Kensuke's Kingdom novel by Michael Morpurgo

Novel Study by Khadija Sarfraz

BEFORE READING WHOLE CLASS DISCUSSION

1.Predict:
2.TITLE: From the title of the book can you guess what
the story will be about?
Ans: I guess it is …fun….... maybe …friendly …..also.

a)COVER: Look at the cover. What can you see in the

picture? What is the picture telling you about the story?
 Ans: On the cover I can see:
i) desert
ii) forest
iii) boat !

I guess from this cover it is going to be a world tour.

a) BLURB: Read the blurb at the back of the book. Does it

make you want to read the book? Are you curious to know
how the story ends? What do you think will happen?

Ans: The blurb about the author and the book tells me,
it is an adventurous story with serious characters. Also
a lot of effort is put in to search for the job. I want to
read the book. I think they will succeed in this job hunt.

1.CONNECT: Have you ever read any other books by the

author? If so, what do you remember about them? What do his
books have in common?

Ans: Author of this book Is writer of many stories.

This is my first ever novel read. I hope to read more of his novels in
future.
Chapter 1 - Peggy Sue (page 1-16)
In this chapter we learn why Michael wants to tell his story. We
learn about his family, friends and school life. We learn that Michael
disappeared on July 28 1988. We also learn about Michael's family
plan to sail around in their boat called Peggy Sue. We know Michael
has a dog named Stella Artois. We also know he goes to St Joseph
(his dad calls it ‘monkey school’). At school his best friend is Eddie
Dodds. Michael has two other friends - Matt and Bobby. They all
play in a football team called the Mudlarks. On the weekends
Michael has a job at Mr Patel’s corner shop doing paper rounds.
Every Sunday Michael's family go dinghy sailing on the reservoir.
Both Michael's mum and dad work at the brickwork factory.
However they lost their jobs (they were made redundant). Michael’s
dad goes away and tells the family to move to Fareham near
Southampton.
Michaels and his family learn how to sail a boat by Bill Parker (who
Michael's family call Barnacle Bill). Michael's family set sail on
September 10, 1987.
Answer yes or no for the following questions
1.Is the boat Michael sailed in called the Peggy Sue?
Yes yes or no
1.Did Michael disappear on July 28 1988?
yes or no
1.Did the family set sail on September 23 1986?
yes or no no
1.Is Michaels’s dog named Artois Steven?
yes yes or no
1.Was Michael’s best friend Eddie Dodds?
Yes yes or no
1.Did Michael go to St Christopher’s school?
yes or no no
1.Was Michael’s football team called the muddy boys?
yes or no no
1.Did Michael’s family go dinghy sailing on the reservoir on
Sundays?
 Yes yes or no

AFTER CHAPTER 1 : PEGGY SUE

1:Narrative Elements: Which characters are introduced in this chapter?

Ans: Characters

1)Michael – narrator of the story !

2)Michael's mother !
3)Michael's father !
4)Stella Artois - the dog!
5)Michael s grandma
6)Michael's friends Eddie Dodd, Matt and Bobby

2: Point of view: From which point of view is this story written?

a)First–person!
b)Third-person
Ans:
This story is written from a first person point of view.
3 Reflect: Why did Michael decide to tell the story of his disappearance now if it
took place more than 10 years ago?

a)He wants this world to know that Kensuke was a great and good person.
b)Kensuke had told him not to say anything about it until ten years had passed.
c)Kensuke hRead kidnapped the writer and he had been afraid to tell the story,
because of what Kensuke could do to him
d) A & b

4.Reread to clarify; Michael s age when he is telling this story is

a) 12 years old
 b)Nearly 11 years old
c)at least 22 years old !

5. “The brickworks were going to close down.”

Cause and effect: How did the above statement from the letters Michael's
parents received , changed their way of life?

Ans: Michael's parents work for brickworks, close down of the work made them
both jobless.

Compare and Contrast

Michael's parents were living a pleasant life.

The normal happy life they were leading is perturbed completely.

They were now uncertain about their future. They are trying to travel for job;

Michael's father has made Peggy Sue for a world tour.

It might be adventurous but is risky.

Vocabulary:

Make a list of all the descriptive feeling phrases you can find in these
chapters.g. Creeping misery.

lSteaming angry
lSheer joy
lTerrible silence
lScared red jackal
lTail held high
lFierce tears
lStrangely quiet
lBright eyed
lBreathless with excitement
lYacht masts clapping
lDinghy sailing
lParents were more than just parents
What is figurative language?
Figurative language is a way of adding color to speech or writing

through the use of non-literal wording. It's more creative than

simply stating dry facts and can be used for effect to keep your

audience listening or reading. As the words aren't meant to be

taken literally, the reader needs to lean on their existing

knowledge to understand the intended meaning.

For example, compare:

The classroom is an icebox

Ï壱The classroom is cold

In the first example, we know that the classroom isn't literally an

icebox, but we understand it is very cold. The second example is

more accurate and literal, but it doesn't paint such a vivid picture

in the reader's mind

7. Figurative Language: Write the type of figurative language used in the

following chapter 1 excerpt:

Hyperbole

A way of speaking or writing that makes someone or something sound

bigger, better, more etc/ than they are:

Hyperbole is a particular type of exaggeration used for emphasis.

It can help to reinforce a point with intense imagery.

Example:

Ï壱I'm so hungry I could eat a horse

Ï弐I have a million things to do this morning

Ï参My mum will kill me for breaking the glass

Alliteration

The use of the same sound or sounds at the beginning of several

words that are close together.

Alliteration refers to using the same sound at the beginning of

words, repeatedly. It can provide a pulse and give rhythm to your

words.

Examples:

Ï壱Bruce barked by the babbling brook

Ï弐Dunking a delicious donut in your drink is disgusting

Ï参Kate cruelly kicked the kitten

Simile
An expression comparing one thing with another, always including
the word as or like

Simile

You probably remember this one from school. Similes compare

something directly to something else – usually, something that

isn't similar at all. You can usually spot similes as they use the

words “like” or “as” to make the comparison.

Examples:

Ï壱Her lips are as red as roses

Ï弐Life is like a box of chocolates

Ï参As busy as a bee

Personification

Personification is the attribution of human traits or physical

qualities to something non-human. Giving inanimate objects

human traits makes them more relatable and lifelike.

Examples:

Ï壱She has been kissed by the sun

Ï弐New York is the city that never sleeps

 Ï参The biscuits called to me from the tin

Assigning the qualities of a person to something that is not humane.

“There is someone I want you to meet.A good friend of mine. She is called Peggy
Sue. She's been looking forward to seeing you. I have told her all about you.”

8 Vocabulary - Context Clues:

Define the underlined idiom using context clues and/or dictionary.”We live closer to
all of us, cheek by jowl, and I soon discovered parents were more than just
parents.”

cheek by jowl,thesound stages will sit cheek by jowl with public spaces
and the idea is to pull back the curtain and make people feel part of
the action.
S.No.wordsMeaningsSentences1gibbered to speak rapidly,
inarticulately, and often foolishlyWhat are they gibbering
about now?

Calm down! You sound like a gibbering idiot!2screeched to make

a shrill high-pitched sound resembling a screech
also : to move with such a sound
the car screeched to a stop

3dinghya small boat carried on or towed behind a larger

boat as a tender or a lifeboat
b
: a small sailboat
4reservoira part of an apparatus in which a liquid is held

: supply, storea large reservoir of educated people

5fanaticdisapproving : a person exhibiting excessive

enthusiasm and intense uncritical devotion toward some
controversial matter (as in religion or politics)
a religious fanatic [=extremist]
The fanatics are convinced they are serving a righteous
cause and that all means are justified …
6reveled: to take intense pleasure or satisfactionreveled
in the quiet after everyone had gone7skipper: the master
of a ship

especially : the master of a fishing, small trading, or pleasure

boat

: the captain or first pilot of an airplanewe asked the skipper

how long it would be before we reached port8skimmingas
in flipping
to turn over pages in an idle or cursory manner
I'll just skim through a few styling magazines and see if
something interesting catches my eye9exhilaratingas in
exciting
causing great emotional or mental stimulation
no recording can capture the exhilarating feeling of being
at a live rock concert10savagedas in attacked
to criticize harshly and usually publiclybook reviewers
mercilessly savaged his latest nove11redundant
characterized by similarity or repetition
buildings
a group of particularly redundant brick
12creepingdeveloping or advancing by slow imperceptible
degrees
a period of creeping inflation
13miserya state of suffering and want that is the result of
poverty or afflictionWar brought misery to thousands of
refugees.
14flickinga light sharp jerky stroke or movementa flick of
the wrist

15yachtingthe action, fact, or pastime of racing or cruising

in a yachtWe went yachting over the weekend.
16mudlarksa person who grubs in mud (as in search of
stray bits of coal, iron, rope)
had been out all the morning sailing cork boats and
mudlarking in the marshes17disbandedto break up as an
organization : disperseThey've decided to disband the
club.18lousymiserably poor or inferiorgot lousy grades
19fiercefuriously active or determinedmake a fierce effort
20rufflingo erect in or like a ruff : to cause to rise or
bristlea bird ruffling its feathers
21gleaming a transient appearance of subdued or partly
obscured lightthe gleam of dawn in the east

22dribbleto propel by successive slight taps or bounces with

hand, foot, or stickdribble a basketball

dribble a puck

23lunacyintermittent insanity once believed to be related to

phases of the moonQuitting her job was lunacy.24disdaina
feeling of contempt for someone or something regarded as
unworthy or inferior : scorndisdained to answer their
questions25grittyhaving strong qualities of tough
uncompromising realisma gritty novel26tyrantan absolute
ruler unrestrained by law or constitution Our boss is a real
tyrant.27jowlthe cheek meat of a hog
Not out of exuberant joy, but just to hide my emerging
jowls.28odysseya long wandering or voyage usually marked by
many changes of fortunehis odyssey from rural South to urban
North, from poverty to affluence, from Afro-American folk culture
to a Eurocentric world of books29heaving to cause to swell or
riseFrost had heaved the sidewalk.30sextantan instrument
for measuring angular distances used especially in navigation to
observe altitudes of celestial bodies (as in ascertaining latitude
and longitude) 3132
Chapter two - Water, water everywhere (page 17- 24)

In this chapter we learn about Michael's adventure on the

boat. We learn how he does his school work on the boat.
Michael tells us to keep a journal about the things he sees.
Michael also tells us that water covers two thirds of the
earth's surface. We know that he hopes his mum and dad
forget about his school work. However Michael tells us his
mum and dad have prepared a whole program of work for
him. He lists the subjects and how he has to study for
them. He tells us for Geography and History he has to find
out about every country he has visited as he goes around
the world. For Environmental Studies and Art, Michael has
to note down and draw all the birds he sees, all the
creatures and plants he comes across. We learn that
Michael's mum teaches him Navigation. For English
Michaels has to keep his own version of the Ship's log (a
journal). Michael has to write every few weeks.

Answer the following questions:

Does Michael have to study?

Which subjects does he study?

lGeography and History
lEnvironmental Studies and Art
lEnglish
Complete the table

Subjects Michael learns about What does he has to do

for the subjects?
Geography and History
Environmental Studies and Art
English

AFTER CHAPTER 2 : WATER, WATER, EVERYWHERE

1:Narrative Elements: What is the new setting introduced in this

chapter?

Ans: The new setting is in the peggy sue.

Michael's family decides to sail around the world after his parents are made
redundant from the local brickworks. The family set off with their dog, Stella Artois.

Kensuke's Kingdom is a children's novel by Michael Morpurgo, illustrated by

Michael Foreman. Following a fictionalized version of Morpurgo as he is stranded
on a desert island as a child.

The setting of Kensuke’s Kingdom is primarily a remote, uninhabited

island in the Pacific Ocean. Michael, the protagonist, ends up on this
island after falling overboard during a family sailing trip. The island is
lush and tropical, with dense forests, beaches, and a rich variety of
wildlife. The story also briefly touches on other locations, such as
Michael’s home in England and the various places his family visits during
their sailing adventure.

Chapter 3 - Ship's Log (page 25 - 44)

In this chapter Michael tells us about his adventures and we read Key
points about his adventures in the ship's log. The first entry in the ship's
log is on September 20th. On October 11th Michael tells us he sees
Africa in the distance. The next month on November 16th is when
Michael's family leaves Recife, which is in Brazil. Michael tells us that on
January 1st, Michael was in Cape Town, in Africa. Michael’s dog Stella
Artois on February 7th fell off the boat into the Indian Ocean and had to
be saved. Michael stayed with his uncle in Australia and on May 28th
Michael and his family were back in the sea after staying six weeks in
Australia. The last time Michael wrote in his journal was on July 28th.
Answer the following questions with a yes or no
Did Michael first see Africa on Wednesday 17th July?

Did he visit Brazil?

Did he stay in Australia for 12 weeks?

Did he write in his journal for the last time on august 28th ?
Book summary[edit]
Through the frame story of Michael Morpurgo writing
about his childhood, Kensuke's Kingdom tells the story
of an eleven-year old Michael, whose family decides to
sail around the world after his parents are made
redundant from the local brickworks. The family set off
with their dog, Stella Artois.

Initially their voyage goes well and Michael's family visit

several exciting locations, including Brazil, South Africa
and Australia, where they stay with Michael’s distant
uncle, Uncle John. After leaving Australia however, the
weather becomes perilous, and their yacht is damaged.
Michael's mum is also sick with severe stomach
cramps. On one deceptively calm night, the family dog
Stella Artois appears on deck, and given that she had
previously fallen overboard in the Indian Ocean,
Michael tries to retrieve her. A sudden wind takes hold
of the yacht, and both Michael and Stella are washed
overboard.

Alone and clinging to a football for buoyancy, Michael

is convinced he will drown. Yet the next morning he
finds himself on the shore of a peanut-shaped island
with Stella, both alive and well. Questions as to how he
came to be on the island are soon replaced by how
they are to survive, and despite a thorough search of
their new home, Michael and Stella are unable to find
any food or fresh water. They are saved once again
however, when they find that someone (or something)
has left them water and food near the cave where they
are sheltering. After failing to locate their mysterious
benefactor, Michael decides to build a fire, in order to
stay warm, keep mosquitoes away and potentially
signal his whereabouts to passing ships. It is during
this initial lighting of his fire that Michael finally meets
the man who has been providing him food and water -
Kensuke.

Their first meeting is not a happy one. Kensuke,

despite not being able to speak much English,
immediately sets out rules and boundaries. Michael
may not light a fire, and must stay on his end of the
island, which is the opposite end from Kensuke's own.
Though he does later provide Michael with rush matting
and a sheet to aid his sleep, Kensuke is cold and
distant, leading to Michael growing resentful of his
rules and routines, especially when Kensuke tells him
not to swim in the sea following a tropical storm. After
witnessing a ship pass by the island and trying in vain
to shout to it, Michael defiantly decides that he will
rebend. He eventually spots another ship and goes to
light his beacon. Before it can catch on fire however,
Kensuke appears, eyes full of hurt and rage, destroys
it, and smashes the piece of fireglass Michael used to
create the bonfire. Enraged, Michael charges into the
sea, determined to let Kensuke know that he won't be
bossed around, but is almost killed after being attacked
by a jellyfish.

When Michael wakes up, he is in Kensuke's cave, and

his “captor”, as Michael puts it, becomes his savior as
Kensuke nurses him back to health. Michael and
Kensuke slowly become friends, with Michael teaching
him to speak better English, and Kensuke showing
Michael how he has survived on the island for so long,
through a combination of fishing, collecting fruit and
making rudimentary furniture for his cave. Michael also
meets the orang-utans who appear to be Kensuke's
friends and show a curious interest in him. As their
friendship grows, Kensuke confides more and more in
Michael, eventually telling him his life story: how he
had a wife and son back home in Nagasaki, Japan,
how he trained as a doctor, how he joined the
Japanese navy as a medic in the Second World War
and how his battleship was bombed, which led it to
wreck on the island. Kensuke was also made aware by
listening to American propaganda and soldiers that an
atomic bomb had been dropped on Nagasaki, killing
the entire populace. Kensuke believes his family are
gone, and that his place is now on his island,
Kensuke's Kingdom, with the orang-utans, and with
Michael.

Despite feeling a familial bond with Kensuke, Michael

yearns to see his own family. He writes a message in a
Coke-bottle he had found earlier that day and tosses it
out to sea, but it washes up on the beach and Kensuke
discovers what he has done. After a period of stony
silence, Kensuke acknowledges that Michael has
another family off of the island and agrees to help him
leave. Michael tries to encourage Kensuke to leave as
well, pointing out that he doesn't know for sure if his
wife (Kimi) and son (Michiya) were killed and telling him
of what a modern and developed nation Japan has
become. After being inspired by a night of watching
baby turtles scamper out of their eggs and into the sea,
Kensuke decides that he will be as brave as these
turtles, going out on their own into the unknown, and
leave the island.

Shortly afterwards however, a group of men that

Kensuke brands 'killer men' arrive on the island,
shooting the gibbons which live in the forest and
stealing their babies. Kensuke and Michael rush to
retrieve the orang-utans and find all but one, hiding
them in their cave. Once the 'killer men' have departed,
Kensuke and Michael fear the worst for their missing
orang-utan, but are delighted when he comes bounding
out of the forest, alive and well. As they wait for a ship
to pass the island, Michael becomes concerned that
Kensuke does not want to leave as he worries what will
become of the orang-utans when he is gone.
Eventually they spot a yacht and light a new fire
beacon which they had built together. The yacht turns
out to be the 'Peggy Sue' - the very same yacht that
Michael's family sailed on, approximately a year earlier.
Overjoyed at the prospect of seeing his family again,
Michael rushes to find Kensuke, who indeed reveals
that he will not after so long leave his island, and
makes Michael promise not to tell anyone about him for
ten years (after which he will have died). Holding back
tears, Michael promises, and is rescued by his parents.
 In the epilogue (presented as having been added to the
'second edition' of the novel), Michael publishes his
story after ten years, as Kensuke asked him to do,
titling it Kensuke's Kingdom, and receives a letter from
Michiya, Kensuke's son, who reveals that he and his
mother did indeed avoid the Nagasaki bombing, for
they went to visit their grandparents during the
bombing. Michael and Michiya meet, and Michael
notes that Michiya laughs just like his father did.build
his fire beacon, but in secret, behind some rocks on
“Watch Hill”, a big mountain on his

Summary of chapter-one
Peggy sue
In chapter one Michael tells us about his life, how
his life was perfect in every way but then one day
the brickworks factroy that his father and mother
worked in was stopped. Then his life got miserable.
His best friend Eddie Dods left because his father
found a job down south then it was him and his dog
Stella who is a one ear up and one ear down sheep
dog. Then his father sold the car he bought the boat
and saved the remaining money then one day they
decided that they would go on a world tour .For
Michaels studies they got him all the books he
needed and decided that he would work on the ship
 with his parents , soon they set sail.

Summary of Chapter-two
Water water
everywhere
In chapter-one we learnt that Michael left with his parents on a
world tour. He tells us that the ocean was never away meaning
that there was water everywhere. He never got bored; he would
love living there. He won't be free, he always had fun. They
never regretted bringing Stella. She would help when needed.
He would learn new things for the arts, he would draw. In English
he would write about his day. For geography and history he would
write about what places they had visited. He described that they
were rarely dry because the water was everywhere. The chapter
ends there and the next one begin