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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. Who was the journalist who exposed the Myall Creek incident?

2. In what part of America did Bryson live at the time he visited Australia?

3. Where was Alan Howe's country house located?

4. In Perth Bryson encountered an echidna which is related to _________________.

5. At one time how may Allied troops were in holding in Alice Springs?

Short Essay Questions

1. How does the reader know that Bryson had a good time with his friends Alan Howe and Carmel Egan?

2. How has the Aborigine population dwindled from the time Europeans arrived to colonize Australia?

3. What did Bryson find so fascinating about the stromatolites at Sharks Bay?

4. What famous tree did Bryson and Sherwin see in the town of Daly Waters?

5. What is the story of the plane called Kookaburra and its role in the search for aviation legend Charles Kingsford Smith?

6. For what is Alice Springs best known?

7. Other than dangerous animals, what is an ever-constant threat to Australia's environment?

8. Who joined Bryson for his next trip to Australia and how does their adventure begin?

9. Describe Bryson and Sherwin's adventure at the Great Barrier Reef.

10. What unusual trees are important to Australia and where did Bryson walk among the tree tops?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

What was Bryson's typical daily itinerary when he reached a city? Plot out a typical day. What were finite elements in Bryson's days? What variables entered into Bryson's schedule? Do you think this was a smart way to plan his time? Explain.

Essay Topic 2

Create a "character" sketch of the city of Sydney. What personality shines through for you for this city? Did Bryson make you want to learn more and perhaps visit one day? What would you most like to see? What is the one fact or interesting feature that you can recall about Sydney? Explain.

Essay Topic 3

At times it seemed as if Bryson were more interested in places and history than in the people he met in Australia. Why was Bryson in a fact-finding mode for this book? Were the people distractions to his true work? What is your opinion on how Bryson approached his method for digging for information to include in his book?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 1,104 words (approx. 4 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample