1. Who's the author? Investigate the author's biography.

Frank O’Connor, pseudonym of Michael O’Donovan, (born 1903, Cork, County Cork,
Ireland—died March 10, 1966, Dublin), Irish playwright, novelist, and short-story
writer who, as a critic and as a translator of Gaelic works from the 9th to the 20th
century, served as an interpreter of Irish life and literature to the English-speaking
world.

Raised in poverty, a childhood he recounted in An Only Child (1961), O’Connor

received little formal education before going to work as a librarian in Cork and later
in Dublin. As a young man, he was briefly imprisoned for his activities with the Irish
Republican Army. O’Connor served as a director of the Abbey Theatre, Dublin, in the
1930s, collaborating on many of its productions. During World War II he was a
broadcaster for the British Ministry of Information in London. He won popularity in
the United States for his short stories, which appeared in The New Yorker magazine
from 1945 to 1961, and he was a visiting professor at several American universities in
the 1950s.

2. What's the setting of the story? Mention the country, town, place and period of
time if it's possible. Describe the place and historical background of the story.
What do you know about World War 1?

Settings, it took place in their house on Christmas December 25, Ireland, 1 World War,

3. Why is the setting so important?

Because it tells you where the story is taking place. It gives you’re a better understanding
of the story. You can interpretate the characters mood and behavior and by knowing the
settings you can identify the environment and society in which the author is telling the
story.

4. Who's the narrator? From whose point of view the story is told? What does the
author want to achieve with that?

The narrator is Larry, and the story is telling it in first person. The author wants to tell us
how was the life in those times.

5. Who is the main character? How do you know?

The main character is Larry because he is the one telling the story and from his point of
view.
 6. Describe and visualize all the characters. 

Larry is immature even though he is the eldest of the two, he prefers to play before do
his homework.

Sunny is more studious, he does what his mother tells him to do.

Mother does not work, but takes care of the children and te house.

Father is a soldier.

7. Do the boys believe in Santa Claus in the beginning?

Yes, they do.

8. Why wasn't Mother talking to Larry? What did he do?

Because he did not pay attention to her, she wanted him to do his lessons first before
play, but he never listen to her,

9. Who the boys wanted to become in the future?

Larry wanted to be a soldier and Sunny a clerk.

10. Why Larry was so nervous before Christmas?

Because he was afraid of losing his railway due to he was not good a t school.

11. How both of the parents were preparing for Christmas?

The mother was waiting to get the money from his father to have everything ready for
Christmas, but father did not care about it and did not gave her enough money for the
dinner and presents.

12. Why did Mother scald Father? What did he do?

Because father did not come to dinner and was drunk. So, he did not car about
Christmas or the family.

13. What kind of father is he? Explain.

This father is the type of father that does not care about the family, he just care about
himself, he does not feel like he has responsibility as a family guy.
14. What kind of gifts did the boys receive?

Sunny received a popgun and Larry books, a pen and pencil and a bag of sweet

15. What did Larry do? Why?

He switched the gifts because he thought that Sunny should receive the books since he
is the one that spell better. Also, he thought that Santa Clous got confused when he was
leaving the presents.

16. What was Mother's reaction after she saw Larry the next morning? Why?

The mother was really sad and disappointed because Larry swapped gift when his
brother was sleeping.

17. What did Father do?

Nothing, he just said that it is Christmas morning.

18. Why did Larry burst crying?

Because in that moment he recognized that his mother was doing her best to making
him become a good person in the future.

19. What did he understand?

He understood his father is a real cruel man, his father does not care about him, that he
is a drunker, that he makes his mother suffer a lot.

20. How do we know that he had changed after that?

Because at the beginning of the history it says that until he was nine or ten, he was never
much good at school. So, his mother was counting on him to become a good student.
He became mature.

21. What do you think happens in the family after that morning?

Larry learned the lesson that he needs to study to be a better person in life. He is very
sorry for what he did, he say sorry to his family his mother forgives him.

22. What's the message of this story?

In this story we can appreciate the moment in which a child mature early we were
expecting. The message here is that you learn from your mistake and that makes your be
more mature in life. When hurst someone you love that is the moment in which you
mature.