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This test consists of 5 multiple choice questions, 5 short answer questions, and 10 short essay questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. Why does Spenser not want a personal relationship with Patty?
(a) Because he does not find her attractive.
(b) Because he is in love with Susan, and because he believes that Paul would think less of him if he were to get involved with Patty.
(c) Because it would be unprofessional and harm his professional reputation.
(d) Because he does not like mixing personal issues with business matters.

2. In Chapter 2, who is the narrator staking out and trying to find?
(a) Susan Silverman.
(b) Harry Cotton.
(c) Mel Giacomin.
(d) Hawk.

3. At the beginning of Chapter 2, where is the narrator sitting?
(a) Outside an apartment building on Hammond Pond Parkway in Chestnut Hill.
(b) At police headquarters.
(c) At the counter of a Dunkin' Donuts.
(d) The narrator's office.

4. What is the setting of the first paragraph of Chapter 6?
(a) Madison Square Garden.
(b) Soldier Field.
(c) Lexington, Massachusetts.
(d) Times Square.

5. In Chapter 4, what does the passenger say about the narrator's muscles?
(a) That they are ugly.
(b) That they are impressive.
(c) That they are fake.
(d) That they are wimpy.

Short Answer Questions

1. In Chapter 4, what does the passenger say about the narrator's profession?

2. Besides the narrator, who else was evicted from the corner of Massachusetts Avenue and Boylston?

3. In Chapter 8, how long was the time period that Spenser was gone following breakfast?

4. In Chapter 7, what is Patty's "plan" for Spenser?

5. In Chapter 9, what do Paul and Spenser decide to do for dessert?

Short Essay Questions

1. Spenser reluctantly takes the job of protecting Patty and Paul from Mel and his thugs. What reservations does Spenser have about taking the job, and why does he take it?

2. In Chapter 12 we meet Hawk. What kind of a person does Hawk appear to be?

3. What does the discussion that Patty and Spenser have in Chapter 8 reveal to the audience about Patty's real character?

4. In Chapter 10, Patty propositions Spenser, who politely rejects her advances. The two have a fairly lengthy discussion about the event, during which we learn more about Patty's feelings of self worth. What are those feelings?

5. In Chapter 9, Spenser makes an impromptu dinner for himself and Paul. At the dinner table, Paul seems surprised that Spenser can cook. The discussion that follows allows the reader to learn more about Paul and his relationship with the world around him. What did you learn about Paul and how he relates to the world around him?

6. By the beginning of Chapter 6, some time has passed since Spenser's case with the Giacomins; but, he really cannot stop thinking about the whole situation. It bothers him at a basketball game during a date with his girlfriend, Susan. What does this extended concern that Spenser shows for Paul and the discontent that Spenser feel for Patty and Mel show about Spenser's character?

7. In the scene where Paul arrives home, Patty is entertaining a male guest, Stephen Court. How does that scene make you feel?

8. What type of person does the narrator seem to be?

9. In Chapter 8, Patty makes breakfast for herself and Spenser after Spenser drops Paul off at school. During breakfast the two of them get into a somewhat heated discussion about the roles of men and women in life, as well as their places in society. What are Patty's views on the topic as shown by that discussion?

10. In April, after Mel's thugs try to kidnap Paul, Patty Giacomin calls Spenser for help once again. This time, she asks Spenser to protect her and Paul. Why does Patty desperately call Spenser when she experiences trouble with her ex-husband in relation to her son?

(see the answer keys)

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