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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. Of Travis, Abby says to America in Chapter 7, “I don’t think he’s capable of” what?

2. What college is Abby attending in the novel?

3. Abby says in the beginning of Chapter 7 that she has how much longer to live with Travis?

4. What kind of car does Shepley drive?

5. When Abby places her bet on Travis before the fight in Chapter 4, Adam tells her she’s not the what that he thought she was?

Short Essay Questions

1. What fight are the protagonist and her best friend attending in the opening of Chapter 1? How did they come to know about the event?

2. What are the wagers in the bet between Travis and Abby in Chapter 4? Who wins the bet?

3. What does Parker tell Abby when he stops by to talk to her in Chapter 9?

4. What conversation takes place between Abby and Finch in the beginning of Chapter 9?

5. How does Travis go about inserting himself into Abby’s life initially in Chapter 2?

6. Where does Abby wake up in Chapter 8? Why is she told to call America?

7. What confrontation takes place between Abby and Travis in the beginning of Chapter 10?

8. What bargaining takes place between Abby and Travis as Abby’s relationship with Parker gains steam in Chapter 6?

9. What fight is Travis called to in Chapter 4? What does Travis insist about Abby’s apparel at the fight?

10. Who wins the fight in Chapter 1? What happens to Abby’s sweater at the fight?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Discuss the theme of jealousy in the novel. How does Travis express his jealousy over Parker in Chapter 5? How does Abby respond to Travis’s conquests with the women at the college? How does the issue of jealousy become resolved in the narrative?

Essay Topic 2

Analyze the character of Parker Hayes in the novel. How old is Parker? What are Abby’s first impressions of him? In what ways does Parker Hayes represent the opposite of Travis Maddox in the novel? How does Parker’s character evolve in the story?

Essay Topic 3

Family in Beautiful Disaster

a. Compare the families of Abby and Travis in the novel. How are they similar? How do they differ?

b. What symbolism supports the theme of family in the novel? Do you think that the author’s depictions of family in the narrative are positive or negative? Why?

(see the answer keys)

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