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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. Who gave Valencia a book about famous deaf people?

2. What kind of creature does Valencia bring food to in the woods?

3. What color does Lola tell Virgil to beware of in Chapter 11?

4. How does Valencia think her mother will figure out she is bringing food into the woods?

5. In Chapter 6, what is Virgil's response to Chet's ridicule?

Short Essay Questions

1. How does Virgil feel about the fact that his family has nicknamed him Turtle?

2. In Chapter 3, what is a criticism Lola has of Virgil's mother when it comes to food?

3. Who is Virgil's pet, and how does Virgil feel about the pet?

4. In Chapter 5, what does Virgil suspect is wrong with Gulliver, and why does he think this?

5. How does Valencia feel about her own name?

6. In Chapter 3, who is Ruby San Salvador and what becomes of her, according to Lola?

7. In Chapter 15, what is Valencia looking for in the woods, and why?

8. Why does Virgil's family nickname him Turtle?

9. In Chapter 13, what is Chet Bullens's motivation for trying to catch a snake in the woods?

10. Who is the student from Virgil's school who bullies him, and what does the bully usually say?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Why do you think Kelly chooses to write Valencia's chapters from the first-person point of view and Virgil's from the third-person point of view? What effect do you think her alternation between viewpoints from different characters has on the reader?

Essay Topic 2

How does Valencia believe her deafness affects her mother's attitudes and behaviors towards her? What does Valencia try to do to counteract what she sees as her mother's unfair treatment of her?

Essay Topic 3

How does Kelly use both pacing and plot points to build and sustain suspense throughout the novel?

(see the answer keys)

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