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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 does Santiaga buy his wife as a present after the shooting?

2. How much money does Winter have at the beginning of Chapter 7?

3. How much does the lawyer charge Mrs. Santiaga for his services to get her released from jail?

4. Whom does Midnight want Winter to go to for help when he leaves town?

5. Santiaga buys a house in _________ for his family.

Short Essay Questions

1. What happens when Winter goes back to Brooklyn to see her old friends in Chapter 8?

2. What seems to be Winter's priorities as she meets with Midnight in Chapter 7?

3. What does Winter decide is her best plan of action after meeting with the lawyer in Chapter 7?

4. What are the two most pressing issues facing Santiaga on a regular basis?

5. What happens on Winter's sixteenth birthday?

6. What actions does Winter take to survive at the beginning of Chapter 7?

7. What does Winter discover about her father when she takes her mother to visit him in prison?

8. What is Winter's main concern after her mother returns from the hospital with her disfigured face?

9. What is Winter's relationship like with her mother?

10. After her mom is shot, what does Santiaga tell his daughter?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Discuss the ending of the novel in terms of the arc of the story and reader expectations. Is The Coldest Winter Ever a cautionary tale?

Essay Topic 2

What is the lasting impression that The Coldest Winter Ever makes on the reader? What do you think the author's intent was in writing this novel?

Essay Topic 3

What is ironic about Winter's attitude in prison? How does the author draw on this irony to illustrate a greater truth?

(see the answer keys)

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