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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. Who does Amanda secretly prefer working for?

2. In Chapter 21, what does the narrator say had never been a secret?

3. What does Ruth make in Chapter 22 for the adults?

4. What phrase does Ruth recall her mother saying in Chapter 18?

5. What bites Archie that he does not even feel?

Short Essay Questions

1. In Chapter 26, what happens to Archie?

2. In Chapter 24, what strikes Amanda as absurdly funny about G.H.?

3. In Chapter 24, what does Ruth say is the last thing she would like to hear on earth?

4. In Chapter 29, what is Clay's and Amanda's attitude on what they think will be their last night in the house?

5. In Chapter 26, what does Rose do as a diversion for herself and the others in the house, and how is this gesture received?

6. In Chapter 23, what do Ruth and G.H. note is unusual about their surroundings?

7. At the end of Chapter 27, why does Ruth tell Amanda that Amanda is lucky?

8. In Chapter 18, what does Ruth most desire?

9. How does Clay react to the Spanish-speaking woman who approaches him in Chapter 20?

10. Where do Rose and Archie go in Chapter 19 together?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Why do you think Rose decides not to tell the adults about the many deer she sees the morning after the blackout, and how does Rose end up embodying some survival traits that many others in the novel seem to lack? Write an essay explaining your answers, citing specific references to the text to help support your conclusions.

Essay Topic 2

How do Amanda and Clay choose to handle the unfolding crisis in terms of sharing information with their children Archie and Rose, and why do they choose the path they do? Write an essay explaining your answers, citing specific references to the text to help support your conclusions.

Essay Topic 3

How does Alam approach issues of race and class as they relate to Clay, Amanda, Ruth, and G.H.? Write an essay explaining your answers, citing specific references to the text to help support your conclusions.

(see the answer keys)

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