78 pages • 2 hours read
Richard PeckThe River Between Us
Fiction | Novel | Middle Grade | Published in 2003A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more. For select classroom titles, we also provide Teaching Guides with discussion and quiz questions to prompt student engagement.
During Reading
Reading Questions & Paired Texts
Reading Check and Short Answer Questions on key points are designed for guided reading assignments, in-class review, formative assessment, quizzes, and more.
CHAPTERS 1-3
Reading Check
1. What type of car do they drive in the frame narrative?
2. Who narrates the story, starting in Chapter 2?
3. Where does Tilly know she can always find Cass when she goes missing?
4. Where does the boat that interrupts the dance party come from?
Short Answer
Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.
1. Why doesn’t Mother go with the family to visit the relatives in Grand Tower?
2. How did Grand Tower get its name?
3. What is unique about Cass, and how does it affect her family?
4. What do readers know about Paw at this point?
Paired Resource
“The Civil War and Emancipation in St. Louis”
- This article covers the unrest that took place in the northern city of St. Louis throughout the Civil War. St. Louis is where Delphine was supposed to go on her voyage from New Orleans.
- This article connects to the theme of The Effects of War.
- Why might Delphine feel that it is unsafe to travel to such a large city during this time?
CHAPTERS 4-8
Reading Check
1. Is Mama for or against slavery?
2. What does Calinda make for dinner the first night?
3. What does Tilly get to borrow from Delphine on their visit to town?
4. Where does Mama put the fine gown Delphine gives her?
5. What is Calinda’s real name?
6. Which side of the war does Noah join?
Short Answer
Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.
1. What are Mama’s warnings to Tilly about their new visitors?
2. What is actually happening when Cass thinks Calinda is hurting Delphine?
3. Where is Paw, and when was he last seen?
4. How does Delphine react when she hears about Cass’s visions?
5. Why don’t the other women in town like Delphine?
Paired Resource
- This article explains the tignon hair wrap that Calinda wears, as well as the law that made them a requirement in New Orleans.
- This article connects to the theme of Pride in Identity and Heritage.
- Why do you think Delphine was so offended that Cass was wearing a tignon?
- This 6-minute video shows different women dancing calinda at a cultural festival.
- This video connects to the theme of Pride in Identity and Heritage.
- Why do you think Calinda (CoinCoin) ends up running offstage in tears after dancing?
CHAPTERS 9-12
Reading Check
1. How old is Delphine?
2. What does the boarding house lady call Delphine?
3. How are Delphine and Calinda related?
Short Answer
Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.
1. Where did Cass get her gift of “sight”?
2. Why does Mama want Tilly specifically to go get Noah, and what does it imply?
3. Why aren’t Delphine’s parents married?
Paired Resource
“TriPod Mythbusters: Quadroon Balls And Plaçage”
- This article discusses the history of the myth of plaçage, which was the supposed origin of Delphine’s heritage.
- This article connects to the theme of Pride in Identity and Heritage.
- Why would it be so important for Delphine to marry a white man?
CHAPTERS 13-15
Reading Check
1. What limb does Noah have amputated?
2. Who does Tilly fall in love with?
3. Who did Mama think was in the coffin?
4. Where did Calinda go after the war?
Short Answer
Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.
1. Why didn’t Delphine nurse Noah back to health?
2. How did Paw die?
3. Who are Dad’s real parents, and why is it kept a secret?
Recommended Next Reads
Across Five Aprils by Irene Hunt
- Jethro Creighton is just nine years old when the Civil War breaks out. This novel follows his experience through the next four years of the Civil War.
- Shared themes include The Effects of War and Pride in Identity and Heritage.
- Shared topics include coming of age during war, slavery, and violence.
- Across Five Aprils on SuperSummary
Two Girls of Gettysburg by Lisa Klein
- When the Civil War starts, cousins Lizzie and Rosanna find themselves pulled to opposite sides of the war as they support their communities.
- Shared themes include The Effects of War and Pride in Identity and Heritage.
- Shared topics include coming of age and women in war.
Reading Questions Answer Key
CHAPTERS 1-3
Reading Check
1. A Model T Ford Touring (Chapter 1)
2. Tilly (Various chapters)
3. The devil’s footstool (Chapter 2)
4. New Orleans (Chapter 3)
Short Answer
1. Howard describes her as “stand-offish” about her husband’s relatives. It is implied that there are still some judgments or tensions that linger from the Civil War. (Chapter 1)
2. It is named after Tower Rock, which is technically on the other side of the river in Missouri. Tilly explains that no one wants to live in a town named after the devil. (Chapter 2)
3. She has visions of death. This unique power makes her family extra protective of her because they worry about her health and safety, as well as how she is perceived in town. (Chapter 2)
4. He is not around and hasn’t been for some time. People judge the family because he is “gone.” (Chapter 3)
CHAPTERS 4-8
Reading Check
1. Against (Chapter 4)
2. Jambalaya (Chapter 5)
3. A bonnet (Chapter 5)
4. The death drawer (Chapter 6)
5. CoinCoin (Chapter 8)
6. The Union (Chapter 8)
Short Answer
1. She has two warnings: The first is that Tilly should not explain anything to Delphine in case she is a southern spy. The second is that she believes Calinda is an enslaved person who doesn’t realize she’s in free territory now. (Chapter 4)
2. Calinda is helping Delphine get into her corsets, a painful process that involves having Calinda put her foot on Delphine’s back and pull tightly. (Chapter 4)
3. He left on the river and is working somewhere. They haven’t seen him in years. (Chapter 5)
4. Delphine is the first person to have a positive reaction. She calls the visions a “gift.” (Chapter 5)
5. They are afraid she is a spy. When Mama turns that down, they admit that they’re worried she’s too pretty and will tempt their husbands. (Chapter 7)
CHAPTERS 9-12
Reading Check
Short Answer
1. She inherited it from their mother, which Tilly only learns about after Noah has left for war. (Chapter 9)
2. She says that she can spare Tilly, but not Noah, implying that Noah is the more important twin in their mother’s eyes. (Chapter 9)
3. A Black woman isn’t allowed to marry a white man according to law. (Chapter 12)
CHAPTERS 13-15
Reading Check
Short Answer
1. She didn’t want him to be well enough to go off to war and die. (Chapter 13)
2. He was fighting in the Confederate Army. He died in the same battle that Noah lost his arm fighting in. (Chapter 14)
3. His real parents are Delphine and Noah. They all pretend that Tilly and William are his parents because Delphine didn’t want him judged for having any amount of Black heritage. (Chapter 15)
Related Titles
By Richard Peck
