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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 took a death photograph of Charlie, thinking she wouldn't make it through the night?

2. How did Pete react to having his mother-in-law move in with the family?

3. What food did Mary wake to find Charlie cooking, naked, at the oven in the middle of the night?

4. At the opening of the novel, in what room of the house was Mary lying when the doctor arrived?

5. How did Mary hear the news that her family had inherited money from Grandma Moore's estate?

Short Essay Questions

1. What happened during the playground fight between Mary and Rickey Carter?

2. How did Mary know her relationship with her neighbors in Texas was beginning to change?

3. Who was Purdy?

4. What was the effect of the many years of hard drinking on Pete's body?

5. How did Lecia react when her mother threatened to shoot Hector in front of her?

6. What event led to Mary swearing that she would never step foot in Charlie's bar again?

7. What was The Liars' Club?

8. How did Charlie react to the news that their family had inherited a large sum of money from Grandma Moore's estate?

9. How did both Charlie and Pete deliver the news to their daughters that they were getting a divorce?

10. How did Mary find out that her family was moving, yet again, from Colorado?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Throughout much of Mary's childhood, Charlie is deeply depressed. First, explain what traumatic event first sparked Charlie's deep depression. Then, give at least two examples from the text that you believe best exhibit the ways Charlie expressed her depression. Finally, explain how Charlie's depression affected the way Mary learned to deal with her emotions. How do the effects of Charlie's depression still affect Mary today?

Essay Topic 2

Around Mary's tenth birthday, Pete and Charlie begin to struggle for power in their relationship, a conflict that comes out in various ways in the relationship. First, explain how Pete attempts to exert his power in the relationship and compare / contrast that to the way Charlie attempts to exert her power in the relationship. What is the same about their struggles for power? What is different? What is the effect of this power struggle on the maturity of the children in the house? Be sure to include at least two scenes from the memoir to strengthen your arguments.

Essay Topic 3

After Grandma Moore's death, Charlie begins a deep, downward spiral. First, explain the timeline of events that eventually lead Charlie to her pitiful state at the end of the novel. Who / what does Charlie blame for the fate of her life? Who / what does Mary blame for her mother's problems? As a reader, who / what do you think is responsible for landing Charlie in her emotional and physical state at the end of the memoir? Be sure to include at least two scenes from the memoir to strengthen your arguments.

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