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This test consists of 5 multiple choice questions, 5 short answer questions, and 10 short essay questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. When does Nat most frequently pass time watching the birds?
(a) Before he goes to bed.
(b) During his midday meal.
(c) First thing in the morning.
(d) On his way home from work.

2. How many days does Nat work on the farm?
(a) 7.
(b) 1.
(c) 3.
(d) 6.

3. During which month does the story open?
(a) March.
(b) June.
(c) December.
(d) September.

4. Where does the bird draw blood from Nat during the first attack?
(a) From his eyes.
(b) From his neck.
(c) From his hand.
(d) From his ear.

5. Who does Mr. Trigg think has poisoned the birds?
(a) The Russians.
(b) The Americans.
(c) The French.
(d) The Chinese.

Short Answer Questions

1. According to the narrator, what “changed overnight” at the story’s opening?

2. Who offers to drive Jill home from the bus stop?

3. Who suggests that the army should shoot the birds out of the sky?

4. How does Nat react to his wife’s news?

5. What haunting sound does Nat hear when the birds start to attack on his way home from the bus stop?

Short Essay Questions

1. How does Mrs. Hocken react when Nat starts boarding up the windows and doors?

2. How does Nat protect himself from the bird attack as he runs home from Jill’s bus stop?

3. What does Nat think has caused the birds’ strange behavior?

4. What is Nat’s mental state when he returns home from the bus stop?

5. Who does Nat speak to while at the bus stop, and what is their reaction to his call?

6. How does Nat dispose of the bird carcasses that litter his yard after the first attack?

7. Why is Nat filled with “a kind of excitement” upon returning home from the beach?

8. What startling sight does Nat see while on the beach?

9. What theory does Mrs. Trigg present as the origins of the strange birds?

10. When do the birds first draw blood from Nat?

(see the answer keys)

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