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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. Who tells Raoul about the deaths of Mr. and Mrs. Swopes?

2. What movie star did Alex and Robin see the last time they stayed at the Bel-Air Hotel together?

3. How old was Nona when her father first committed incest with her?

4. What is Woody doing when Alex arrives at the trailer?

5. Whose music does Alex play on the radio during his drive to get Raoul out of jail?

Short Essay Questions

1. What is significant about the back road Alex notices on the county map in the La Vista police station?

2. Why did Alex buy Delano Hardy a guitar?

3. What reason does Ezra give Alex for leaving very quickly the first time he met Mr. Swopes?

4. What prompts Raoul to go to La Vista, which lands him in jail?

5. When Milo tells Alex that he will pursue the Swopes case after he's done with the rapist's case, why do his words chill Alex?

6. Why does the optimism in Garland Swope's ledgers end in Volume X?

7. Why does Alex decide to follow the car he encounters as he leaves the Retreat?

8. Why does Alex decide that Sheriff Houten isn't the right person for him to go to in order to get straight answers about the Swopes?

9. What do Mr. Swopes' ledgers indicate his wife's role was in his incestuous relationship with Nona?

10. Why does Alex set aside the magazine he's reading while he waits for Ezra to speak with Raoul?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

How is Nona's life impacted by her father's incestuous experiments? What affect does it have on her psyche? How does she act because of it?

Essay Topic 2

What is the scene at the climax of the novel? What makes it the climax? What leads up to this climax? What story lines are wrapped up?

Essay Topic 3

What does the single, normal tree standing at the end of Mr. Swopes' greenhouse symbolize? Why does the author include this striking example of symbolism? What does it add to the story?

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