How To Eat Fried Worms Day #8

Alan is panicking and wants to throw Billy in a cistern.  What's that?  Here are some pictures and a diagram showing what a cistern is used for.

Finally, Chapter 39 is entitled The United States Cavalry Rides Over the Hilltop.  The U.S. Cavalry are military people who ride horses, and usually when authors refers to them, they mean that someone is coming to the rescue.  It might look like this:

How To Eat Fried Worms Day #7

Not too much today.  I'm pretty sure you know all about apologies, arguments, mud fights, letters, and tricks.  Oh, but there is one thing.  Billy receives a letter that says, "10% of the boys studied report ed no ill effects except induced paralysis of the lower fulmar region."  Let's ignore the typing errors, but I wonder what the lower fulmar region of the body is, when this:

is a fulmar.  Veeeery interesting.

How To Eat Fried Worms Day #6

In order to answer question #1, we need to understand what the chapter titles refer to.  Here's some information:

Admiral Nagumo and Admiral Kusaka were both part of the Japenese army during World War II.  Together they planned and executed the secret attack on Pearl Harbor.  I think they planned part of the attack, or put the attack into action, from a Japenese ship called the Akaiga.

Pearl Harbor is a United States military base in Hawaii.  When the Japenese bombed Pearl Harbor, it brought the United Stated into the war, and they were determined to stay out of it.  The attack on Pearl Harbor was a huge plan carried out in secret to surprise the Americans.

Guadalcanal was the turning point in World War II.  After the bombing of Pearl Harbor, the Allied Forces (the United States and their allies) fought back.  Guadalcanal was a huge battle, lasting months, where the U.S. fought back and started their move to victory in the war.

So why are these chapters named like they are?

What is the location of Alan and Joe's Pearl Harbor?  Shea Stadium, which used to be home to the New York Mets, until they got a new stadium in 2009.

How To Eat Fried Worms Day #5

Two places are mentioned: Lake Lauderdale and Long Island.  You will probably recognize one of them, but both are real places in the state of New York.

  

Also, Billy mentions how his mom has gotten into eating odd things as well - just like Billy and the worms and Billy's dad and the crayfish.  She ate ... eels.  Here's a picture of a live one and a bunch of smoked eels.

 

Is it lunch time yet?

How to Eat Fried Worms Day #4

Billy has a bad dream about a butcher shop.  There aren't many butcher shops left, but they were places where meat was prepared.  People didn't get their steaks and burgers and sausages at the grocery store.  Instead, shoppers would stop at the butcher shop to get their meat.

 

Billy then sees a butcher with a cleaver and ten fat worms on a chopping block.  Here's what he was dreaming about (but there are no worms).

 

And finally, Billy's dad mentions a crayfish.  A live crayfish.  Now, boiled up with some corn, potatoes, and lots of spices is taaaa-sty!  Yum, yum!  But live?  Ugh!  (This doesn't really have much to do with the story, but it's pretty gross, so I thought I'd include it!)  Here's a traditional boiled meal and a real-life crayfish.

 

How To Eat Fried Worms Day #3

No picures today, but think about this:  What might you do if you Tom or Joe?  What trick might you come up with to try and stop Billy from eating the worms, now that it seems like he's going to be able to do it?

Then think about this:  Is it cheating?  Is it fair trying to trick someone into failing on a bet?

How To Eat Fried Worms Day #2

Billy's first worm is "as big as a souvenir pencil from the Empire State Building."  Ever seen one of those souvenir pencils?  They're huge!

Is that really the size of the worm?  Why would Billy say that?

How To Eat Fried Worms Day #1

The value of money changes over time.  According to a website calculater I found, $50 in 1973, the year the book was published, is the same as nearly $250 today.  That's a pretty big bet to eat fifteen worms in fifteen days.  And just to help your appetite, here's what Billy's first "python" might look like:

  

 

Ah! Just kidding!

Whew!  That's more like it ... but still pretty gross.

Finally, here's a picture of Billy's ultimate  motivation.  The minibike he wants to buy.