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. Why does the main character have to wear a white collar?

2. Bailey notices that the children of the neighborhood don't play with whom now?

3. With whom does Bailey get reacquainted?

4. How does Todd upset Hannah?

5. The description of the relationship of the dog and Ethan epitomizes the old saying "A Dog is ________________."

Short Essay Questions

1. How does Bailey/Toby feel about other animals? Why?

2. Why does Todd do all the bad things that he does?

3. What happens to the relationships of these main characters? Why?

4. How has life changed for this family after Todd's setting fire to their house?

5. What does Todd do in this section? Why?

6. Who is Senora? Is she kind? Why or why not?

7. How does Bailey save the family? What most likely happened to Todd? How is this good and bad?

8. How do Toby and Ethan react when they see each other? Why?

9. How is Todd still a problem? Is this problem lessening? Why or why not?

10. Describe Toby's first memories of life. How do these compare to your own?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

The main character believes that dogs are superior to other animals.

Part 1) How is this seen in this book? Why might the main character feel this way? How does this affect his relationships with other animals? Does this superiority also apply to humans? Why or why not?

Part 2) Does this superiority reflect a real dog's behavior towards other animals? If so, how? If not, why not? Do you believe that dogs are superior to other animals? If so, why? If not, what animal would you consider to be superior? Why?

Part 3) Do you see humans as superior to all other creatures? Why or why not? How has this attitude of superiority influenced human behavior throughout time? How does it still affect our world today?

Essay Topic 2

Cats are symbolic in this story.

Part 1) Describe the cats in this story. Why might they be this way? How do they affect Bailey and other dogs?

Part 2) How are cats symbolic? How does the repetition of encounters with cats reveal this symbolism?

Part 3) What other symbolism exists in this story? How does this affect the story?

Essay Topic 3

The main character feels primal rage towards several characters in this book.

Part 1) For whom does the main character feel this strong rage? How does this rage influence how the dog acts? What are the consequences of the dog's actions? What can be learned from this?

Part 2) How can humans relate to this rage? Should humans react more like this dog to feelings of rage? Why or why not?

Part 3) When have you felt feelings of rage? How did you deal with these feelings? What have you learned from these feelings and the situation that led to this rage?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 864 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample