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This quiz consists of 5 multiple choice and 5 short answer questions through The Great Indoors, Death Watch, In Praise of Diners, Shopping Madness, The Fat of the Land, Your New Computer, How to Rent a Car, The Wasteland, The Flying Nightmare and Enough Already.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. What does Bill say about the barber in his new hometown?
(a) He is fresh out of barber school and eager to try new things.
(b) He only seems to know hairstyles from the 1950's.
(c) He could talk the hind leg off a donkey.
(d) He reads more books than Bill does.

2. What word associated with Christmas does Bryson wonder about at the beginning of "The Mysteries of Christmas"?
(a) Yule.
(b) Noel.
(c) Merry.
(d) A-wassailing.

3. Bryson finds summer blockbuster movies annoying, but what does he have a real problem with?
(a) The cost of popcorn.
(b) The behavior of children at the movie.
(c) The large cinema complexes.
(d) The cost of admission.

4. What surprising statistic does Bryson share about the number of lawyers in America?
(a) There is a shortage of them.
(b) There is 1 lawyer for every 1,000,000 people.
(c) There are more of them in the United States than the rest of the world put together.
(d) There is 1 lawyer for every 1,000 people.

5. In "The Flying Nightmare," what job does Bryson say his father had?
(a) A sportswriter.
(b) A salesman.
(c) A pilot.
(d) A singer.

Short Answer Questions

1. According to Bryson, which of his sons might one day become a libel lawyer?

2. What does Bill say is ridiculous about a VCR?

3. What does Bill find to be a difficult adjustment for him when he returns to the U.S.?

4. What does Bryson say about the long trip and back to take his son to college?

5. What trait does Bill admit that he has in regards to simple everyday activities?

(see the answer key)

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