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This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. In Chapter 18, why does the narrator say he failed to contact the police the day after Missy's death?

2. In Chapter 28, what does the narrator say has become his weekly habit since Missy's death?

3. In Chapter 16, what does the unnamed narrator say his destination was the night of Missy's death?

4. In Chapter 26, why does Jonah tell Miles he does not like the case file on Missy's accident?

5. What does the D.A. tell Charlie will be a deciding factor in whether or not he files charges against Miles for police brutality?

Short Essay Questions

1. In Chapter 22, after visiting Earl Getlin, what conclusion does Charlie come to about Sims' statements?

2. Why does Miles not arrest Brian when he sees him at Missy's grave?

3. Why does Sims Addison claim in Chapter 17 that he never wants to return to jail?

4. In Chapter 31, how does Miles react when Charlie comes to speak to him? What does Charlie want from Miles?

5. Who calls Charlie with information about Miles? What does Charlie do as a result of these phone calls?

6. How does Sarah react to the revelation that Brian killed Missy Ryan?

7. How does Miles react when Sarah and Brian tell him the truth about the accident that killed Missy?

8. Despite a reluctance to return to jail, what is Sims Addison doing in Chapter 17 when Miles pulls him over?

9. In Chapter 26, what does Charlie do when Miles reports for work first thing in the morning?

10. In Chapter 29, why does Brian suddenly feel it is important to tell Sarah to make Miles back off of Otis Timson? What does Brian reveal to the reader in this chapter?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Discuss Missy's accident. Was it truly an accident? Did Brian do something wrong in the way he was driving? Was Missy at fault for her own death? Why did Missy jump into the road? How could Brian have avoided the accident? Why did Brian leave the scene of the accident? What might have happened had Brian called the police? What would have happened if Brian had called the police the next day? Why did Brian not tell anyone about his role in Missy's accident? Why did Miles later tell Brian not to tell anyone? Why did Miles let Brian go? Why does Brian tell the reader that Miles did what he did for Jonah's sake? How might it have impacted Jonah's life if Brian had been arrested for Missy's death?

Essay Topic 2

Who is Otis Timson? Why is Miles upset to learn that Otis will be released from jail that day? What does Miles think Otis has done? What has Otis done in the past that upsets Miles? Why does Miles think Otis is a criminal when Otis has never really been convicted of any serious crimes? How does Charlie feel about Otis? Does this give credence to Miles' thoughts or does it make Miles appear as to have a vendetta for Otis? How might this discussion about Otis foreshadow a later conflict between Miles and Otis?

Essay Topic 3

Why does Miles arrest Otis Timson? Should Miles have arrested Otis on charges of killing Missy? Should Miles have handled the situation differently? Why did Miles hold a gun to Otis' head? What charges could Miles face for doing such a thing? Was Miles acting inappropriately? What does it say about Miles that he did not kill Otis when given the chance? Why did Miles not tell Charlie immediately what was going on? What might have happened differently if Miles had gone to Charlie first?

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