to preserve his own life. How does this align with Maggie’s personality throughout the novel?

Paired Resource

Bicultural Identity Conflicts

• This article describes some of the conflicts that can arise when a person identifies with more than one culture at the same time.
• What are some of the pressures children can feel when they identify with more than one culture? How is this related to the novel’s theme of Native Identity and Culture?

Chapters 33-37

Reading Check

1. How does Jared know Sarah is lying about Baby?

2. What explanation does Maggie provide to Jared for his strange hallucinations?

3. Why is Jared concerned about his relationship with Sophia?

Short Answer

Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.

1. What events cause Jared to feel unstable as he realizes the role magic plays in his life?

2. What is alarming about the presence of the otters in Jared’s visions?

Chapters 38-40

Reading Check

1. Where do Sarah’s family members send her?

2. Who is Jwa’sins revealed to be?

3. Where does Jwa’sins take Jared after their meeting at Dairy Queen?

Short Answer

Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.

1. How does Jared’s mother respond when she realizes the changes he has made to his life?

2. What changes occur at the conclusion of the novel because of Jared’s decisions?

Recommended Next Reads

Five Little Indians by Michelle Good

• This novel is about the lives of five Indigenous children who are forced to assimilate into Canadian culture through the Indian residential school system and what happened to them during and after that experience.
• Shared topics include Canadian Indigenous culture, shared trauma, and abuse.
• Shared themes include Native Identity and Culture and Addiction in Dysfunctional Families.
• Five Little Indians on SuperSummary

The Marrow Thieves by Cherie Dimaline

• This novel is about a 16-year-old Canadian Indigenous boy on the run from recruiters who seek to collect marrow from Indigenous people as a remedy for society’s lost ability to dream.
• Shared topics include Canadian Indigenous culture, exploitation, and trauma.
• Shared themes include Native Identity and Culture.
• The Marrow Thieves on SuperSummary