A Sea of Nodding Heads (Metaphor)
While speaking to her class about how many days are left until they graduate, Miss Meeks receives in response the collective nods of the entire class. Spinelli writes, "A sea of nodding heads, as always." In this metaphor, Spinelli likens the class's synchronized movement to the sea, as though the simultaneous nods are a wave passing through water.
Like a Fox After a Field Mouse (Simile)
To emphasize Zinkoff's enthusiasm but lack of coordination on the soccer field, Spinelli writes that Zinkoff "zigs and zags after the checkered ball like a fox after a field mouse—except he hardly ever catches up to it." In this simile, Spinelli illustrates the boy's focus on the ball by likening him to a fox chasing after a mouse.
Like Pups of a New Creation (Simile)
At the beginning of the second chapter, Spinelli describes how the young boys in Zinkoff's neighborhood reach a day when they are allowed to roam free, without parental supervision: "Then ... they stand alone on their front steps, blinking and warming in the sun like pups of a new creation." Using the simile "like pups," Spinelli emphasizes the youth of the boys by comparing them to puppies whose eyes have only just opened.
Words Tickle Him Like Fingertips (Simile)
When Zinkoff is overcome with repeated fits of laughter, every funny-sounding made-up word "tickle[s] him like fingertips in the ribs." In this simile, Spinelli illustrates the deep, uncontrollable variety of laughter by likening it to the physically unbearable sensation of fingers tickling ribs.
Jump Like Kangaroos (Simile)
When Zinkoff unwittingly does a header that wins the soccer game for his team, Spinelli writes: "The Titans go wild. They jump like kangaroos." In this simile, Spinelli illustrates the immense joy that comes over the soccer players by likening their celebratory jumping to that of kangaroos, the only large animals to hop as their primary means of travel.
