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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. What do the cowboys conclude has been killing on their ranch and must be stopped in Chapter 3?

2. Who does a Mexican police officer tell Billy say he does not answer to when he visits them in Chapter 4?

3. What does John Grady say to Eduardo when he first confronts him after Magdalena's death?

4. Which of the following words would not describe Billy when the book fast-forwards in the Epilogue?

5. Which cowboys are the only ones to make their horses go to the top of the mesa while tracking animals in Chapter 3?

Short Essay Questions

1. How is Billy described when he is first seen in 2002?

2. How does Billy survive when he travels to New Mexico in the epilogue?

3. How do the cowboys inadvertently break the necks of some wild dogs they track in Chapter 3?

4. How is John Grady's renovations on his new house described?

5. What happens when Magdalena has a seizure while she is with a client in Chapter 3?

6. How is Billy's work with a family at the end of the book described?

7. How do John Grady and Billy find a litter of puppies that are trapped on the mesa?

8. How are John Grady and Billy able to save the litter of puppies they find trapped on the mesa?

9. How does Magdalena react when a woman offers to help her after she escapes from the hospital?

10. How are Billy's actions described when he goes to the White Lake after Magdalena's death?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Discuss the author's portrayal of the concept of escape in the book. What symbolic meaning might the author wish for Magdalena and John Grady's attempts at escaping their own reality?

Essay Topic 2

Discuss the concept of sacrifice that is presented in the book. Why does John Grady decide to sacrifice everything he has in order to have Magdalena, and what can we learn about the nature of his character based on his acts of sacrifice?

Essay Topic 3

Discuss the portrayal of having conversations in the book. What important role does John Grady's conversations with others, especially Mr. Johnson, have in our ability to better define the nature of his character and what motivates him?

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