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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 5, what does Miles think is the difference between his attraction to Missy and his attraction to Sarah?

2. What reason does Miss Harkins give for Harris Presser's arrest and execution?

3. Why does Sarah tell her mother Miles agreed to work Thanksgiving Day?

4. In Chapter 14, what reason does Sarah give for delaying introducing Miles to her family?

5. In what year was Jonah born?

Short Essay Questions

1. How does Sarah react to the news that her ex-husband is planning to remarry? Why does she react this way?

2. In Chapter 1, what did Miles find in Jonah's backpack? What does Jonah have to say about it?

3. What does the unnamed narrator in Chapter 4 tell the reader kept Miles from looking for Missy on the day of her death when she was late coming home? Who told Miles about Missy's accident?

4. Why does Miles insist that he is not a smoker? Who calls him a smoker?

5. What did Miles do the day Missy died rather than stay home and care for the lawn as she asked? What were the last words he said to her that day?

6. Why has Sarah Andrews moved to New Bern? Why did she choose an apartment in downtown New Bern despite the difficult parking situation?

7. In Chapter 13, Miles asks Sarah about living in the big city. What does Sarah tell him? How does he react?

8. In Chapter 2, for what reason does Sarah think that Jonah has become so far behind in his class work? What does she think of that?

9. Why does Jonah object in Chapter 5 to having to stay after school with Miss Andrews several times a week? How does Miles talk him into cooperating?

10. How did Miles come to have a case file on the death of his wife? What does he do with it?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Discuss one of the following in an essay:

1) Point of view.

2) Setting.

3) Language.

Essay Topic 2

Discuss one of the following relationships in detail:

1) Sarah and Brian.

2) Miles and Missy.

3) Charlie and Miles.

4) Otis Timson and Miles.

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?

(see the answer keys)

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