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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. As Bryson was writing, which American President was suing the government for loss of earnings?
(a) George W. Bush.
(b) Bill Clinton.
(c) Richard Nixon.
(d) Jimmy Carter.

2. Why does Bryson say he never ultimately drove the rental car he needed at the Boston airport?
(a) He would not buy insurance.
(b) A friend gave him a lift instead.
(c) He did not have a valid driver's license.
(d) He could not find it.

3. According to Bryson, what makes up for the long New England winters?
(a) The roaring fire in his study.
(b) Going south for a month.
(c) They are stunningly pretty.
(d) Playing board games with his kids.

4. In "How to Rent a Car," what does Bryson find especially frustrating about the process?
(a) The limits on passengers.
(b) The options he is offered.
(c) The mileage charges.
(d) How and where to drop it off.

5. Why does Bryson have to buy a whole new computer and fax system when he returns to the United States?
(a) The British have a different electrical system.
(b) All his electronics got lost on the way.
(c) His kids were tired of using the family's 1980s model.
(d) He'd never owned a computer but now needed one for work.

Short Answer Questions

1. Which decade saw the idea of the drive-in really take off?

2. What did Bryson's parents give him for Christmas when he was eight?

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

4. How did Bryson describe his first run on a snowmobile?

5. What is the main point Bryson is making in "Your Tax Form Explained"?

Short Essay Questions

1. In "Life's Mysteries," Bryson lists a very large number of things that he doesn't understand. What are four of these things?

2. In "Shopping Madness," Bryson says there is a discipline called "retail anthropology." What is it ? What are some of the things it studies?

3. In "Deck the Halls," Bryson tells his readers that he is not looking forward to Christmas decorating. Why is this?

4. In "Ah, Summer!" what does Bryson say he likes about summers in New Hampshire? How does he compare them to summers in Iowa?

5. "Highway Diversions" is Bryson's look at highway travel, which he says is very dull. How does he compare modern highway travel to the highway travel of his youth?

6. In "The Wasteland," what is Bryson criticizing? Name three points of his criticism.

7. What does Bryson tell the reader about drive-in movies in "At the Drive-In"?

8. Find three examples from "The Great Indoors" that Bryson cites as reasons he thinks Americans spend too much time indoors.

9. "Your Tax Form Explained", what does Bryson satirize? Give three examples of how he does this.

10. In "Enough Already," Bryson says there is just too much of everything in America (except time, money, good plumbers, and polite people). What examples does he give to back this up? Why does he think it is not a good thing?

(see the answer keys)

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