View a FREE sample

This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. Which of the following body parts did Will lose due to frostbite?

2. How much weight has Johnny lost since barricading himself in his apartment?

3. Aside from the grocery store, what is the only other place Johnny leaves his apartment to visit?

4. Which of the following groups of people is NOT included in the screening process Karen sets up for Will's film?

5. Whom does Karen leave her children with when she returns to Virginia searching for Will?

Short Essay Questions

1. How does Johnny respond to Thumper's invitation to come over for dinner?

2. What are the only two reasons Johnny has for leaving his apartment after he slips into insanity?

3. What did Johnny's mother write him a letter to apologize for?

4. What prompts Chad's schoolteacher to knock on the Navidson's front door?

5. How does Lude react to seeing Johnny after he finally emerges from his apartment?

6. How does Lude die?

7. What critique does Timothy K Thuan give of Will's photography?

8. How does Will react to Reston's suggestion that he call "National Geographic" and let them take over the investigation of the hallway?

9. How does Will pass the time in the hallway once his batteries have run out?

10. How does the real estate agent react to Karen's decision to sell the home in Virginia?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Johnny Truant, like Will Navidson, is a man with a troubled childhood. First, describe Johnny's childhood as he remembers it throughout the novel. Then, explain why Johnny's childhood might have prompted his later obsession with the writings in Zampano's trunk. Finally, explain how the writings in Zampano's trunk help to give Johnny a deeper understanding of the childhood he survived.

Essay Topic 2

Zampano is a mysterious character who creeps around Lude's apartment building. First, describe Zampano as Lude remembers him. Then, explain the mystery surrounding Zampano's death. Finally, explain how the contents of Zampano's trunk eventually unleash an obsession in Johnny Truant.

Essay Topic 3

All throughout the novel, Johnny has various sexual encounters with random women. First, describe at least two of the women Johnny finds himself in brief relationships with, and describe how each of these relationships end. Then, describe what seems to motivate Johnny in his pursuit of these women. What does he gain, or lose, in each conquest?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 909 words (approx. 4 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample