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This test consists of 15 multiple choice questions and 5 short answer questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. The Taylors, who lived next door to the narrator and his family for many years before the Bumpus family moved in, were what?
(a) Educators.
(b) Circus performers.
(c) Quiet.
(d) Eccentric.

2. Who is Scut Farkas?
(a) Bully.
(b) Teacher.
(c) Narrator's cousin.
(d) Narrator's best friend.

3. At what point does the narrator realize they are halfway to their Michigan destination?
(a) When the contents of the car have shifted so much he can no longer move.
(b) After they've been driving for six hours without stopping.
(c) After he almost faints from dehydration and heat exhaustion.
(d) When Randy throws up, because he does this every year at the halfway mark.

4. Which of the following do Randy and his brother NOT eat at the County Fair?
(a) Pumpkin pie.
(b) Fudge.
(c) Deep-fried chocolate bars.
(d) Pork and beans.

5. The Old Man is loyal to the Oldsmobile, but he deviates from his dedication to drive what automobile brand?
(a) Pontiac.
(b) Cadillac.
(c) Buick.
(d) Saturn.

6. For how many years does the Shepherd family take its annual pilgrimage to Clear Lake?
(a) Ten.
(b) Eighteen.
(c) Fourteen.
(d) Seven.

7. What does the Old Man do two weeks prior to the family's departure for their annual Michigan vacation?
(a) Starts telling everybody at work about his upcoming trip.
(b) Checks out library books to read during his vacation.
(c) Has a tuneup performed on their car.
(d) Maps out the trip route, complete with stops and detours.

8. When the family finally arrives at their summer trip destination, what obstacles do they immediately encounter?
(a) Rain and a power outage.
(b) A bear encounter and a cabin with no door.
(c) The Old Man left his wallet at the gas station, and Mother forgot the bug spray.
(d) The resort and several others nearby are completely full.

9. How does the narrator's childhood experience at the County Fair compare to a movie he watches when he's an adult that portrays a State Fair set in Indiana?
(a) His experience is completely different from the movie.
(b) The food's exactly the same, but he remembers wilder rides.
(c) The County Fair wasn't as exciting as the State Fair in the movie.
(d) His experience is identical to the movie.

10. Who successfully rings the bell at the County Fair strong man exhibit?
(a) The Old Man.
(b) Caleb.
(c) Mother.
(d) Randy.

11. How does the Old Man feel about the farming exhibits at the County Fair?
(a) He thinks his sons should see the exhibits.
(b) He doesn't think they should skip any.
(c) He really enjoys the dairy and corn exhibits.
(d) He couldn't care less about them.

12. How many Bumpuses move next door to the narrator and his family?
(a) Thirteen.
(b) Nobody knows for sure.
(c) Twelve Bumpuses and three of their friends.
(d) Nine.

13. How does the narrator describe the sound that his spinning top makes?
(a) Loud and wailing, like a ghost.
(b) Stealthy and quiet, like a ninja.
(c) Cold and hissing, like a snake.
(d) Bold and thunderous, like a storm.

14. What is the Old Man's greatest nemesis?
(a) Scut Farkas.
(b) The radiator in his house.
(c) His old Pontiac.
(d) Bumpus hounds.

15. When the narrator starts spinning tops against opponents other than Scut, what does he use?
(a) His best top.
(b) Lesser quality tops.
(c) Broken tops.
(d) Borrowed tops.

Short Answer Questions

1. The narrator notes that the only way to get his father going in the morning is with what?

2. Among the animals at the fair, the Shepherds see what?

3. On the morning of the family's departure for their Michigan trip, Mother is in the kitchen scrambling eggs and making coffee while the Old Man is doing what?

4. Who is Iron Man Gabruzzi's arch-rival?

5. When a crowd of kids gathers around the narrator and Farkas as they battle it out with their fancy spinning tops, what is the collective wish?

(see the answer keys)

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