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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 disease does Kay hide from Phil during a crucial time when she feels she should not upset him?

2. Phil decides to arbitrarily tone down Newsweek's reporting of the _______________.

3. What is the greatest worry of Kay in her role as a leader at the Post?

4. Kay says she should have __________ the letter where AG John Mitchell called the Post 'the best paper in the country.'

5. The _________ staff at the Washington Post continues to work as usual during the upheaval.

Short Essay Questions

1. What is the line that Phil uses in his speeches that is still quoted to this day?

2. How might one describe Kay's relationship to Sweeterman during her position at the Post?

3. What do none of the guests at the Bohlens' farewell party suspect of JFK, according to Kay?

4. What is the world's reaction to Watergate during this time, as it's only just begun to unfold?

5. Why do the Grahams fly to Los Angeles in early 1962 at the start of this chapter?

6. Why does Kay feel it is her job to keep in touch with U.S. officials in and out of office?

7. What happens when Kay gets Newsweek to feature the Third World in its magazine?

8. What happens after Stevenson meets up with Kay when she is in London on her way to the Aegean?

9. What does the Nixon spokesman first say of the Democratic National Committee Headquarters break-in?

10. What happens as the result of Kay being conditioned to deal only with important people?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

One of the things that is so stunning about Kay's background is that she didn't have much parental support when she was growing up. Though she did have both parents, they were frequently away or unavailable.

Part 1: Why do you think Kay's parents were not aware that their children needed more attention?

Part 2: How might Kay's life have changed had she had more parental interaction and support?

Part 3: Do you think Kay's parents were good parents or not? Why?

Essay Topic 2

The theme of sexism runs rampant in this book, with even Kay's father telling her that no man should be working for his wife when Kay's husband is given the position at the Post as opposed to her.

Part 1: Why do you think Kay's father thought that Phil was up to the task for the job?

Part 2: Do you think Kay would have made a better editor than Phil did? Why or why not?

Part 3: Why do you think that men though women were less able to handle the stresses of the newspaper world?

Essay Topic 3

In writing a memoir, Kay is faced with the events of her life and realizes she could have handled things much differently than she did.

Part 1: Why do you think that Kay decided to write the memoir in the first place?

Part 2: Do you think that anyone ever lives a life without any regrets? Why or why not?

Part 3: What regrets do you have and how have you managed to deal with the feeling of regret?

(see the answer keys)

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