View a FREE sample

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

Multiple Choice Questions

1. What does Alice learn that Mother has been doing in Part Four: Arthur-Mother?
(a) Saying Father is still alive.
(b) Lying about Father's profession.
(c) Telling people she never married.
(d) Pretending she has just left her husband.

2. How does Alice describe Mr. Early when he taught high school?
(a) An endless fountain of words, energy and hope.
(b) Bursting out of his ill fitting suit with prose and poetry.
(c) The unexpected man who no one recognizes once he speaks.
(d) Dancing on his toes, whooping over the sounds the poet makes.

3. How does Alice say that Nonna described Mother?
(a) As spirited and energetic.
(b) As eager to please.
(c) As precocious, loud and boisterous.
(d) As shy and withdrawn.

4. What does Aunt Frances confide to Alice during their last visit in the book?
(a) That she misses Uncle Billy.
(b) That she regrets being so strict with Alice.
(c) That she has cancer.
(d) That she sometimes steals packs of gum.

5. What does Mr. Early encourage Alice to do?
(a) Become a musician.
(b) Become a poet.
(c) Go to Florida alone.
(d) Move in with Mother.

Short Answer Questions

1. What was Mr. Early doing when he died?

2. Where do Aunt Frances and Uncle Billy live when Alice visits them in Part Four?

3. How do Nonna and Alice communicate?

4. Who replaces Arthur?

5. Why doesn't Mother attend the funeral in Part Three?

Short Essay Questions

1. Who is the most positive father figure in Alice's life?

2. Was living with Uncle Billy and Aunt Frances good for Alice?

3. What is the impact of Mr. Early's death on Alice?

4. Describe the relationship between Mother and Nonna.

5. Describe Alice's coping mechanism for dealing with hurtful memories of people in her past.

6. Explain why Alice finds herself in a lawyer's office when she is 30-years-old.

7. Does Alice love Uncle Billy and Aunt Frances?

8. How is Arthur's death handled by Alice's family?

9. Describe Alice's Walter.

10. Is Mother's interpretation of father's death believable?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 829 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample