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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 activity begins when Jack's hands begin to smell?

2. Who does Julie confide in about her all night dates with Derek?

3. Why is Derek coming over in Chapter 7?

4. Who was tied to a brass cot two years ago when their parents left them alone for a short while?

5. Who feels sick and wants to leave the pool hall?

Short Essay Questions

1. What is Derek's solution to covering the rotting smell? What do the kids tell him the smell is?

2. What happened to the children when they were left alone one time previously?

3. How does Tom get to play in girls' clothing without getting picked on by his friends?

4. What is Jack's science fiction novel about and what question does Jack pose regarding it?

5. What conversation does Jack have with Tom after being awakened by Tom's fake crying?

6. Discuss the owners of the pool hall's relationship with Derek. Why does he play for free?

7. Jack thinks his hands smell like rotten meat. What does he do? What is really causing the smell?

8. Why do Jack and Sue get excited when they investigate the strange smell in the cellar?

9. What is the conversation Derek has with the siblings over tea, after sealing the cracked cement?

10. How does the book end?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

What is a flashback? Identify and discuss one example of flashback from this novel. How does the author signify that it is a flashback? How does the author demonstrate that the flashback ends?

Essay Topic 2

Discuss the roles transferred by Mother to Julie and Jack. What effect does this transfer have on the family unit as a whole?

Essay Topic 3

What are static and dynamic characters? Name the static and dynamic characters in this novel and discuss what about each makes them either static or dynamic.

(see the answer keys)

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