The Adventures of Toto NCERT Solutions, Summary & Word Meanings Class 9 PDF
Subject: English (Moments) | Chapter: 2 | Author: Ruskin Bond
📥 Download Notes PDF 📢 Join Telegram📖 Chapter Summary: The Adventures of Toto
"The Adventures of Toto" is an amusing story by Ruskin Bond about a mischievous pet monkey named Toto. The narrator’s Grandfather, an animal lover, buys Toto from a tonga-driver for the sum of five rupees to add to his private zoo. Toto is a pretty monkey with bright, mischievous eyes, pearly white teeth, and a tail that serves as a third hand.
Since Grandmother always fusses when a new animal is brought home, Toto’s arrival is kept a secret. He is initially hidden in the narrator’s bedroom closet, where he tears the ornamental wallpaper and shreds the narrator's school blazer into pieces. Later, he is transferred to the servants' quarters, where he does not let any of the other pets (including Nana, the family donkey) sleep at night.
Grandfather has to travel to Saharanpur to collect his pension, so he takes Toto along in a big black canvas kit-bag so he wouldn't escape. At the Saharanpur railway station turnstile, Toto suddenly pokes his head out and gives the ticket collector a wide grin. The ticket collector classifies Toto as a "dog" and charges Grandfather a fare of three rupees.
Toto loves taking warm baths in winter, cunningly testing the water temperature with his hand just like the narrator does. One day, he nearly boils himself alive by jumping into a large kitchen kettle meant for boiling water for tea. He is saved just in time by Grandmother.
Eventually, Toto's mischief crosses all limits. He breaks dishes, tears clothes, and ruins curtains. Realizing that they are not well-to-do enough to afford such frequent losses, Grandfather finally sells Toto back to the same tonga-driver, but only for three rupees, suffering a loss of two rupees.
📚 Part 1: NCERT Solutions (Textbook Questions)
Q1: How does Toto come to grandfather’s private zoo?
Ans: Grandfather loved animals. One day, he saw a pretty red monkey tied to a feeding-trough by a tonga-driver. The monkey looked so out of place there that Grandfather decided to buy him. He bought Toto from the tonga-driver for the sum of five rupees and added him to his private zoo.
Q2: "Toto was a pretty monkey." In what sense is Toto pretty?
Ans: Toto was pretty because he had bright eyes that sparkled with mischief beneath deep-set eyebrows. His teeth were pearly white, which he often displayed in a smile that frightened elderly Anglo-Indian ladies. His fingers were quick and wicked, and his tail added to his good looks while serving as a third hand.
Q3: Why does grandfather take Toto to Saharanpur and how? Why does the ticket collector insist on calling Toto a dog?
Ans: Grandfather took Toto to Saharanpur because Toto was not letting any of the other animals sleep in the servants' quarters. Grandfather put him inside a strong, big black canvas kit-bag with some straw at the bottom so he couldn't bite his way out.
The ticket collector insisted on calling Toto a dog because there was no specific rule or fare category for monkeys in the railway manual, and he wanted to charge Grandfather a fare for carrying the animal.
Q4: How does Toto take a bath? Where has he learnt to do this? How does Toto almost boil himself alive?
Ans: Toto cunningly tested the temperature of the water with his hand, then gradually stepped into the bath, first one foot, then the other, until he was in the water up to his neck. He rubbed himself all over with soap. He had learnt this by observing the narrator.
One day, a large kitchen kettle was left on the fire to boil for tea. Toto, finding the water warm enough, got in. As the water began to boil, he hopped up and down, unable to get out due to the cold outside. He was almost half-boiled when Grandmother rushed in and hauled him out.
Q5: Why does the author say, "Toto was not the sort of pet we could keep for long"?
Ans: The author says this because Toto was highly mischievous and destructive. He frequently broke plates, tore up clothes, ruined curtains, and peeled off wallpapers. The narrator's family was not very rich and could not afford the frequent financial losses caused by Toto's antics. Thus, Grandfather had to sell him back.
⚡ Part 2: Extra Practice Questions
Q6: Where was Toto kept immediately after Grandfather bought him? What did he do there?
Ans: Because Grandmother disliked new pets, Toto was kept completely hidden in a little closet opening into the narrator’s bedroom wall. There, he tore off the decorative wallpaper, pulled out the peg he was tied to, and shredded the narrator's school blazer into rags.
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Q: For how much money did Grandfather buy Toto from the tonga-driver?
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🔤 Important Word Meanings
- 1. Tonga-driver (n): A person who drives a light horse-drawn two-wheeled vehicle (Tanga chalane wala).
- 2. Feeding-trough (n): A long, narrow container from which farm animals eat or drink.
- 3. Mischief (n): Playful misbehavior or troublemaking (Shaitani).
- 4. Turnstile (n): A mechanical gate consisting of revolving horizontal arms that allow only one person at a time to pass through.
- 5. Annoyance (n): The feeling or state of being irritated or angered.
- 6. Halter (n): A rope or strap placed around the head of an animal to lead or tie it.
- 7. Scooping (v): Picking up or lifting something in a swift motion.