My Grandfather’s Shoes
Teacher’s Page
by Matthew Cheney (p. 69)
Plot Summary
Peter, the narrator, becomes friends with Jack who has just moved to the neighborhood. One day when they are bragging
about their grandfathers, Peter mentions that his grandfather was a member of the French Resistance
and died in a Nazi concentration camp. Peter even has the shoes his grandfather wore in the concentration
camp. Jack refuses to believe Peter because Jack’s father has told him that the concentration camps never
existed. Jack’s father claims that the Holocaust was invented by people who dislike Germans. When Peter reports this
conversation to his parents, they forbid him to see Jack again. Jack’s parents tell him to avoid Peter. The two boys disobey
their parents and continue to be friends. One day, when Peter’s parents are out, Jack’s father visits Peter. He asks to see
Peter’s grandfather’s shoes. Peter shows him the shoes, and Jack’s father breaks down. He seems to begin to understand
that the Holocaust did happen. Peter never sees Jack again, though he never forgets him.
Interpreting the Story
1. Peter never comes to fully understand Jack or Jack’s father. Since Peter is the narrator, the reader is left with a number
of questions about Jack’s family. Some questions about Jack’s family are listed in the After You Read section of the
Student’s Page. After the students read the story and complete the reader response writing, invite them to discuss
their ideas about the story. They will probably note that Jack’s father’s father may have been a Nazi. Jack may have
abandoned Peter because his father now demands it or because he is ashamed of himself. This discussion may
move on to larger issues such as the importance of understanding history and the long-term effects of crimes
against humanity.
2. Peter’s grandmother thinks everything tall and sturdy is “autocratic,” (p. 70). Invite the students to discuss what this
tells us about the grandmother. Certainly there is the implication that Peter’s grandmother saw autocratic Nazis in her
homeland.
Responding Creatively to the Story
Invite the students to write a letter from Jack or his father to Peter after Jack’s father’s visit. The letter could explain
what the character now believes about the Holocaust and why Jack is avoiding Peter. The letter could also tell a bit of the
history of the Wagner family, including what happened during World War II. The questions in the After You Read section of the Student’s Page should prove helpful for writing the letter. Students will have to create information about
Jack’s family based on what they know from the story.
Connecting with Cultural Values and Students’ Lives
These questions may guide your students to a deeper understanding of how the story relates to their own lives. The discussion of the story may also be used to foster the positive values of honesty and respect.
1. Jack’s father refuses to believe in the Holocaust. Facing an unpleasant truth about ourselves or our families can be difficult. What could Hermann Wagner do instead of denying the truth?
2. Jack was not even alive during World War II, and yet he suffers from the crimes of his forefathers. He is not allowed to
play with his friend Peter, and he is not allowed to know the truth about history. It may not seem fair, but the effects
of great crimes are felt for generations. Americans, for example, are still suffering from the effects of slavery, even
though the institution of slavery was abolished over 100 years ago. How can Jack best deal with the crimes of his forefathers? What, if anything, does he owe Peter?
3. Both Jack’s parents and Peter’s parents forbid Jack and Peter to play together. Is their response fair or justified? What
might they have done instead?
Guide to Sophomores
18
My Grandfather’s Shoes
My Grandfather’s Shoes
(p. 69)
Name _____________________________ Date _____________
Before You Read
“My Grandfather’s Shoes” refers to several historical events and figures. Before you read the story, read through this list of
terms. Feel free to look back at this list while you read.
French Resistance: During World War II, German soldiers invaded France. The French government cooperated with the
Nazis, but many French people fought a guerrilla war against the Nazis. Those who fought were known as the Resistance.
Concentration Camp: During World War II, German soldiers and officials sent Jews and other minorities to death
camps where conditions were inhumane. Concentration camp victims died of starvation, disease, torture, or were exterminated by poison gas or shooting.
Monet: Claude Monet, 1840-1926, was a French painter and one of the founders of the painting style later called
“Impressionism.”
Seurat: Georges Pierre Seurat, 1859-1891, was also a French painter. He developed the technique called “pointillism,”
which involves using tiny dots of color to create an image.
Wagner: Richard Wagner, 1813-1883, was a German composer. He is famous for writing operas based on German
mythology.
Munch’s The Scream: Edvard Munch, 1863-1944, was a Norwegian artist. His work The Scream depicts an elongated
man with his mouth gaping open in a scream.
After You Read: Reader Response Log
Since Peter, the narrator, never really understands Jack and his father, Hermann, the reader is left with a lot of questions
about the characters. When you finish reading, write for ten minutes or so, on your own paper, about Jack and his
father. You may use the questions below to guide your thinking.
• Why do you think Hermann refuses to believe in the Holocaust?
• Why does Hermann visit Peter?
• What does Hermann mean when he says, “I want to believe—I want to believe in my father, but the world has torn me
apart”?
• Why does Jack abandon Peter’s friendship after his father’s visit?
• Why does Peter keep a picture of Jack in his wallet? What has this friendship meant to Peter?
Connecting with Other Stories
The Diary of Anne Frank is a powerful account of the Frank family’s life in hiding from the Nazis. Eventually the Franks are
discovered and Anne went on to die in a concentration camp. Elsewhere in Sophomores, “My Brother, My Heart” addresses
issues of racism and prejudice.
Guide to Sophomores
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My Grandfather’s Shoes
My Grandfather’s Shoes
(p. 69)
Name _____________________________ Date _____________
Vocabulary from “My Grandfather’s Shoes”
Directions: Based on the way each word in bold below is used in the sentence, write what you think the word means.
Then look up the same word in your dictionary and copy the definition that comes closest to the way the word is used in
the sentence. Finally, write a sentence of your own using the word. Make sure the sentence shows what the word
means. Use a separate sheet of paper.
Example: He doesn’t look like a swashbuckling, machine gun-toting hero. (p. 69)
Definition based on context: brave
Dictionary definition: swashbuckler—a flamboyant swordsman or adventurer
Original sentence: We were awed by his swashbuckling air and his love of adventure.
1. It resides in my mind like a Monet painting, or perhaps a Seurat. (p. 70)
2. There was a massive maple tree at the end of our street, and I remember standing with Jack and admiring its foliage.
(p. 70)
3. My grandmother would say it looked “autocratic,” since everything tall and sturdy and authoritative was, to her
mind, “autocratic.” (p. 70)
4. “He says it’s all a hoax by people who hate Germans.” (p. 72)
5. I was flabbergasted. (p. 72)
6. But if my parents or his parents had gone somewhere, we would gladly trade the sandy, wet haven of the bridge for
the clean, dry comfort of a house. (p. 75)
7. Actually, it was a small cape with many windows, green carpet, and yellow walls. (p. 75)
8. I only saw the interior of the house once, and only for a few minutes, but it so clashed with my preconception that I
have never forgotten it. (p. 75)
9. He ran his tongue along his lips and whispered something inaudible. (p. 77)
Reading Check for “My Grandfather’s Shoes”
Circle the letters of all the correct answers. Some questions may have more than one correct answer.
1. Peter’s grandfather
a. was a French Resistance Fighter
b. died in a concentration camp
c. was a fighter pilot
d. tells Peter stories of the war
3. When Peter’s parents forbid him to see Jack, Peter
a. becomes good friends with Jack
b. never sees Jack again
c. refuses to eat until his parents give in
d. visits his school counselor to discuss the problem
2. Jack’s father visits Peter to
a. tell him to stay away from Jack
b. have dinner with Peter’s family
c. tell him about the war
d. see a pair of shoes
4. At the end of the story, Peter
a. gives his grandfather’s shoes to Jack
b. buries his grandfather’s shoes
c. receives his grandfather’s shoes from his mother
d. wears his grandfather’s shoes
Guide to Sophomores
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My Grandfather’s Shoes
My Grandfather’s Shoes
(p.69)
Name _____________________________ Date _____________
Language Skills in Context: Commas in
Compound Sentences
To be “complete,” a sentence must contain a subject and a verb. When a conjunction such as “and,” “or,” or “but” is
used to combine two complete sentences, writers normally use a comma before the conjunction. When a conjunction is
used to join a complete sentence with an incomplete sentence (missing a subject or verb), no comma is usually required. For
instance, no comma is needed between “damage” and “but” in The storm produced a great deal of coastline damage but
not enough to close the nearby marina.
Insert commas where necessary in the following sentences. Conjunctions are in bold. Use the sentences in the story to
check your work.
1. He was a French Resistance fighter but you could never tell from that grainy black-and-white photo. (p. 69)
2. My grandmother swore to the fact that he killed seventeen German soldiers and saved the lives of, in her words,
“countless, countless citi-senz.” (p. 69)
3. I cut Jack out of the picture and carry only him in my wallet; there is no reason for me to be there, too. (p. 70)
4. There was a massive maple tree at the end of our street and I remember standing with Jack and admiring its foliage.
(p. 70)
5. He had just moved in and in the yard sat a couch and three ladder-back chairs. (p. 71)
6. I stopped my bike and asked, “Whatcha reading?” (p. 71)
7. We were in my house and I told Jack that my grandfather had been a freedom fighter in France and that he died in a
concentration camp. (p. 72)
8. The houses there were spread farther apart than at the center of town and there were fields and clumps of old, withered trees. (p. 74)
Brainteasers for Critical Thinking
1. Peter’s recollections of his summer with Jack are viewed through a lens of gauzy sweetness—the days are clean, soft,
refreshing; even the houses seem content to “sit in their small yard, like bulldogs.” Given the serious and painful core
of this plot, do you feel that the carefree security of Peter’s suburban summer provides a setting that’s “right” for this
piece? How so, or not so?
2. It is said that, generally, “Things are not as they seem.” Grandfather, for example, had tiny feet and looked like an
emaciated bookworm, though in reality he was a brave fighter for the French Resistance. Now take a look at Peter’s
parents. Do their surface lives seem any different from their inner lives? What do you see at both levels?
3. Peter believes his grandfather’s shoes, for all the “misery” they represent, along with the bittersweet memories of his
friendship with Jack, will bring comfort to him in the future. In what thoughts and feelings do you think this comfort
will lie?
Guide to Sophomores
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My Grandfather’s Shoes