Five Past Ten

Summary
Tommo Peaceful remarks that he is alone at last and that he needs to remember all
of his eighteen years of life tonight. The narrative then goes back many years, to
when Tommo was a child.

In the past, Tommo is walking to school with his older brother Charlie, and they
are discussing one of the teachers, Mr. Munnings, who often physically disciplines
his students. Tommo is unhappy that their oldest brother, Big Joe, doesn't need to
go to school. Instead, Big Joe spends most of his time sitting in a tree and singing a
song about oranges and lemons.

Tommo hopes that Mother will come running after him so he doesn’t have to
attend school, but she never does. Seeing his brother’s distress, Charlie offers
Tommo a piggyback ride, which makes him feel a bit better despite the fact that he
feels as though this morning is the end of everything.

Tommo sees a dead crow on a fence. Tommo dislikes crows because one of them
recently stole the eggs from a robin’s nest that Tommo had been looking after.

The robins make Tommo think of his father, who has recently died. Tommo
remembers the day of his funeral, when all the members of the family put his
earthly possessions in his casket.

When they arrive at the school, Tommo snaps back to the present. Charlie assures
him that school is not so bad, and the first day really is the hardest.

Mr. Munnings watches the children arrive at the school, and he asks what he has
done to deserve another Peaceful. He then says that he is lord and master at the
schoolhouse, and he lays down a list of strict rules. Tommo is relieved when he is
ushered into Miss McAllister’s class instead of with the rest of the “Tiddlers”
(small children). The bigger children (the “Bigguns”), including Charlie, go into
Mr. Munnings’ classroom.

Miss McAllister seats Tommo next to a girl named Molly and tells him her laces
are untied. Crying, he tells her that he doesn’t know how to tie his laces. Miss
McAllister tells Tommo that Molly will tie his laces, and she does. The color of her
hair reminds Tommo of his father’s horse. Tommo practices tying his laces during
recess until he is finally able to do it, and he notices Molly smiling at him. He can
tell that they will be friends.
Tommo starts to think about his father again. His father used to take Tommo with
him when he went into the forest to attend to his duties, and Tommo would explore
the woods while his father worked.

Tommo finds a dead mouse and buries it under a pile of leaves while his father
chops down a tree. Suddenly, he hears a creaking from the tree above him and
realizes that it’s coming down and will crush him. He is frozen with fear, and his
father pushes him out of the way and is crushed by the tree instead. Tommo shakes
him and shouts, but he does not wake up.

Tommo, Mother, Big Joe, and Charlie sit at the front pew during the funeral. A
swallow flies throughout the church during the ceremony, and Tommo thinks that
it must be his father’s spirit because his father once said he’d like to come back as
a bird in his next life. Big Joe opens the door to the church and the swallow flies
out.

The Colonel, the man that Tommo’s father worked for, gives a speech about what
a good worker Tommo’s father was. He was never late for work during all his
thirty years as a forester, and his family worked for the Colonel’s family for five
generations. Tommo thinks of the rude names that his father used to call the
Colonel, such as “silly old fart” or “mad old duffer.”

The family buries Tommo’s father, and Tommo wishes that the priest would stop
talking so that Father can hear the birdsong. The family walks home as Tommo
reflects on his dark secret—he was the one who killed his father.
Questions

1) What does it mean when Tommo says his ‘heart is heavy’?

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2) Where are the boys going? Why is it an important occasion?

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3) Why does the narrator, Thomas peaceful, change tense when talking about
his father’s death?

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4) How does Charlie make Tommo feel on his first day of school?

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5) How would you describe Mr Munnings, using your own words?

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6) Look at the first paragraph. What do you think this means?

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7) Tommo tells us about his first day at school. Who was with him? Describe
what happened that day.

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8) What did Tommo see hanging on the fence?

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9) Why is Tommo not sorry for him?

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10) Charlie is a really good big brother to Tommo. True or False? Give
examples to support your answer.

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11) How does Molly show kindness to Tommo?

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12) Describe the accident.

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13) Who is the Colonel? Is he a kind person?

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14) Big Joe seems different. Give some examples of this.

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15) What did Tommo’s father work at?

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16) List three good things that the Colonel says about James Peaceful at
his funeral.

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17) How would you describe the character of Charlie after reading this
chapter? Do you like him? Why?

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18) Why do you think Tommo says ’I have killed my own father’? Do
you think he is right?

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