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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 wrote "The Power and the Glory?"

2. What is the oldest part of the Tower of London?

3. The author writes about his teaching experience at Harvard that "the danger of pluralism is that it becomes ______."

4. In relation to the White Tower, where does the author say he spent many of his dark days?

5. What hymn did the old nurse teach the author and his young brother?

Short Essay Questions

1. Who goes to Bermuda with the author when he is a child and how does he describe their arrival in Bermuda?

2. What events from the author's life most fit the title for Part Two of "Telling Secrets?"

3. Why does the author describe Bermuda as enchanting?

4. How did the author feel about his kids once they were older and how did this affect his life once they left home as adults?

5. How does the author connect his feelings to what he describes about the Tower in London?

6. Why did the author like having Dudley Knott as a friend?

7. How did the author's kids connect him with the outside world when they were small?

8. Who is Naya?

9. Why does the author go to Bermuda as a child?

10. What does the author describe about the Tower of London?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

The author wrote "Brendan" in 1987. How does the author describe Brendan the Navigator? Why does the author say he found another saint in reference to Brendan the Navigator? How does the author use this character and another to convey his belief that we are all crippled? Through Brendan what does the author offer as a solution to help those that are crippled?

Essay Topic 2

The author's mother is quoted in Part One of the book as saying, "If I didn't have something to look for, I would be lost." Answer either A or B.

A. Why does she make this statement? Discuss the significance of the mother losing her beauty and trying to find it daily with her make-up and other enhancements, in relation to her state of mind, her health, and her relationship with her sons and her caregivers/friends.

B. Why does the author describe the statement as one of his mother's "most shimmering utterances?" How does this theme of "lost and found" play out throughout the details of the author's life described in the book - his family (mom and brother, wife and kids), friends, students?

Essay Topic 3

The author talks about being as deaf about his family and himself as his mother was, even with a purse full of half or not working hearing aids. The author uses two pieces of stained glass in his office to help readers understand this time in his life. Explain how the author felt he was "deaf" about his life and how he used the stained glass pieces to convey these experiences, thoughts and feelings to readers.

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