Notes From The Midnight Driver

Chapters 1-5

Reading Check

1. Alcohol poisoning and a concussion (Chapter 3)

2. Laurie (Chapter 4)

Short Answer

1. He steals a car and drives drunk because he is trying to get back at his father for divorcing his mother and dating his third-grade teacher. (Chapter 2)

2. Simon is angry that Janet left alcohol in the house. (Chapter 3)

3. She is a petite, blond-haired girl who dresses in Goth clothing and is an expert in karate. (Chapter 4)

Chapters 6-7

Reading Check

1. Community service in a nursing home (Chapter 6)

2. Solomon “Sol” Lewis (Chapter 6)

Short Answer

1. He is forced to work with the cantankerous Mr. Lewis, who is described as “an ancient, merciless gargoyle” because he is combative and insulting. (Chapter 6)

2. She tells Alex that he has met his match in Mr. Lewis and that he should keep plugging away. (Chapter 7)

Chapters 8-11

Reading Check

1. Laurie (Chapter 8)

2. He plays his guitar for Sol. (Chapter 9)

3. Emphysema (Chapter 11)

Short Answer

1. Several of the residents come in to hear the new song, and Sol begins to cry. (Chapter 10)

2. Alex has learned that you can’t abandon people in your life when they displease you, and he requests more hours of community service from the judge. (Chapter 11)

Chapters 12-13

Reading Check

1. Sol (Chapter 12)

2. His mother and father (Chapter 12)

Short Answer

1. Alex’s mom has a bad date and argues with Alex. Laurie is upset because she found out her mom and her boyfriend are pregnant. Sol is angry with Alex because he realizes Alex is only in the nursing home as a punishment and because he was drunk driving. (Chapter 12)

2. He repeatedly tries to contact Alex to apologize. (Chapter 12)

Chapters 14-17

Reading Check

1. Steve and Annette, members of the jazz band at his school (Chapter 14)

2. A key (Chapter 17)

3. He can play the guitar. (Chapter 17)

Short Answer

1. Alex decides to put on a benefit concert for the nursing home. Sol is skeptical, because it takes a lot of work to put on a jazz concert. (Chapter 15)

2. He feels that he is an inferior player. (Chapter 16)

Chapters 18-19

Reading Check

1. His wife, Ethel (Chapter 18)

2. A quiet classmate named Sarah who wears a retainer (Chapter 19)

Short Answer

1. Sol points out that Alex has never asked Sol about his life. (Chapter 18)

2. He got into an argument with his wife before a performance, and she died later that night when she was hit by a drunk driver. He quit playing so he could raise his daughter, Judy. (Chapter 18)

3. Sol has developed pneumonia, which can be life-threatening for a person with emphysema. (Chapter 19)

Chapters 20-22

Reading Check

1. She cuts her foot. (Chapter 21)

2. Funerals (Chapter 22)

Short Answer

1. Sol suggests teaching Alex how to play for the benefit concert in April. (Chapter 21)

2. He will give his more expensive guitar to Sol and buy a cheaper one for himself. (Chapter 22)

3. The key is for a storage locker where his old guitar is located. (Chapter 22)

Chapters 23-24

Reading Check

1. A box with all of Judy’s things (Chapter 23)

2. Judge Trent (Chapter 24)

Short Answer

1. Alex realizes that Sol is dying. (Chapter 23)

2. She has just received ultrasound photos from her mother of the new baby. (Chapter 23)

3. He apologizes to his parents for being angry after the divorce. (Chapter 24)

Chapters 25-27

Reading Check

1. Alex and Sol play “Sunrise, Sunset.” (Chapter 25)

2. The judge on Alex’s case, Judge Trent (Chapter 25)

3. At Sol’s funeral (Chapter 27)

Short Answer

1. Judge Trent, who is Sol’s daughter, knew Alex and Sol would make a connection based on her personal experience with each of them. (Various chapters)

2. He teaches Alex about music, and he teaches him life lessons on emotional maturity. (Various chapters)