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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. America was at war with ____________ when Bryson was born.

2. What was an insect that rose from the ground and could fly up someone's shorts?

3. What did Bryson, Buddy and Bill do to the Lincoln Logs to turn them white?

4. Who distributed fish tainted from the radioactive ash?

5. For what publication did Bryson's father work?

Short Essay Questions

1. What businesses came about as the result of more cars in America?

2. What was the only real danger in town and how did the Thunderbolt Kid take care of the situation?

3. Describe a typical experience of Bryson's family stopping to see his mother's family every time they went on vacation.

4. Describe the albino Lincoln Logs experience.

5. What importance did comic books have in the lives of Bryson and most other kids in the 1950s?

6. How did Bryson get some insight into sex?

7. What were some of the appliances that people in the 1950s were excited about owning?

8. What particular times were especially long for kids?

9. What were the results of the hydrogen bombs dropped by the United States in 1952 and 1954?

10. How did Bryson describe Des Moines and the area of the city where he lived?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Describe the overall settings for the book. What is important about each setting as it is revealed? What are the time periods of the stories? How important are the time periods to the attitudes and issues of the people?

Essay Topic 2

Why did Bryson choose to use the first person perspective for the stories? What does this point of view entail? What do you know about the characters and the plot lines that you would not know from a different point of view? What do you NOT know about the characters and plot lines based on this point of view?

Essay Topic 3

Explain the significance of the book's title--THE LIFE AND TIMES OF THE THUNDERBOLT KID. Why did Bryson choose this title? Is there an understood message in the title? Is there another title you can suggest that might also be appropriate?

(see the answer keys)

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