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

Multiple Choice Questions

1. What does Bill say is a strange feature of their car?
(a) It has no cup holders.
(b) It dispenses ice.
(c) The steering wheel is heated.
(d) There is an indentation on the dashboard with no obvious use.

2. Why does Bill prefer the post offices in the U.S. to the ones in Britain?
(a) The U.S. post offices only deal with mail.
(b) Each town has one.
(c) The U.S. postal charges are very low.
(d) The buildings are clean and new.

3. What does Bryson think is sad about how things are changing in modern Vermont?
(a) There are too many Canadians there.
(b) The weather is warming up.
(c) Pollution is increasing.
(d) More people now are born outside the state.

4. In "Why Everyone is Worried," which federal agency is not doing a very good job, according to Bryson?
(a) Administration on Aging.
(b) Homeland Security.
(c) The CIA.
(d) The FBI.

5. According to Bryson in "Why No One Walks," how far does the average American walk in a day?
(a) About 350 yards.
(b) About two miles.
(c) About half a mile.
(d) About a mile.

Short Answer Questions

1. What event in America is starting up as Bill begins writing his columns for his British audience?

2. What does Bill say about the way people of the world eat?

3. What American kitchen convenience does Bill think is just wonderful?

4. What particular product in American supermarkets fascinates Bill?

5. What does Bill say is a new shopping experience for him on his return to America?

Short Essay Questions

1. How does Bryson feel about gardening? What are his feelings concerning gardening with his mate in "Gardening With My Wife"?

2. Why does Bryson find going to a restaurant in the United States so difficult, as expressed in "What's Cooking"? How does he address the issue of the many varieties of food out there?

3. How does Bryson support his statement that summer movies "have become so dumb, so very, very dumb" (Essay "Lost at the Movies")?

4. In "How to Have Fun at Home,"which household conveniences are high on Bill's approval list? Why?

5. In "Design Flaws" Bryson compares running shoes and his computer keyboard. What does he say about each one?

6. In "A Visit to the Barbershop," how does Bryson convey that adjusting to the small town barbershop is difficult?

7. In "The Inefficiency Report," Bryson says "Our subject today is large-scale incompetence in my native land." Give some examples of what he believes are areas of incompetence in 1990s America.

8. What information about household accidents in America does Bryson give the reader in "Well, Doctor. I was Just Trying to Lie Down..."? Where did he find his information?

9. In "The Numbers Game," Bryson expresses his amazement at the large numbers that are quoted by American government agencies. What does he say about the use of such large numbers?

10. What does Bryson, who admits he "is no stranger to sloth," say about the walking habits of Americans in Essay 26, "Why No One Walks"?

(see the answer keys)

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