Discussion Questions and Vocabulary

Chapter 1 -- Upside Down in the Hands of a Giant
1. How do you think Homer ended up in the hands of the cyclops Polyphemus?
2. Who are Homer and Dory?
3. What adventure do you think they are on?

• Page 1 - Ionia
• Page 1 - reeled
• Page 1 - Odysseus
• Page 2 - cyclops
• Page 2 - scroll

Chapter 2 -- From the Beginning
1. What will happen if Homer is kicked out of school?
2. What is the assignment that Homer is to complete?
3. Do you think Elder Pachis was right to want to kick Homer out of school?
4. How long does Homer have to complete this assignment?
5. What was set to keep track of the time?
6. Who gave Homer his hourglass? What was it supposed to count down to?

• Page 4 - repurposed
• Page 4 - droned
• Page 6 - story arc
• Page 9 - repossessed
• Page 9 - groveling
• Page 9 - quivering
• Page 10 - merit
• Page 11 - epic hero
• Page 11 - legend
• Page 12 - character growth

Chapter 3 -- Falafels with the Gods
1. What do you think Hermes did to the hourglass?

• Page 14 - falafel
• Page 16 - splotch

Chapter 4 - Into the Horse
1. Where do you think Homer and Dory are?
2. What did Dory want Homer to do in exchange for getting off of the horse?
3. What city were they in?
4. Where were the men headed and why?

• Page 24 - retch
• Page 26 - Trojans

Chapter 5 - As You Set Out for Ithaca
1. How did Homer and Dory defend themselves being on the ship? (What were they good at?)
2. How much sand had drained from the hourglass?
3. How long had they been gone?
4. Where are they going to stop for food?
5. What did Dory make the rowers? Where did he get the idea?

• Page 39 - galley
• Page 40 - backstory
• Page 41 - Bard

Chapter 6 - It All Starts with One Bad Choice
1. Who went with Homer and Dory to talk to the old lady?
2. What do you think Tessa means by “The mark is the secret?”
3. Why don’t they fight with villagers?
4. Do you think that their fighting with the villagers had consequences?

• Page 44 - budget
• Page 44 - provisions
• Page 44 - salves
• Page 47 - Meade
• Page 51 - epic
• Page 51 - debut
• Page 51 - trochees
• Page 51 - anceps
• Page 51 - spondees
• Page 51 - caesura
• Page 51 - diphthongs

Chapter 7 - Flower Children
1. How many days did the wind blow?
2. Which god did Odysseus not complain about?
3. Why would their teeth start falling out without getting some fruit?
4. How did Polites lose an eye and hurt his leg? Does that make him a hero?
5. What does ‘the pen is mightier than the sword” mean?
6. What do you think the flowers are doing to them?
7. How long were they eating flowers?
8. What did the girl mean when she said, “Let the Flower Children be remembered. Let us be a warning to others.”?

• Page 59 - Ismaros

Chapter 8 - Into the Cave
1. Why do you think Dory is upset about the lack of females in war and in Homer’s story?

• Page 76 - omens
• Page 76 - booty

Chapter 9 - Dinner for the Cyclops
1. What reason did Homer give for not eating him?
2. What happened to Polyphemus?

• Page 85 - gore/gory

Chapter 10 - Cloaked in Mutton
1. How did they escape Polyphemus?
2. Who was Polyphemus’ father?

• Page 93 - mutton

Chapter 11 - The Rainbow Sparkle Club
1. Why weren’t the boats moving?
2. Is there a god of wind or is he the keeper of the winds?
3. Where do the names Alpha, Beta, Gamma, Delta, Epsilon, etc. come from?
4. About how long had Homer and Dory been gone for at this point?
5. Why do the kids say that Homer’s story isn’t finished?
6. Why do you think Aeolus gave them a bag of westward wind and told them not to open it?

• Page 97 - dismal
• Page 98 - infernal
• Page 101 - strode

Chapter 12 - Skeletons in the Closet
1. Why did they not make it to Ithaca?
2. Why do you think someone would open the bag?
3. What had fish heard about the rocky island?
4. What do you think of the girl on the island?
5. What happened to the ships?
6. How many ships are left?

• Page 111 - muster
• Page 112 - initiative
• Page 113 - cove
• Page 113 - cannibal
• Page 113 - urban legend
• Page 115 - century
• Page 117 - squelched

Chapter 13 - Cheeseburger in Paradise
• Page 120 - River Styx
• Page 120 - Elysian Fields

Chapter 14 - Going Porcine
1. What rotation is the hourglass on? In reality how long had they been at sea?
2. Based off of the way characters in the book get their nicknames, what would your nickname be?
3. Where do you think the pigs came from?
4. What do you think Hermes is going to do?

• Page 122 - porcine

Chapter 15 - Strange Brew
1. What do you think the title means?
2. Where were Homer and Dory?
3. How long have they been gone in their time? In his mom’s time?
4. Why did Hermes send them back?

Chapter 16 - Standing on the Beach
1. What plan do you think Odysseus and Hermes came up with?
2. Where are they headed when they travel west?
3. What do you think will happen in there?

Chapter 17 - It’s the Edge of the World As We Know It
1. What do you think the Underworld is like?
2. Do you think their surroundings had anything to do with their mood?
3. What secrets do you think Dory is afraid of?

• Page 145 - brimstone
• Page 147 - sullen

Chapter 18 - Two Tickets for Paradise
1. Why did Odysseus give Charon coins?
2. Where do you think the black blood came from?
3. How are Ajax and Dory connected?

• Page 157 - churning
• Page 158 - sorrow

Chapter 19 - Same Song, Second Verse
1. What do you think Dory’s tattoo is?
2. Which is worse, an itchy sweater or a wet sock?

• Page 165 - fodder

Chapter 20 - Siren’s Song
1. What do you think the Siren’s mean by “Look to the seal. The seal is the answer. The seal will set her free.”?

Chapter 21 - Don’t Stop Believing
1. Can you have two monsters? Do you believe Homer?

• Page 183 - spewing
• Page 183 - bow (of a ship)
• Page 183 - averting

Chapter 22 - The Sad Parts
1. How do you handle the sad parts?

Chapter 23 - Warnings of the Dead
1. Do you think someone will eat the cattle?
2. What do you think will happen to them?

• Page 189 - swiveled
• Page 189 - periphery
• Page 189 - mutiny
• Page 190 - irrational
• Page 191 - lunacy

Chapter 24 - Peaches and Cream
1. Why was it a big lesson for Odysseus to learn for them to praise Helios?
2. Do you think the golden cattle make golden milk? Why or why not?
3. Do you think they guys know that Dory is a girl?

• Page 192 - basked
• Page 196 - mayhem

Chapter 25 - Walking on Sunshine
1. Why is Odysseus saying it is Zeus’ doing?
2. What do you think they should do to get home?
3. Do you blame Dory for what she did?
4. Why do you think Eurylochus said it was Dory’s fault?

• Page 200 - intuition
• Page 202 - scavenging
• Page 208 - forebode

Chapter 26 - Spin Me Right Round
1. Why is dialogue important?
2. Will they get out of the monster? How?

• Page 212 - adrenaline
• Page 214 - careened

Chapter 27 - Greek Letters
• Page 216 - briny
• Page 216 - frothing

Chapter 28 - A Heroic Divergence
1. What do you think Homer and Dory should do to get Odysseus off the island?

• Page 218 - divergence
• Page 223 - scampered
• Page 223 - pique
• Page 226 - proactive

Chapter 29 - A Coconut Owl
1. Why do they think making an offering to Athena will help?
2. Why an owl?
3. How could Odysseus evade Poseidon?

• Page 231 - evade

Chapter 30 - Blinded by the Light
1. Do you think Homer will get his sight back?

Chapter 31 - Lost But Not Forgotten
1. What do you think happened to the scroll? Will they find it?

• Page 236 - quivering

Chapter 32 - Tales of Brave Ulysses
1. Dory talks about going home. Do you think she changed her mind? Why?

• Page 247 - commentary
• Page 247 - hippikon
• Page 247 - stadion
• Page 247 - plethron
• Page 247 - milion
• Page 248 - yammering
• Page 250 - amphitheater
• Page 253 - fervor

Chapter 33 - A Farewell to Kings
1. What lesson did Odysseus finally learn?
2. How did Homer and Dory get home?

• Page 256 - lunacy

Chapter 34 - The Mark Is the Secret

Chapter 35 - This Is the End
1. What’s next for Homer and Dory?