The Best Christmas Present in the World Chapter 1 from CBSE Class 8 English Honeydew Extra Question Answer 

Short Answer Type Question 

1.Who discovers the old muffler?

Answer: The narrator discovers the old muffler.

2. Where was the old muffler found?

Answer: It was found in a pile of things bought from a jumble sale.

3. What was hidden inside the muffler?

Answer: A letter was hidden inside the muffler.

4. What was unusual about the letter found inside?

Answer: It was dated December 26, 1914, and hadn't been delivered.

5. What year is mentioned in the letter?

Answer: The year mentioned in the letter is 1914.

6.  Describe the conditions mentioned in the letter.

Answer: The conditions mentioned were about the Christmas Truce during World War I, where soldiers from both sides paused fighting, exchanged gifts, and celebrated together.

7. What was the soldier's name who wrote the letter?

Answer: The soldier's name was Jim Macpherson.

8. What did the narrator do when he found the letter?

Answer: The narrator read the letter and was deeply moved by it.

9. What does the narrator do for a living?

Answer: The narrator is a freelance writer.

10. How did the narrator feel after reading the letter?

Answer: The narrator felt a sense of responsibility and a desire to find the soldier's family.

11. Where did the narrator find the letter?

Answer: The letter was found in an old muffler bought from a jumble sale.

12. Why was the letter found in the old muffler remarkable?

Answer: It was undelivered for over 80 years, making its discovery after such a long time remarkable.

13. What did the soldier write about in the letter?

Answer: The soldier wrote about the Christmas Truce during World War I.

14. How does the narrator try to track down the soldier's family?

Answer: The narrator tries to track down the family by searching through old records and using the soldier's name and information from the letter.

15. Why does the narrator want to find the family of the soldier?

Answer: The narrator wants to return the letter and possibly share the story with the soldier's family.

16. What is the significance of the letter to the narrator?

Answer: The letter represents a touching and significant story from the past that the narrator feels compelled to share with the soldier's family.

17. How does the narrator react to the contents of the letter?

Answer: The narrator is deeply moved and affected by the story conveyed in the letter.

18. What is the setting of the story?

Answer: The setting includes both the present time when the narrator finds the letter and the historical setting of World War I.

19. What war is referenced in the letter?

Answer: The letter references World War I.

20. Why does the narrator refer to the letter as "the best Christmas present in the world"?

Answer: Because the letter holds a touching story of humanity and peace during a time of war, making it a priceless discovery for the narrator. 

Important Questions Class 8 English Honeydew Chapter 1 – With Solutions

Question 1. What was Connie’s Christmas present, and why is it “the best Christmas present in the world”? 

Answer 1: Mrs. Macpherson was elderly and had memory problems. She was anticipating the return of her husband, Jim Macpherson, for Christmas. As a result, when the narrator pays a visit to Connie and presents her husband's letter, she misidentifies him as her husband. As a result, she considered this to be the nicest Christmas present she had ever received. Mrs. Macpherson read the letter several times during the day, and she felt his presence about her. Mrs Macpherson was informed how the narrator discovered the letter. She was overjoyed and relieved that Jim had come to see her after such a long time. 

Question 2. Do you think the title of this story is suitable?? What other title would you recommend?

Answer 2: The title of the narrative, in my opinion, is acceptable and fits wonderfully. The title captures the story's meaning and an unexpected aspect, as well as Mrs Macpherson's feelings. It says how the battling warriors yearned for peace and yearned to return home safely to their families. They had excellent times by drinking, eating, and conversing to their hearts' delight. They also played football matches amongst themselves. 

When the narrator pays a visit to Mrs. Macpherson and presents the letter written by her husband, Jim Macpherson, she believes the author is her husband and compliments him for the nicest Christmas present ever. 

Another possible title is "The Best Christmas Gift Ever." 

Question 3. “I think that is what every soldier wants, on both sides,” who said these lines and why?

Answer 3: According to the letter to Mrs Macpherson, Hans Wolf, the officer of the Fritz, uttered these lines to Jim. In the army, he is Tommy's superior officer. Jim Macpherson told Hans about his request when the party was over and all the food had been gone. Hans also expressed gratitude for the shared experience and claimed that he would never forget it. Almost everyone longed for the war to stop so they could see their family again, and every soldier on either side wished for this. 

Question 4. What happens when the author completes reading the letter?

Answer 4: After reading the letter, the author is overcome with sorrow and remorse. He quickly realized it had to be very important to the reader, and he needed to return the letter to its rightful owner. Mrs Macpherson, the letter's owner, resided in Bridport, several miles distant from his house. The author arrived at her home, which had been completely destroyed by fire. An elderly guy informed him that she had been sent to a nursing home on the opposite side of town. He proceeded to the location indicated by the stranger and delivered the letter to Mrs Macpherson. 

Question 5. Mention the different ways in which the British and the German soldiers become friends and find similar things at Christmas. 

nswer 5: The German and British soldiers were billeted in separate camps. Even though they were adversaries during the conflict, they shared comparable emotions as people. They overcame their animosity against one another, celebrated Christmas together, played games, feasted, and enjoyed wine like old friends. At the end of the battle, both sides were eager to get back to their families since they detested fighting. 

Question 6. What do you think the soldiers of the two armies are like? Find the evidence from the story to support your answer.

Answer 6: Every human being is almost the same. They love peace and hate war. Every soldier who fights in wartime is also human; they wish for war to end and live peacefully with their families. 

Example from the story: They were calling out to us from across no man’s land. “Happy Christmas, Tommy! Happy Christmas!” 

The following are some more instances from the story that proves the point: 

Both the armies wished Merry Christmas to each other. 

They played football matches, and on Christmas night, they shared carols and hoped to unite with the families again. 

Both armies wanted peace and wished for the war to end. 

Question 7. War does not end the conflict between nations. Discuss.

Answer 7: War means bloodshed, hate and destruction. In nature, animals fight for some sound reason, but different nations go into a war to settle petty disputes or in the name of religion. I think war solves no problems; it only creates more complications between two nations. Many lives are lost, and people lose their family members and peace. In addition, with a little bit of understanding and mutual discussion, the conflicts can end. Besides, all religions condemn greed and bloody quarrels. War does not add any value to the development of relationships in nations; it only increases the grudge against each other.

Question 8. Why was the letter written in the first place? What was the amazing thing that had happened?

Answer 8: The soldiers of the German and British countries were fighting a battle. They were living in their trenches to fight the enemy. Many soldiers wrote and received letters. It was only to be in touch with their relatives and family members. 

On Christmas day, both British and German soldiers celebrated festive Christmas together. It shows festivals are above all personal enmity. 

Question 9. What did Jim say about someone looking from the trenches?

Answer 9: Jim Macpherson, in his letter, elaborated that someone was waving a flag from the trenches opposite them. When they approached that person on the other side, they exchanged greetings for the festive season.

Question 10. What was the man in the grey greatcoat doing? 

Answer 10: The man in a grey coat waved a white flag, and someone followed, instructing him not to shoot. In addition, the instruction was followed when Fritz came upon the parapet. Therefore, Jim instructed the men to keep their heads lowered since he felt it was a trick.

Question 11. What were the Germans doing, and who was their officer?

Answer 11: Little Private Morris was the officer who invited everyone to join down to celebrate Christmas with them. They arranged schnapps and sausages with them to enjoy Christmas morning during the war. The German officer took the initiative to ask them to join the little celebration they had prepared for Christmas. Therefore, all the men dressed in their khaki uniforms and made peace with each other. Furthermore, they celebrated Christmas with each other during the war. 

Question 12. Why did the narrator go to Bridport?

Answer 12: The narrator went to Bridport to meet Connie Macpherson, who had her address- Mrs Macpherson, 12 Copper Beeches, Bridport and Dorset. The narrator wanted to deliver the letter written by her husband to her. Besides, he felt guilty and a sense of responsibility for delivering the letter because he had mistakenly opened and read the content. 

Question 13. What did he find in a secret drawer?

Answer 13: The narrator found a shallow space underneath a roll-top desk drawer, a secret drawer. There was a small black tin box with a piece of lined note paper that was sello-taped to its top. In addition, a note was written on it in shaky handwriting: “Jim’s last letter, received January 25, 1915. When the time comes, it should be buried with me.” The letter had mentioned the name of his wife, Mrs. Jim Macpherson and the address is written on the envelope containing the letter. 

Question 14. Why do Jim and Hans think games are a better way to solve conflicts? Share your view.

Answer 14: According to Jim and Hans, games or sports are good ways of resolving conflicts because nobody lays down their lives in matches. In addition, Jim and Hans concluded that war only leads to death, conflict and devastation. To end the conflicts, playing matches was the best method. Therefore, I agree with both Jim and Hans’ perspectives that matches are an ideal way to resolve conflicts between two enemy countries without losing life and property. 

Question 15. How did Hans Wolf get to know about Dorset? 

Answer 15: The two officers talked over rum ration and sausages when discussing details about various things. Hans Wolf knew about Dorset very well from the school books he read in England and various English texts he came across. In addition, he shared details about his favourite book and writer. 

Question 16. What did the Fritz officer tell Captain Jim Macpherson?

Answer 16: The Fritz officer approached Captain Jim Macpherson when everyone was busy enjoying the Christmas celebrations. He outstretched his hand and said he was “Hans Wolf” and played cello in an orchestra in Dusseldorf. Jim also exchanged the greeting and told him he taught school kids in Dorset in west England. 

Question 17. What was the condition of the roll-top box that the narrator found?

Answer 17: The roll-top box was made of oak and was in very bad condition. It had scorch marks all down one side, and one leg was clumsily mended. The author found it in a junk shop in Bridport. 

Question 18. Why did the narrator buy the roll-top box even though it was in bad condition? 

Answer 18: The author bought the roll-top box in bad condition because it cost little money, and he could easily restore it by working on it. 

Question 19. What was written on the tin box? 

Answer 19: The author found a cello-taped tin box. On the top of the box was a piece of lined note paper in the secret drawer. This was written on it: “Jim’s last letter, received January 25, 1915.”

Question 20. Describe Christmas on behalf of a letter sent by Jim to Connie.

Answer 20: Christmas morning was quiet and crisp; it was a beautiful and charming day. It was a cold and frosty Christmas morning. 

Question 21. How does war end and how should it end, and why?

Answer 21: Usually, wars end by shedding blood, and people lose their family members. But a football match resolves the war. No one dies in sports or matches, no children are orphaned, and no wives become widows. 

Question 22. Write a character sketch of Mrs Macpherson. 

Answer 22: Mrs Macpherson was an old lady, one hundred and one years old. In addition, she was a very lovely person. She had white silver hair and wrinkles on her skin. But she used candles rather than electricity because, according to her, electricity was too expensive. Therefore, she used candles to save money. 

Question 23. Why were the people at the nursing home happy to see visitors?

Answer 23: The people at the nursing home were surprised because Mrs Macpherson had no relatives or family members. No one visits her, so they were happy to see him there. 

Question 24. Write the meaning of the words from the given chapter-

i) Roll-top

Answer: Flexible 

ii) Clumsily 

Answer: Poorly coordinated actions

iii) Brute force

Answer: Extreme application or use of force

iv) Lopsided

Answer: Either side of an object is asymmetrical