The girl who hated books (by Manjusha Pawagi)

The girl who hated books by Manjusha Pawagi. This is a chapter in English literature for ICSE Class 4 students. Find notes, and question and answers for this chapter.

This is a story about a girl who hated books until one day, when something strange happened, and her parents were pleasantly surprised to see that she had started reading books.

The girl who hated books: Questions and Answers

Quick answers

Fill in the blanks:

• a. In most homes books are usually found on bookshelves and beside tables.
• b. Because she did not read them, Meena’s books were covered in dust.
• c. Meena found Max on top of a stack of books.
• d. Meena slipped while she was trying to rescue Max.
• e. People and animals fell out of the books and went back in only when Meena read them.

Reference to Context

“Worse still, her parents were always bringing home MORE books. They read at breakfast, lunch and dinner.

a) In what way was Meena different from her parents?
Answer: Meena hated books. But her parents loved to read books and collected books at their home.

b) List three things that Meena did that show us that she was bad-mannered.
Answer: The three things that Meena did that show us that she was bad-mannered are –

• i) She hated books.
• ii) When her parents tried to read aloud to her she would put her hands over her ears.
• iii) She used to shout even louder.

c) Which word in these lines is an antonym for better?
Answer: The word in these lines in an antonym for better , is – ‘worse’.

“When her parents came in that afternoon, they couldn’t believe their eyes.”

a) Where was Meena when her parents returned?
Answer: When her parents returned, Meena was sitting in the middle of the dining room.

b) What had happened to the room?
Answer: The curtains of the room were gone and the dishes were broken and the table legs were chewed up.

c) Explain ‘they couldn’t believe their eyes’ in your own words.
Answer: After returning home, Meena’s parents saw that she was reading books, sitting in the middle of the dining room. Meena always hated books. So, her parents could not believe their eyes that Meena was actually reading books.

Read, reflect and write

Q. What were the different kinds of books that Meena’s parents had brought for her?
Answer: Meena’s parents had brought big shiny picture books when she was a baby. They brought alphabet books and nursery rhymes. They also bought fairy tales and adventure stories.

Q. Why do you think Meena hated books?
Answer: I think hated books because she probably had a bad experience with books, like her cat Max.

Q. Why did Meena begin reading?
Answer: Meena began reading books because she wanted to put all those creatures in right books. As she did not know which creature belongs to which book, she had to read all the books to know their proper place.

Q. What surprised Meena’s parents when they returned home that afternoon? What do you think brought about this change in Meena?
Answer: Meena’s parents returned home and they saw Meena was reading books. This surprised Meena’s parents.

Meena had to read to know the proper places of all those creatures which had come out of those books. And then, I think Meena started enjoying reading the books. While reading books, Meena gradually started liking the stories. So, she continued reading.

Q. What advice would you give to a friend who says she/he does not enjoy reading?
Answer: I would tell my friend that books are our best friends. Books give us knowledge and increase our wisdom. Books enrich us with lots of information and help us move forward in life. Once we start reading books, we start enjoying reading. I will suggest my friend to develop the practice of reading books.

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