The Ocean at the End of the Lane

While visiting an alternate world with Lettie, the narrator makes a mistake, and an evil entity gets into his world through his foot. What is the mistake? How does the entity sneak into the boy’s life? Is this the boy’s fault or someone else’s? Explain with evidence from the text.

List three clues in the story that imply the Hempstocks aren’t who they appear to be, bar them literally saying so. What do those clues suggest they are? 

How do the narrator, his father, and Ursula deal with their own loneliness? Explain with evidence from the text.

The narrator’s father never assaults him until one evening, when he tries to drown him. Why does the father do this? Who gains from his action, and why?

What does Ursula want from humans? How does she try to get it?

What do the hunger birds want that the boy has? What does the narrator believe will resolve this issue? What happens instead? Why is there a difference between the two stories of the narrator’s fate?

Lettie says the pond behind her house is an ocean, and the narrator disbelieves her until he falls into it. Briefly describe what he experiences in the pond, and explain why Lettie is right about it.

Old Mrs. Hempstock says her daughter, Ginnie, is actually a part of her. Using the idea of the Triple Goddess, explain why Old Mrs. Hempstock always wants a full moon in the night sky to shine on the family farm.