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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. How often do Bone's family visit Glen's family?

2. What does Bone do in Chapter 9 that upsets Aunt Alma?

3. What does Mama cook on the sides of the pan with the eggs?

4. Who decides that 'illegitimate' should be stamped on Bone's birth certificate?

5. Who is referred to as "black-headed and strange" with a "man-type part"?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why does Bone begin looking at herself in mirrors?

2. Why does Bone create games like the "Dalton Girls" and the "Mean Sisters"?

3. Explain the significance of Aunt Alma's scrapbook for Bone.

4. Bone says she doesn't want to go to Shannon's family barbecue, but she ends up going. Why do you think she goes?

5. Why does Bone try to scare Reese against hitchhiking while at the same time doing it herself?

6. Glen's photograph tells a viewer little about him. Bone says his eyes are empty. What might this mean?

7. Why does Ruth like being pregnant?

8. When Mrs. Parson's comes to visit and bring Lyle's insurance money, Mama struggles between being polite and hoping Mrs. Parson leave before Glen returns home. What do you think Glen would do?

9. Aunt Ruth tells Mama that she looks like a Boatwright after Lyle dies. What does she mean by that?

10. After Glen beats Bone with a belt for the first time, Mama asks Bone what she did. Why doesn't Bone tell her?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

As in "Bastard Out of Carolina," keeping secrets contributes in the continuation of abuse. Explain why people--both adults and children--keep abuse a secret. In your opinion, what is the best time for Bone to expose the secret and why?

Essay Topic 2

Fantasy becomes an important part Bone's life. Choose three uses of fantasy, and describe how they help Bone cope with her situation.

Essay Topic 3

What is the significance of Bone being illegitimate? Would it make any difference for any of the main characters if the state had not stamped that information on Bone's birth certificate? Explain the significance of Mama leaving Bone with the unstamped birth certificate as her parting gift.

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