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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. What does Abilene gather for Miss Sadie while her friends Lettie and Ruthanne are out of town?

2. Who does Jinx feel is watching him as he prepares for the fair?

3. What three elements does Jinx plan to mix together for his secret mixture?

4. How does Hattie Mae act when Abilene wants to talk to her about Gideon?

5. Do the townspeople make enough money from their elixir to buy the land they want?

Short Essay Questions

1. How is Miss Sadie's health when Abilene visits her on August 23, 1936?

2. On July 15, 1918, what does Abilene go to the cemetery to look for?

3. What does Shady do while the liquids are being mixed for Jinx's mixture?

4. What role does Abilene take on at the end of the novel?

5. How do Jinx and Shady sell their miracle elixir?

6. What does Miss Sadie tell Abilene about the Widow Cane property?

7. How does Abilene discover who her father is in Manifest?

8. What does Jinx do when he sees the two sheriffs who are in town?

9. How does Abilene feel about the growth of Miss Sadie's garden?

10. What is Ned's job in the military?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Jinx uses trickery and deception to help himself and the town. Discuss trickery and deception in the novel.

1) How do characters like Devlin, Jinx, and Abilene use trickery and deception for their own means? What makes some uses of trickery positive in the novel, while other uses are negative?

2) How does the town use trickery and deception? Why are these means necessary to counter Devlin? Are these means justified?

3) What is the author's perspective on trickery and deception?

Essay Topic 2

Objects and mementos play an important role in uncovering and understanding the past. Discuss importance of objects in revealing the past in the novel.

1) Why do characters keep objects from the past? How do objects connect the characters to the past?

2) How do objects serve as clues for Abilene to recover the past and understand it?

3) What are the limitations of objects in revealing and remembering the past?

Essay Topic 3

One of the main themes of the novel is prejudice. Discuss the following:

1) What problems does prejudice cause for the people of the town? What are the causes of the people's prejudice? Who does prejudice help and who does it hurt?

2) How does prejudice affect Ned and Miss Sadie? How does prejudice affect Jinx? How does the town overcome prejudice?

3) How does prejudice affect the town in the 1930s when Abilene arrives?

(see the answer keys)

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