View a FREE sample

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

Short Answer Questions

1. What does Dennis do after everyone is notified of Billy's death?

2. On the day that Billy died, what happened that had happened many times before?

3. Who would help Maeve get Billy to bed when he was drunk?

4. Maeve clearly won Billy's _____________, if not his heart.

5. Maeve learns that Billy's body has been taken to _____________________.

Short Essay Questions

1. Explain the role of Maeve's father in her relationship with Billy.

2. How does Dennis respond when his daughter asks him about his faith now?

3. What happens when Dennis makes a service call to a black church?

4. How do Dennis' kids manage their father's grief after their mother dies?

5. What shocking information does Billy get in the flashback in Chapter 12?

6. What does the episode with the black minister remind Dennis of?

7. What is the setting for Chapter 7?

8. Explain the symbolism of the postcard Billy sent Maeve many years ago.

9. What is Dennis' daughter's relationship with Matt, the tenant's son?

10. How does the theme of love extend in Chapter 8?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

In keeping with the title of CHARMING BILLY, what exactly did Billy do to earn that title? Cite three examples that support Billy's charm. Why did the author name the book CHARMING BILLY instead of something more haunting and perhaps more fitting for Billy's life?

Essay Topic 2

Alcohol abuse seems to be an unnamed character in the book. How pervasive is the abuse? Why does it have such a prevalent place in the characters' lives? How does it affect the abusers? How does it affect those impacted by the abusers? Explain how an inanimate object or characteristic can be a character.

Essay Topic 3

The author uses more than one iteration on the theme of love. Identify at least two themes about love in the book. Then cite an example to support each theme you name.

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 1,005 words (approx. 4 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample