The Hatchers’ year in Princeton comes to its close, and the book gathers up its threads. There is one last scare when Uncle Feather goes missing — the beloved myna bird vanishes, and the family hunts high and low before he is happily found. Then comes a moment everyone has been waiting for: baby Tootsie says her very first word. After all the fuss and love poured over her, the word she chooses is a perfect, comic surprise: “yuck!” With Dad’s book-writing year finished, the family faces a big decision: stay in Princeton or move back to New York City. They put it to a vote, and the answer is New York — home. Peter, who once dreaded leaving the city, has grown so much that he can look back on the whole Princeton year with fondness, even as he looks forward to going home. Fudge is no longer the baby; Peter is a surer, kinder big brother; and the Hatchers, a little bigger and a little wiser, are ready for whatever comes next.
| Focus | What It Means |
|---|---|
| Resolution | The story’s worries settled and its threads tied up |
| Theme Resolved | A dreaded change became a year worth treasuring |
| Character Growth | Peter transformed into a surer, kinder big brother |
| Pages | Key Events |
|---|---|
| pp. 146–166 | Uncle Feather goes missing and is found; baby Tootsie says her first word — ‘yuck’; and, with Dad’s writing year over, the family votes to move back to New York. Peter, who once dreaded it all, looks back on Princeton with fondness and heads home a wiser, kinder big brother |
There are no wrong answers here — just think, guess, and talk:
- The family decides where to live by taking a vote. Why is it meaningful that even the children get a say in such a big choice?
- Peter began the book dreading everything and ends it looking back fondly. What does his change show about facing things we don’t want to do?
- Looking back over the whole book — the new baby, the move, kindergarten, Uncle Feather, the scare — which part changed Peter the most, and why?
This is an independent study guide created by Garden Heights Academy to support reading comprehension and literary analysis. It contains original analysis questions and does not reproduce any text from the novel. Superfudge is a work by Judy Blume. This guide is not affiliated with, authorized by, or endorsed by the author or any associated rights holder.
A single year can change a child a great deal, because childhood is a time of fast growth in both body and mind. Over the months of this story, Peter meets a new sibling, moves to a new town, starts a new school, and lives through a frightening scare — and each experience quietly stretches him. Psychologists describe development as the slow gathering of such moments; no one grows up in a day, but many small challenges, met one by one, add up. This is why Peter at the end is not quite the boy he was at the start; the year has taught him patience, courage, and a wider sense of family. Looking back across a whole story lets a reader measure that growth and see how much a person can change . The result is disciplined reading with greater clarity . The result is disciplined reading with greater clarity.
When a book ends, a strong reader zooms out to see the whole journey rather than just the final scene. This means comparing the beginning to the end and asking what shifted — in the characters, the family, and your own understanding . Peter began the story dreading a new baby and a big move; by the close, both have become part of a life he can handle. Naming that arc, from where a character started to where he arrived, reveals the story’s deeper point. Blume trusts you to hold the early chapters in mind so the ending means something. Reading for the whole journey is how you turn a series of events into a story with shape, and it is the skill that makes a last page feel truly earned . The final turn completes the part’s resolution . The final turn completes the part’s resolution.
- Baby Tootsie says her first word: ‘yuck!’
- Peter looks back on the year with fondness.
- The family faces a big decision about where to live.
- They take a vote and choose to move back home.
- Uncle Feather goes missing, then is found.
The resolution is the part of a story where the main problems settle and loose threads are tied, letting the reader feel the tale is complete. A good resolution does more than stop the action; it shows how the characters have changed and quietly restates the story’s theme . As Superfudge closes, the family’s year of change comes to rest, and the book’s big idea — that a real home is made of people, not places — shines through without ever being announced. Blume lets the ending prove what the whole book has been arguing. When you reach a story’s resolution, ask what the final scene says about the theme, because a skillful ending always sends you back through the book to deepen your understanding . The technique leaves a lasting emotional resonance . The technique leaves a lasting emotional resonance.
At the start of the book, Peter met the news of a new baby with dread, sure it would ruin everything he loved. By the end, he has weathered a sibling, a move, a new school, and a real scare — and come out steadier and kinder. This is the heart of growing up: not that troubles vanish, but that we grow big enough to carry them. Psychologists call this maturing, the slow trade of a smaller, more fearful self for a larger, more capable one. Peter still has his sharp tongue and his eye-rolls, yet underneath he has stretched. As you close the book, weigh how much of his growth came from the events themselves, and how much came from his own quiet choice to adapt . Reflection turns the episode into practical wisdom . Reflection turns the episode into practical wisdom.
What makes a house into a home? A home is not really about the building — the number of rooms, or whether it stands in a busy city or a quiet town. A home is about the people inside it and the way they belong to one another. That is why the same family can feel at home in very different places, and why moving, though hard, does not break a family apart. Some families make big choices together by talking them through and even taking a vote, so that everyone — including the children — has a say. Sharing decisions this way helps each person feel valued and part of the whole. Home is also built from ordinary moments: meals together, inside jokes, a baby’s first word, the relief of finding a lost pet. These small shared experiences weave people together over time. Families are rarely tidy or perfect; they are noisy, messy, and full of squabbles — and they are precious for exactly that reason. And when a family has grown a little wiser together, as the Hatchers have, they can carry that feeling of home with them wherever they go next.
“It is those small, shared moments, far more than any building, that quietly turn a group of people into a family.”
This writing task is optional and is not part of your auto-graded score. The feedback below checks only the basics — length, spelling, and grammar — not whether your ideas are right or wrong. It is meant for classroom discussion and creative practice, so feel free to use your imagination!
Writing Task — Part 8 “What Makes a Home”
The Hatchers decide that home is wherever the family is. Write about what makes a place feel like home to you — the people, the moments, the little things. Or write about the whole Peter-and-Fudge story: what will you remember most? Write at least 40 words.
No right or wrong — close the screen and tell someone nearby the whole story of Peter, Fudge, Tootsie, and the year in Princeton. Can’t find anyone? Tell yourself out loud. The moment you teach it, you truly understand it.
Mini Report Card · the whole journey, part by part
| Part | What Happened | Big Idea |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Peter learns a new baby is coming; he threatens to run away | Facing a big change |
| 2 | Baby Tootsie is born; Fudge grows wildly jealous | Sibling rivalry |
| 3 | The family moves from New York to Princeton | A new setting |
| 4 | Peter befriends Alex and starts to settle in | A friend makes a home |
| 5 | Fudge’s kindergarten disaster with his teacher | Home rules vs. school rules |
| 6 | Uncle Feather, the talking myna bird, joins the family | Every character has a voice |
| 7 | Fudge and Daniel disappear and are found at a bakery | Fear, relief & consequence |
| 8 | Tootsie says ‘yuck’; the family votes to move home | A dreaded change, treasured |
A new baby, a big move, a talking bird, and a boy who grew up a little — a warm, funny story about family, change, and finding home wherever the people you love are. Well done, reader.
Part 8 Complete!
You finished pages 146–166 of Superfudge.
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Your writing was checked automatically for length, spelling, grammar, and whether you included the key parts of the scene. Scroll back to Part 5 anytime to read your feedback and improve your work.
Independent study guide by Garden Heights Academy. Not affiliated with or endorsed by the author or any rights holders. Contains original analysis only; no text from the novel is reproduced.