43 pages • 1 hour read
Judy BlumeOtherwise Known as Sheila the Great
Fiction | Novel | Middle Grade | Published in 1972A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Chapters 14-16Chapter Summaries & Analyses
Chapter 14 Summary
The final week of day camp brings excitement for Libby and horror for Sheila. Libby is in love with a 14-year-old boy named Hank Crane, and Sheila thinks they might have kissed during a camp movie. After camp one day, Marty announces Sheila will be taking her swimming test in a few days, and Sheila becomes certain she will drown.
One night, the campers go on a hayride, and Sheila is nervous about the horses pulling the wagons, because she thinks they might “go wild and pull [them] into the woods” (120). During the hayride, one of the camp counselors plays her guitar and tells the campers ghost stories, which Sheila tries to tune out. The hayride takes the campers into town, and Mouse tells Sheila they are riding on Old Sleepy Hollow Road, where the character Ichabod Crane saw the Headless Horseman. Sheila becomes more frightened, and when she thinks she hears the sound of the Headless Horseman and sees a flash of lightning, she decides to “bury [her]self under the hay” so she will be “[s]afe from the lightning and the horses running wild and the terrible dark woods and the Horseman” (122). Mouse and one of the counselors dig her out, and Sheila lies and says she just didn’t want to get wet if it starts raining. The storm passes, and when Sheila’s father picks her and Libby up, Sheila decides she “[doesn’t] think [she] will be in a hurry to go on another [hayride]” (124).
Chapter 15 Summary
After preparing all summer, the time finally comes for Sheila to take the swimming test. She hopes and prays for rain, illness, and anything that might prevent her from having to do it, but the swimming test still comes. Sheila realizes there’s no escape, and she is convinced she will drown. Marty instructs her to swim across the deep end of the pool, and although Sheila refuses at first, Marty begs her to try for him. He promises it’s only a 40-foot swim, although Sheila thinks the other side of the pool looks more like “ten miles away” (127). Marty promises to walk alongside Sheila as she swims and jump in to help her if she needs him. Finally, Sheila takes the plunge and jumps in. As she swims, Sheila is scared and tires quickly, but she keeps going. Mouse, Sondra, Jane, and Marty all cheer her on until she reaches the other end of the pool. Marty then instructs her to tread water for two minutes, and although Sheila insists she is too exhausted, she still succeeds and passes her swim test. As Marty, her mother, and her friends congratulate her, Sheila becomes overwhelmed with pride. She decides it doesn’t matter if she will never be an expert diver like Betsy or a great swimmer like Mouse; all that matters is that she can swim, and she is “Super Sheila the Swimming Wonder” (130). Sheila is so exhausted that she falls asleep right after the swimming test.
Chapter 16 Summary
As the summer draws to a close, the Tubmans prepare to leave Tarrytown and head back to Manhattan. Mouse promises to visit Sheila in the city, and she hopes the Tubmans will return next year. Sheila’s parents decide to host a “Farewell to Tarrytown” party and invite all the friends they’ve made over the summer. They have a backyard barbecue with Mouse’s family, Jane and Sondra, Marty, Maryann, Hank, and Hank’s friend Bucky. They play games and have fun the whole afternoon, until Sheila suddenly realizes Jennifer’s “friend”—the male dog and father of her puppies—has appeared in the bushes. Instead of running away and screaming, Sheila remains calm and “pray[s] that he [will] go away” (135). A man appears and explains that the dog, Mumford, belongs to him. Sheila’s father explains that Mumford is Jennifer’s friend and the father of her puppies, and the man is delighted. Mouse, Jane, and Sondra laugh at all the name combinations that could come from Jennifer and Mumford, like “Mumifer” and “Jennimum.” As they discuss the possible names of the puppies, Sheila suddenly remembers she is “in the backyard with two dogs loose” (137), and she takes off running into the house. Still, she admits it might be nice to have a puppy, and although she is still scared of dogs because she thinks they don’t like her, perhaps having a small, soft puppy wouldn’t be the end of the world after all, especially if the puppy turns out to be a “much nicer, better dog than Peter Hatcher’s” (138).
Chapters 14-16 Analysis
The final chapters of the novel highlight the importance of personal growth and Facing One’s Fears. The swimming test is a monumental moment for Sheila, the culmination of all her hard work, bravery, and willingness to take on challenges. Although Sheila has insisted since the start of the summer that she will not learn how to swim and will certainly drown if forced, she overcomes the voice telling her she can’t. However, like most things in the book, Sheila could not have done it alone. As she makes her way across the pool, she is surrounded by people who helped her get here: cheering friends who urge her on, Marty patiently keeping her safe, and her mother who sent her here in the first place. In the end, Sheila moves past her fight response to swimming. She is not angry or resentful, just proud and relieved. She understands she has done something she never thought possible.
Despite her many victories, Sheila is still far from done growing. She has developed a deep friendship with Mouse, who promises to come visit her in the city at the end of the book, but even in Chapter 15, Sheila lacks the self-confidence to admit to her fears after Mouse and a counselor dig her out of the hayride. Through Mouse and Sheila, Judy Blume shows how acceptance and patience can take a friendship far. Mouse’s fearlessness may never rub off on Sheila, but Sheila appreciates having someone who sees her fears and respects her boundaries, even if Sheila cannot admit to those fears herself just yet.
The backyard barbecue scene in Chapter 16 shows yet another way in which Sheila has grown over the summer. Although she is still scared of dogs, she manages to control her fear when the male dog shows up unexpectedly in the backyard. Instead of running away screaming like last time, Sheila remembers what her mother told her about remaining calm, and even when Jennifer and Mumford begin to run around the backyard, Sheila almost forgets to be afraid while surrounded by her friends and family. In the final pages, she “reminds” herself to be afraid, but even as she runs into the house, she finds herself toying with the idea of having a puppy. She is especially excited by the idea of being able to show up Peter Hatcher with a “better” dog, which shows that Sheila’s need to be the best still outweighs her personal fears.
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By Judy Blume
