Class 9 English Chapter 8 Previous Year Questions - A House is not a Home

Very Short Answer Type Questions 

Q1: What were the things the narrator’s mother trying to save from the fire?
Ans: The narrator’s mother was trying to save important documents, pictures, and letters of his father to keep his memories.

Q2: Who stopped the narrator from entering the house after his mother?
Ans: A fireman stopped the narrator from entering the house after his mother.

Q3: What was done with the narrator?
Ans: The narrator was wrapped in a blanket and made to sit inside the car by a fireman.

Q4: What had the fireman put on the narrator’s mother?
Ans: The fireman put an oxygen mask on the narrator’s mother.

Q5: What happened to the narrator’s mother?
Ans: She was caught in the fire and had inhaled a little smoke.

Q6: "Does this belong to you?" – Who was the speaker, and what was the thing the speaker was talking about?
Ans: Here, a woman was offering the narrator's lost pet cat to him. 

Short Answer Type Questions 

Q1. What does the author notice one Sunday afternoon? What is his mother’s reaction? What does she do?
Ans. One Sunday afternoon, the author smelled something strange and noticed smoke pouring in through the seams of the ceiling of his house. His mother reacted promptly and the two of them ran out into the front yard. However, she ran back into the house and brought out a small metal box full of important documents.

Q2. What happened to the narrator’s mother when she had run into the burning house?
Ans. The author’s mother inhaled a little smoke when she ran into the burning house. She was rescued by the firemen who put an oxygen mask on her after bringing her out. However, she was fine soon.

Q3. How did Zan’s mother save important documents from the burning house?
Ans. Zan’s mother saved important documents from the burning house by courageously rushing inside the house on fire and bringing out a small metal box that contained those documents. She thus risked her life but eventually succeeded in her mission.

Q4. Why did Zan’s mother run back into the house after having saved the important documents?
Or
“I knew what she was after”. Why does Zan make this observation?
Ans. Zan’s mother ran back to save the pictures and letters of his father who had died when Zan was young. Zan knew that these memories of her husband were extremely precious for her and she did not want them to go up in flames.

Q5. The author’s heart ached for his cat but there was no time to grieve. Why? The author felt pain at the loss of his cat but life had to move on.
Ans. He could not grieve as a new place to live had to be found and new clothes had to be bought for school.

Q6. Why did Zan’s mother have to borrow money from his grandparents?
Ans. Zan’s mother had to borrow money from his grandparents because her credit cards, cash and even identification that was needed to draw money from the bank had got burnt up in the fire. She had to rent a new place, buy new clothes for Zan and resettle quickly. She did not have time to wait for the recovery of her lost documents till then.

Q.7. Why did the narrator go over to his burnt house even though they had rented an apartment nearby?
Ans. The narrator went over to his burnt house even though they had rented an apartment nearby because he hoped that his cat would be found somewhere. He would watch the clearing away of the debris expecting to see his cat.

Q8. What thoughts crossed Zan’s mind when he missed his cat?
Ans. Zan thought of his cat as the vulnerable little kitten who would tag along after him in the morning. He thought of how she would climb up his robe and crawl into his pocket to fall sleep.

Q9. Where was the cat after the fire? Who brings it back and how?
Or
How did Zan get back his beloved cat?
Ans. The cat had been so freaked by the fire that she had run away over a mile away. A woman brings her back by locating the owners through different sources because the phone number etched on the cat’s collar could not be reached as it had been disconnected due to the fire.

Q10. How did the author’s feelings of loss and tragedy seem to diminish?
Ans.  The author felt gratitude for life, his new friends, the kindness of the woman who had rescued his cat and certainly for the life of his beautiful cat. This gratitude diminished his feelings of loss and tragedy.

Q11. What problem does the author face when he moves to a new school?
Ans. In the junior school,l he was the head boy of his class. He was very close to all the teachers. He enjoyed the seniority. But when he joins a new school at senior level, he faces many problems. This school was twice as big as his old school. He felt very isolated. 

Q12. When the narrator’s house was on fire, how did his mother try to save the threads of life?
Ans. When the fierce fire broke out in the narrator’s house, his mother ran to the house repeatedly. She had to save the threads of life. She ran to the house to collect important documents. She also tried to save the pictures of her husband and letters because they were the precious gifts of time for her.

Q13. How did the author get rid of his feelings of loss and tragedy?
Ans. His new friends in the new school and the kindness of the lady, who returned his cat, helped the author in getting rid of his feelings of loss and tragedy. He regained confidence. Now he wanted to live happily in his new home. 

Long Answer Type Questions 

Q3: What is the meaning of “My cat was back and so was I”? Had the author gone anywhere? Why does he say that he is also back?
Ans: Zan’s cat was brought back home after more than a month of absence. She had run away due to fear of fire and could not be brought back early as her collar had those phone numbers that had got disconnected due to the fire. 

Zan too was back to his normal cheerful life. His absence was emotional, unlike the physical absence of his cat. Zan says that he is also back since he wants to point out the return of his faith in the goodness of life. He had drifted away from joys of friendship and comfort of familiarity on moving to a new school. By the time his cat returned, his gratitude for life had also returned in the company of new friends.

Q6: Suppose you are the woman who rescued Zan’s cat. Write a diary entry in about 150 words describing how you found the cat, what efforts you had to make to trace its home, and how happy you felt after handing over the cat to its rightful owner.

Ans:
(Day & date)
(Time)
Dear Diary
A month ago, I found a beautiful red tabby cat strolling in my porch. The cat was healthy and clean. Her appearance indicated that she was a much loved and adored pet. I moved closer to the scared little thing and saw that it had a collar on it. I noted down the phone number etched on its collar and took the cat in before calling up its owners.
I fed milk and biscuits to the cute furry thing and she purred gently as if expressing gratitude for having rescued her. Then I put an old rug in a basket and made it her new comfortable home.
I sat down by the fire and tried to call the number of its owners.
Unfortunately, the number seemed out of order. Then I searched the telephone directory to locate the address of the owners given against the phone number. Somehow, the directory did not have the complete address but the name of the locality and the city mentioned therein helped me reach the right place. On reaching there, I asked a few locals who guided me to a house under construction.
Lo and behold! I had reached the correct place. I handed over the cat to Zan, its rightful owner. The expression of joy, relief and gratitude on this young boy’s face made my day. I was elated to see his friends jumping around and hugging each other. It was a wonderful day for me because God had given me the opportunity to bring joy to a young boy, his mother and his friends. Tonight I go to bed with gratitude to God for choosing me as an instrument of His goodwill.
Good night!
Mrs. Hillary G. Thomas

Q8: Have any of your classmates/schoolmates had an experience like the one described in the story where they needed help? Describe how they were helped.
Ans: Yes, two years ago, my friend Raju visited the market to buy some household things. It was a crowded market and a shop caught fire due to a short circuit. The panic-stricken people rushed here and there. 

My friend too was trying to leave that place. He, with three people, got himself locked in a nearby shop to escape from the smoke. But the shop was filled with smoke within a little span of time. 

They felt suffocated by the fumes. They considered that their end was near. In the meantime, a team of an NGO broke open the shutter and took them out of the shop.

They were hospitalised quickly. I could get my friend back because of the team and the grace of God.

Q12: Zan’s life, one month after the fire incident, was happier than his earlier life. Discuss a few reasons for this change.
Ans: Following are the reasons why Zan's life changed one month after the fire incident:

1.  Support from schoolmates: After the fire incident, Zan's schoolmates come forward to help him by providing him with essential items such as clothes, books, and stationery. This support makes Zan feel cared for and less alone in his time of need.
2. Finding his lost cat: Zan's happiness increases when a neighbor helps him find his lost cat. The reunion with his beloved pet brings him comfort and a sense of normalcy amidst the chaos of his life.
3. Overcoming insecurities: As Zan receives support and affection from those around him, he begins to overcome his insecurities and opens up to others. This helps him form new friendships and feel more confident in himself.
4. Growth and resilience: The fire incident forces Zan to face adversity and grow as a person. He becomes more resilient and learns to adapt to the challenges in his life, ultimately leading to increased happiness.