Characters & Relationships
Who was Jacob having a phone conversation with at the beginning of Chapter 1?
His grandfather (Abe Portman)
Where does Jacob’s grandfather live?
In a subdivision called Circle Village
Why was Grandpa Portman panicking at the start of the chapter?
He believed “monsters” were coming for him
What object was Grandpa Portman desperately looking for at the beginning of the chapter?
A key
What emotion best describes Jacob’s feelings toward his grandfather’s behavior at first?
Embarrassment and concern
What is Jacob’s relationship to Abe Portman?
He is his grandson
What U.S. state does the story begin in?
Florida
Why had Jacob’s father taken his grandfather’s garage key?
To keep him away from his guns for safety
What did Grandpa Portman use to defend himself in the woods?
A brass letter opener
What theme is introduced through Grandpa Portman’s paranoia about monsters?
The lasting effects of trauma and war
Who does Jacob call after hanging up on his grandfather?
His father
What kind of neighborhood is Circle Village described as?
A maze of quiet, nearly empty cul-de-sacs
What did Jacob and Ricky find when they entered Abe Portman’s house?
It was ransacked and in chaos
What were Grandpa Portman’s final words about where Jacob should go?
“Go to the island… find the bird… in the loop.”
What does Jacob’s fear and confusion in the woods foreshadow?
His discovery of a hidden, supernatural world
What does Jacob’s father do part-time?
Works at a bird rescue and writes nature stories
What kind of wilderness is behind Abe Portman’s house?
A scrubby forest filled with palmettos and wild animals
What did Jacob find in the backyard that made him run toward the woods?
A flashlight shining toward the trees
What mysterious date did Grandpa mention before dying?
September 3, 1940
How does the author use irony when describing Grandpa’s fear?
He’s paranoid about monsters—but they turn out to be real
What is the name of Jacob’s best friend who drives him to his grandfather’s house?
Ricky
What was the name of the neighboring subdivision beyond the woods?
Century Woods
What terrifying creature did Jacob glimpse in the woods before blacking out?
A monster with black skin and eel-like tongues
What strange message did Grandpa ask Jacob to tell “them”?
“Tell them what happened, Yakob.”
What central theme begins to emerge at the end of Chapter 1?
The blurred line between reality and imagination