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This quiz consists of 5 multiple choice and 5 short answer questions through Section 1: The Center of the Story.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. What does the narrator say "usually promises to be interesting" (19)?
(a) A flood.
(b) A hurricane.
(c) A religious crisis.
(d) A death.

2. In the story's opening sentence, what is implied about the main character's writing?
(a) She is losing interest in her career.
(b) More than one of her stories is uninteresting.
(c) She does not deserve the praise she has gotten.
(d) Her readers are gradually deserting her.

3. Who is the author of "The Center of the Story"?
(a) Lydia Davis.
(b) Maile Chapman.
(c) Doris Betts.
(d) Judith Frank.

4. In what religion are the High Holy Days a sacred time?
(a) Judaism.
(b) Islam.
(c) Hinduism.
(d) Christianity.

5. Why are rams' horns being blown all around the city?
(a) It is Sukkot.
(b) It is Yom Kippur.
(c) It is Hanukkah.
(d) It is Rosh Hashanah.

Short Answer Questions

1. What specific Biblical story does the writer focus on?

2. Who is with the landlady when the landlady is talking about the mayor?

3. What detail does the story give about the shape of the tape on the windows?

4. What detail in the description of the man indicates how ill he feels?

5. Who is "thinking of writing a letter to the President" (20)?

(see the answer key)

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