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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. By what time is the water covering the first three blocks from the beach on the day of the storm?

2. What is the name of the gentleman who leads people off the flooding second train?

3. The author quotes the following newspapers as commending the U.S. Weather Bureau's forecasting during the hurricane, except one:

4. Where does the Louisiana makes its intended voyage to after the storm?

5. What destroys Isaac's house during the storm?

Short Essay Questions

1. How do the children of Galveston react in the early hours of the storm?

2. How does Galveston handle the overwhelming number of dead bodies?

3. How does the mood change on the train with members of the military and other people from Houston as it gets closer to Galveston?

4. How do Joseph's and Isaac's accounts of the hurricane differ in tone?

5. In addition to the miracle of surviving the storm, what other miracle do Joseph and Isaac experience on the day of the hurricane?

6. What happens to Isaac the day after the storm?

7. What is the first event that causes Galveston residents to begin to take the storm seriously?

8. Why does Joseph want his telegram to the U.S. Weather Bureau chief be kept completely confidential?

9. How do Isaac and Dr. Young interpret what they see from the beach Saturday morning differently?

10. How does Isaac handle Moore's lies and distortion of the truth about how the Weather Bureau handled the hurricane?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Discuss the theme of the folly of man and the way it resonates throughout the book. How is the story of Isaac's Storm an example of man's best intentions gone tragically wrong?

Essay Topic 2

What are the greater truths found in the smallest details of the story? Use specific examples.

Essay Topic 3

What are examples of the hurricane bringing out both the best and worst in people throughout the story? What does this say about both the best and worst sides of human nature? What are real life examples that demonstrate this same truth?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 873 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample