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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 does Sam Pickles do with the money he receives as his share from the sale of the pub hotel in Chapter III?

2. The doctor who examines Fish Lamb in Chapter III believes that he must be what as a result of his accident?

3. Rose and her brothers discover the severed foot of whom washed up on the beach in Chapter I?

4. What does Sam Pickles buy for Rose, reducing her to tears, in Chapter IV?

5. What Australian coin-flipping game does Sam gamble on in Chapter IV?

Short Essay Questions

1. Who moves into Cloudstreet after Quick Lamb has left home in Chapter V? How is this character introduced?

2. What is significant about the author’s depiction of the house on Cloud Street in Chapter III?

3. What is noteworthy about the narratives of Quick and Fish Lamb in Chapter IV?

4. How do the Pickles family members differ from the Lambs in their perception of luck, as noted in Chapter III?

5. How are fates of the Lamb and Pickles families compared to one another in Chapter II?

6. How do Sam’s actions in Chapter III propel the plot of the narrative forward?

7. What is author Tim Winton’s focus in Chapter V? How does this chapter serve the novel?

8. What is symbolized by Fish’s fit during the celebration of Guy Fawkes Day in Chapter IV?

9. What events occur in January of 1951, according to the narrator in Chapter V?

10. What theme is introduced through the character of Rose Pickles in the beginning of Chapter I?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

How would you describe the linear structure of Cloudstreet? Is the narrative of the story related from a present or past tense? Does the narrative have nonlinear elements? Are there flashbacks? What effect do these techniques have on the reader?

Essay Topic 2

Describe and discuss the character of Beryl Lee in the novel. Where does Oriel meet Beryl? Why does she invite Beryl to live at Cloudstreet? How does she fit in with the two families there? Why does Beryl leave Cloudstreet? Where does she go after leaving?

Essay Topic 3

Analyze and discuss Quick’s reasons for leaving home in Chapter V. How have the changes in the family dynamic led to Quick’s decision to leave? Where has Lester Lamb been performing in Perth at this time? How does Quick feel about his father’s performances?

(see the answer keys)

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