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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. Why is Mathin training Harry?

2. What does Peterson say about Sir Charles' proposal to Corlath?

3. What do several Riders do around the fire the night Harry is given her sash?

4. What does Harry realize as she listens to stories of the Hill folk?

5. What is the name of a female heroine in the Hills?

Short Essay Questions

1. What does the group talk about when Beth and Cassie join Harry, how does Harry learn more about Hillfolk, and why is Jack included in the dinner with their king?

2. What kind of news does Sir Charles announce at breakfast?

3. What happens when Harry wakes up after being taken by King Corlath?

4. What does Corlath have Harry do at the camp, why is she offended and what is Corlath's response to her anger?

5. What do the girls do when they are back in the Residency and what does Jack say about how Corlath was feeling?

6. When does Harry get up to begin her training, of what does her training consist and what does Mathin give her to help with her training?

7. What does Corlath ask from the Homelanders, and what is their response?

8. What does Harry see when she drinks from the Water of Sight?

9. What does Harry do after dinner, and what does Corlath think as he looks at Harry?

10. Who helped put Harry in her new home and how did he do it?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Whenever reading a science fiction or fantasy novel, one must become familiar with new terminology that explains concepts or ideas that are not a part of the "real" world. In the case of "The Blue Sword", much of the setting may seem familiar to the reader (i.e. there are woods, mountains, rivers, oceans, etc.), though there are new ideas and terms to learn. Discuss the following:

1. Find five terms that are a part of the world of "The Blue Sword" that occur in the "real" world but are used differently in the book.

2. Define the words as used in "The Blue Sword" world and compare those five words as to how they are currently used in the American English language.

3. There are ways of learning about a new world or time when reading a science fiction or fantasy novel. Discuss the ways you were able to understand the world of "The Blue Sword". Did you have to look up any words? What does it mean to learn a word through its context? Do you have to do that in "The Blue Sword"? What word(s)?

4. Were there any words you never really understood from "The Blue Sword"? Which ones?

Essay Topic 2

As in many fantasy novels, magic is an inherent part of a few of the characters and can be wielded by other characters, though not as an inherent aspect of their nature. Discuss the following:

1. Thoroughly discuss and analyze the use of kelar in "The Blue Sword". Who possesses the ability to kelar as an inherent aspect of their nature? How does the inequality between those who can use it and those who cannot impact the plot of "The Blue Sword"?

2. Why do you think magic exists in so many fantasy novels? Do you think a novel can be "fantasy" and there be no magic as a part of the storyline? Why or why not.

3. Would you desire to possess the ability to use magic if there were such a talent in our world? Why or why not? What would be the advantages and disadvantages of possessing such an ability?

Essay Topic 3

Harry begins the novel as a displaced woman who has been sent to another part of the country to live with non-relatives upon the death of her father. She does not fit in well with the people around her, and though she adapts to her new circumstances, she seems to be basically drifting through life. By the end of the novel, in a very short time, Harry is a powerful, respected person who has become the queen of her great-grandmother's people -- people she never knew she was related to at the beginning of the novel.

1. Do you think the time frame of the huge changes in Harry's life are the least bit realistic? Why or why not? Use examples from "The Blue Sword" and your own life to support your answer.

2. Harry is kidnapped and taken to another culture without her consent, yet in a short time, she is learning to ride and fight and then, in a few weeks she manages to win a riding-fighting contest against people who have been practicing these skills all their lives. Do you think it is too much a stretch of the imagination for Harry to be able to win the laprun with such little time to learn the skills and does this lessen your enjoyment of the book? Why or why not? Use examples from "The Blue Sword" and your own life to support your answer.

3. What do you think it suggests about Harry's character that she is able to almost immediately care for the man who kidnapped her, setting aside her anger within days? Use examples from "The Blue Sword" and your own life to support your answer.

(see the answer keys)

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