1. A short story by Roald Dahl

2.  Branch Manager  lodgings  settled  overcoat, trilby hat, new brown suit  brisk(ly)  big shot  porches and pillars  swanky residences  bed and breakfast  pub  boarding house

3. Page 40 to 42  What was the weather like when Billy arrived in Bath?  Why do you think Billy had gone to Bath?  What different emotions do you think Billy was experiencing when he got off the train in Bath?  What do Billy´s clothes tell us about his personality and his situation?  How would you describe the atmosphere of the town as he walked through it?  What kind of room did Billy see through the window with the green curtains?  How would you describe the atmosphere in the room?

4.  rapacious  kippers  dithering  jack-in-the-box  five and sixpence a night  my little nest  slightly dotty  who gives a damn  flight of stairs  a hot water-bottle

5. pages 42-45  What accommodation did Billy decide would be the most suitable for him?  What was strange about the way the woman answered the door bell and opened the door?  What kind of impression did Billy have of the woman?  What finally made Billy decide to rent the room?  What was strange about the fact that the woman had put a hot water bottle between the sheets on the bed?

6.  handsome  biscuit  she fussed  Eton schoolboy  tantalizing  Cambridge undergraduate  he caught a whiff of a peculiar smell  dachshund slightly off her rocker  guest book  it rings a bell

7. pages 45-50  Why did the woman need Billy to go to the sitting room the first evening?  What impression was Billy forming of the woman?  What was strange about the guest book?  What was familiar, to Billy, about the other names in the guest book?  Where are Mr Mulholland and Mr Temple, according to the woman?  What two clues tell us that Billy is in grave danger?

8. combine any three or four elements to make a conflict of some kind  handsome youth  missing persons  cold nights  cup of tea  Dachshund  warm, cosy fire  kind, middle-aged lady  taxidermist  boarding house  parrot  smell of almonds  journey by train