My Father, Sun-Sun Johnson (Revision Worksheet)

My Father, Sun-Sun Johnson

What Is a Summary of My Father, Sun-Sun Johnson?

In the story My Father, Sun-Sun Johnson, Rami Johnson tells the tale of how his father, Sun-Sun, has lost his entire fortune and business to his chief rival, Jake Hibbertson. At the story's conclusion, Sun-Sun sacrifices his life for the Hibbertsons.

FULL ANSWER

Sun-Sun Johnson, who once was very wealthy, has a habit of making very bad business decisions. These decisions cost him his money, his home and his family, with the exception being his son Rami. He loses these to the benefit of rival businessman Jake Hibbertson, who claims Sun-Sun's home and marries Sun-Sun's ex-wife. Due to his losses, Sun-Sun must move his son and himself to a new home, River Bottom. While they are there, Sun-Sun begins to start over. He goes on to live a fulfilling life despite continuing to make poor business choices. One day, a gut feeling takes Sun-Sun to the Hibbertsons' home, where he sees that a fire has broken out. Sun-Sun saves the Hibbertsons, but dies in the blaze.

My Father, Sun-Sun Johnson was written by C. Everard Palmer in 1984. Palmer, who died in 2013, is considered one of Jamaica's top writers of children's literature. He wrote over 15 books, the final being A Time To Say Goodbye, which is billed as the final chapter of the character of Rami.

REVISION QUESTIONS Narrator of the story	ANSWERS Rami Johnson
Main character in story	Merton Johnson
Narrator's sister	Arlene Johnson
Narrator's younger brother	Brad Johnson
Mule's name	Lizette
Horse's name	Marble
Narrator's age	15 years
Narrator's female friend	Donna Rae
Setting of the story	Village in Robin Hill
Place where narrator and father currently live	River Bottom
Ma's profession	Teacher of history
Dog's name	Max
Father's enemy	Jake Hibbertson
Father's female friend	Mrs Hiltcher
Man who begs from father but buys from his enemy	Jim Pearl
Produce narrator and father grow in garden	Callaloo, cabbage, tomato, okra, banana
Activities narrator and female friend do together	Cook, schoolwork, fish, go to the butcher
Drink narrator buys female friend	Tongue-Lick-Out
What does narrator mean "I was there when the 'blow' fell'"?	He was there when the bad news was revealed
What was the bad news?	Father had lost everything.
Why do people make fun of father	Because he had fallen from top to bottom
Amount of money borrowed from enemy	Seven thousand Pounds
What happened to the money?	Father had gambled it away.
Who 'climbed' from Austin to Humber Hawk to Jaguar?	Jake Hibbertson
Who went from owning car to riding a horse?	Merton Johnson
Why didn't narrator want his father selling at the market?	Because people would make more fun of him.
Ma's name?	Debbie
Who is Lottie?	The housekeeper.
Name of narrator's form teacher.	Ms. Fletcher
Two rooms added to the small cabin?	Kitchen and room for narrator.
Size of the new property	5 acres of good land and 5 acres of hillside
What amenity didn't they have?	Running water
What was always close by the new cabin?	The river
Honkey-dory	Fine; going well
What did the narrator think would have made him seem Important?	Riding a horse to school
Why did Arlene and Brad hide?	They were ashamed of Rami
Which boy came to narrator's defence?	Colli Rainer
Why were they laughing at the narrator at school?	Because he had stayed his father
Why were people afraid to Be kind to narrator and his family?	They didn't want upset or offend Jake
Who was chairman of the schoolboard?	Jake Hibbertson
What would father bring back home from town?	Candy, new clothes, something for the house that Ma had wanted
When was the only time they addressed father as 'Mister'?	When they wanted something from father
Who was a wolf for prestige and power?	Jake Hibbertson
Who would comment that life wasn't money?	Merton Johnson
What would Jake do if he found animals on his land?	Have the animals pounded and arrest the owners.
Who was described as Father Christmas?	Merton Johnson
Who is a Father Christmas?	A man who would give things away all year long.
Who was the only farmer to be Kind to boys and make toys for Them?	Merton Johnson
Narrator's sister's age	12 years old
Narrator's brother's age	10 years old

My Father, Sun-Sun Johnson Chapters 1-2

20 cards ⋅ Created by Azariah Alicia ⋅ This flashcard set will test your knowledge on the novel My Father, Sun-Sun Johnson Chapters 1-2

Which character introduces himself as the narrator of the story?	Rami
Describe the appearance of Jake?	Jake had an ax-shaped head that had a washed out color. He showed no emotion in his face.
How many siblings did Rami have? Who were they?	For most of the story Rami had two siblings, a brother and a sister. Their names were Arlene and Brad. However, a third sibling appears after Chapter 7. There, we learn that Debbie was having a baby with Jake. Debbie had her baby, a boy, in Chapter 11.
Exactly how much money did Merton owe Jake?	Merton owed Jake £4,300
How did Father find himself in this situation?	Father gambled away his money and he was a very generous man.
How did Merton repay his debt to Jake?	Father repaid Jake by giving him the Robin Hill home.
Explain what moving from Robin Hill to River Bottom symbolizes.	The people that live in Robin Hill are wealthy and have a high status in the village. The people who live in River Bottom are usually poor and have no status in the village. When Father moved from Robin Hill to Rive Bottom it shows that he went from rich to poor.
How were the people looking at Merton as he traveled to his new home in River Bottom?	The people were laughing at Father and mocking him. Uttering distasteful words at him.
What figure of speech was "his eyes were laughing"	Personification
Why did Rami prefer to ride the mare?	She would gallop real fast if he wanted , and while he was a child she became his protector.
How long was Father and Rami's new house?	19x19 feet
Describe Father's home in River Bottom.	It had two rooms one kitchen and no running water.
What crops did Father plant at his new home?	Father started to plant cabbage, tomatoes, calloloo, pineapples, and a few yams
When did Rami realize the seriousness of his situation?	Rami realized the seriousness of his situation when school resumed in January
Why were Rami's classmates laughing at him?	They were laughing at Rami because he remained loyal to his Father when everyone thought he should be deserted for good.
What surprise awaited Rami while visiting his mother's house?	Rami saw Jake relaxing in his Father's favorite rocking chair.
Why does Arlene seem to like Jake?	Arlene seems to like Jake because he gave them a ride in his Jaguar and is slowly bringing their family out of poverty.
Describe Arlene.	Arlene is bold yet beautiful.
How old are Arlene and Brad in the story?	Arlene is 12 and Brad is 10 years old
Why were women attracted to Jake?	Jake was rich and still unmarried.

Film: My Father, Sun-Sun Johnson (1976)

Film details
Featuring

Oliver Samuels Lloyd Reckord and Alwyn Scott

Director
Paul Stone

Country
United Kingdom

Year
1976

Type
Television

Cast & Credits

Cast

Lorne
Oliver Samuels

Jake
Lloyd Reckord

Rami Johnson
Alwyn Scott

Sun-Sun Johnson
Stanley Irons

Donna Rae
Sharon Woollery

Debbie Johnson
Leonie Forbes

Credits

Direction:

Director
Paul Stone

Production:
Production Company
BBC

Executive Producer
Anna Home

Writing:
Script
Veronica Cecil

Author of the Original Work
C. Everard Palmer

Photography:
Film cameraman
Philip Bonham-Carter

Editing:
Film editor
Bill Shapter

Sound:
Film sound
Simon Wilson

OOW
2018