About
On the Midwinter Day that is his eleventh birthday, Will Stanton discovers a special gift — that he is destined to seek the six magical Signs of Light. He is the last of the Old Ones, immortals dedicated to keeping the world from domination by the forces of evil, the Dark. And for the twelve days of Christmas, while the Dark is rising, life for Will is full of wonder, terror, and delight.
Read one section at a time, then discuss the questions to review understanding. These questions are a starting place for conversation, not a complete test of the chapter.
Part One · Chapter 1
Comprehension questions
Describe the Walker.
Page 8 — A hunched over little old man that Will saw scuttle behind a tree
8
What birthday present did Mr. Dawson give Will and what were his instructions?
Page 9 — An iron ring quartered with a cross; to always have it with him and to put it on his belt loop; to keep it safe and not talk about it; he’ll want to have it after the snow comes
9
What happened to the radio when Will went close to it?
Page 14 — It would go crazy with static and erupt into high pitched screeches
14
What had Will found amongst the snow piled in his room?
Page 23 — A rook feather
23
Part One · Chapter 2
Comprehension questions
What did Will hear and see when he first awoke on his birthday?
Page 24 — Music; the country around his home had turned to a forest
24
Describe the man Will saw getting his horse shod.
Page 29 — his horse was black as midnight, he had red brownish hair, bright blue eyes with a different accent than Will’s, tall, wore a long black cloak, he knew Will’s name and that it was his 11th birthday,
29
Why didn’t Will ride the white mare?
Page 33 — He felt like he needed to find the Walker alone
33
Why was Will in danger and what saved him?
Page 37 — He had left the road through Hunter’s Comb and the Rider was going to attack him; the white stallion
37
Part One · Chapter 3
Comprehension questions
What was inside the two huge wooden doors?
Page 40 — A castle with a woman and man inside waiting for Will
40
What’s the gift Will possesses?
Page 45 — The power of the Old Ones; magic
45
What’s Will’s quest?
Page 51 — To find and guard the 6 great signs of Light made by the Old Ones
51
When would Will see Merriman again?
Page 66 — After Will has gotten the sign from the Walker
66
Part One · Chapter 4
Comprehension questions
What happens to the iron attached to Will’s belt when there’s evil close by?
Page 70 — It turns so cold it burns
70
How many children are in Will’s family?
Page 72 — 9
72
What did Maggie want from Will?
Page 79 — The sign he’d just gotten from the Walker
79
Who saved Will and stopped Maggie from taking the signs?
Page 81 — Merriman Lyon
81
Part 2 · Chapter 5
Comprehension questions
What did Old George give to Will’s family and why?
Page 93 — A bunch of holly with berries; he told Will to put it over a window or door and it will protect him from the Dark
93
Why didn’t Farmer Dawson carve a “W” for Will?
Page 97 — Names are a power the Dark could use against him, so he carved a circle with the cross instead
97
Who was acting as Miss Greythorne’s butler?
Page 103 — Merriman
103
Where did Merriman take Will after the others in the room were caught in time?
Page 107 — To the hillside with the big wooden doors
107
Part 2 · Chapter 6
Comprehension questions
Why do the Old Ones use Rowan for the wood of the third sign?
Page 114 — The Dark doesn’t like it
114
When can Will receive the third sign?
Page 115 — After he’s finished with his Learning
115
What’s Hawkin’s and Merriman’s relationship?
Page 119 — Merriman took Hawkin in as a boy when his parents died and made him his foster son and liege; Merriman is his lord and trusts him greatly
119
What language is the Book of Gramarye written in and what language do Will and Merriman converse in?
Page 123 — the Old Speech
123
Part 2 · Chapter 7
Comprehension questions
Name three things Will learned as he read the Book of Gramarye?
Page 125 — He learned of the sky, water and wind; spells for all of those; the history of the Old Ones
125
How did Will feel after learning from the book?
Page 130 — Weighed down and melancholy
130
Why was Hawkin going to be betray Merriman and the Old Ones?
Page 137 — Maggie told him that Merriman doesn’t love him, that Merriman used Hawkin and put him in danger, and would have let him die
137
How did Will protect Merriman, Paul, and himself from the Rider and Maggie?
Page 146 — He threw up a wall of resistance around them and yelled their names out loud
146
Part 2 · Chapter 8
Comprehension questions
Why did Stephen send Will’s present to him for his birthday and Christmas present combined?
Page 156 — An old man who named himself as an Old One told him to
156
Who came to visit unexpectedly on Christmas morning?
Page 160 — The Black Rider
160
How did Will defeat the dark after the Christmas service in the church?
Page 176 — He held up the three signs
176
What ceremony did Merriman take Will to see?
Page 190 — The Lady coming back to life
190
Part 3 · Chapter 9
Comprehension questions
Why was the town gathering at the Manor?
Page 200 — Supplies were going to be dropped on the Manor property and it looked like the storm was going to get worse that night, so everyone gathered for safety, comfort and food
200
Why didn’t Will’s father want to go to the Manor when Merriman first mentioned it?
Page 203 — He thought they were safe as they were in their own home; he didn’t want to crowd the Manor and take their supplies
203
Who did Will see when he stared at the fire and what did she tell him?
Page 211 — The Lady; that he needed to break the power of the cold with the Sign of Fire
211
Who’s the Walker?
Page 221 — Hawkin, Merriman’s liege
221
Part 3 · Chapter 10
Comprehension questions
Did Hawkin turn from the Dark and turn to the Light?
Page 224 — no
224
Why is the Dark able to come into the Manor?
Page 226 — The Walker had invited it in
226
How was Will able to get the Sign of Fire?
Page 230 — The Doctor gave the Walker a sedative and made him sleep which stopped the Dark’s way into the home. The Old Ones grabbed the candles lit by the Walker with the power of the Dark and put them into the candle holder in the great hall with the Lady. The blue fire of the Dark turned vermillion red and Will’s fire from his candle then turned into a flower in the shape of the quartered sign
230
How had the Dark injured Will’s mother?
Page 235 — The large clap of thunder they all heard startled his mom at the top of the stairs and made her fall down, falling unconscious
235
Part 3 · Chapter 11
Comprehension questions
How did Will get separated from Paul when they were looking for Mary?
Page 237 — The rooks flew close around them and drove them away from each other
237
What were Merriman and Farmer Dawson doing at the Manor while Old George and Will were out in the storm?
Page 243 — keeping everyone busy at the Manor so Will and George could work
243
How did Will travel in the storm to his place of testing?
Page 247 — The white horse
247
How did Will save Mary from the Dark forever?
Page 261 — He didn’t give the signs that he had obtained to the Black Rider and then retrieved the 6th sign, so he had all of the signs
261
Part 3 · Chapter 12
Comprehension questions
Where did the white mare take Merriman and Will and why?
Page 266 — The Great Park; the horse was needed for the Hunt
266
How did the ship come out of the ground that held the dead king and made the head of the Hunter?
Page 268 — The stag head that Will got from his brother for his birthday and Christmas
268
Who did Herne call when he sounded like a hunting horn?
Page 271 — A pack of ghostly white hounds with red eyes and ears
271
What did Herne hunt?
Page 274 — The Dark
274
Part 3 · Chapter 13
Comprehension questions
Why was Will anxious to go home?
Page 280 — He thought of his family dealing with the floods
280
Who did the little procession of boys carry to the smithy on a bier?
Page 283 — The Lady
283
What did the Lady put around Will’s neck?
Page 285 — The necklace made with all the signs
285
What gifts did Miss Greythorne give to Will and Paul?
Page 292 — A small hunting horn and the old flute
292
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