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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 reason does Shay tell Edward her mother gave her for why her father married her mother?

2. What ex-wife does Crispin Cox think of repeatedly on the plane in Part I?

3. What does Linda's boyfriend do for a living?

4. What memory does Shay share with Edward about Jordan in Part I?

5. How old was Shay when her father left?

Short Essay Questions

1. What are some of the reasons Bruce Adler decided to homeschool his children?

2. What does Principal Arundhi propose to Edward when he first meets him to try to forge a connection with Edward?

3. What does Benjamin Stillman think when he sees how the Adler family interacts with each other?

4. Why does Dr. Mike tell Edward that so many people seem to want to tell Edward about their own lives?

5. What is Bruce Adler disappointed about in his professional life?

6. Why does Jane Adler sit in first class, away from her husband and two sons?

7. Why does Edward want to wear all of his brother Jordan's clothes that he can find?

8. Why are the Adlers moving from New York to Los Angeles?

9. What does Jordan do at the Newark airport that embarrasses his parents?

10. In Part I, why does Edward feel so strange about his new bedroom being in Lacey's and John's would-be nursery?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Why do you think Edward's relationship with his Uncle John changes so dramatically after he tells John he has been reading through all the letters for him? How does this revelation of Edward's to John also seem to change the dynamic between John, Lacey, and Edward? Write an essay explaining your answers.

Essay Topic 2

How does Napolitano's choice to alternate between the present day and the events of the day of the plane crash affect the reader's experience of this novel and the reader's understanding of the characters' development? Write an essay explaining your answers, citing specific references to the text to help support your answers.

Essay Topic 3

Immediately after the crash, what are some of the things adults do and say to Edward that he finds unbearable and/or confusing? Write an essay explaining your answers, citing specific references to the text to help support your answers.

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