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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. After his father dies, where does Lurie stay for a year?

2. What letter does Nora find at The Sentinel office that gives her a clue to her sons' whereabouts?

3. Who is pursuing Lurie and the gang he commits crimes with?

4. Who is Evelyn's first-born child?

5. What does Lurie steal on the ship because of Hobbs' want?

Short Essay Questions

1. What was Hobb's special skill, even as a child?

2. How does the "Wanted" poster in Part I describe Lurie?

3. Who is the voice Nora often hears and has silent conversations with?

4. What is one of Nora's most pressing concerns on her homestead?

5. What does Toby want to show his mother so badly in Part I that Nora is skeptical about?

6. In Part I, what does Lurie wish he could remember his father talking about more than anything else?

7. How does Toby injure his eye?

8. Why does Nora choose to sign her rebuttal letter to The Sentinel from Ellen Francis?

9. What does Lurie steal on the ship he takes cover on whose owner he later bumps into in Part I?

10. What errand is Emmett very late returning from in Part II?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Write an essay analyzing the symbolism of the stereoscope that Merrion Crace gives to Toby in the section titled Evening. What is the significance of this gift to a young boy whose family has languished in the desert for many years?

Essay Topic 2

What seems to bother Nora the most when she finds out her eldest son Rob and Josie are lovers? What kind of a life does she envision for them as they grow older? Write an essay explaining your answer.

Essay Topic 3

Write an essay analyzing Obreht's choice to write some of Lurie's sections from a first-person perspective, with Lurie addressing his camel, Burke, directly. How does this decision affect the reader's experience?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 610 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample