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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. On what street does Karina live?

2. When Bill demands to speak privately with Karina, he indicates Karina needs to do what?

3. What does Richard eat for dinner on Christmas Eve?

4. To whom does Richard write letters on the computer?

5. How many letters does Richard write his father?

Short Essay Questions

1. What is ironic about Karina's asking Richard if he wants anything in Chapter Twenty-eight?

2. While Karina is in New Orleans, what trouble befalls Richard?

3. What does Karina imagine during the piano lesson with Dylan?

4. What changes does Richard see in Karina following her trip to New Orleans?

5. What situation causes Grace and Richard to grow closer together while Karina is in New Orleans?

6. After the incident on Christmas Eve, what two tests are performed on Richard? What are the results?

7. After moving back in with Karina, where does Richard stay? What is notable about this room?

8. Who is Dr. George and what service does he offer Richard?

9. Explain Richard's love for his daughter versus his love for the piano.

10. What offer does Elise make as Karina, Elise, and Grace take a morning walk? How does Grace help this plan?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

What might have happened to Richard and Karina had Richard never been diagnosed with ALS? Argue for an alternative reality based on what the reader knows of their histories, actions, and beliefs.

Essay Topic 2

At one point in the novel, Richard thinks that “living with ALS is a practice in the art of Zen” (98). Explain the truth behind this belief as evidenced by the novel.

Essay Topic 3

The idea of one’s personal story is a common idea in the novel. At one point, Karina thinks “how the story of their lives can be an entirely different genre depending on the narrator” (29). Discuss how Richard, Karina, and Grace might tell different versions of the same shared history.

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 760 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample