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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 happens to the Pranksters when they first take the bus on a test run?

2. What do the Pranksters introduce to the Angels?

3. What kind of shoes do the Pranksters hate the most?

4. What does Wolfe find distracting about Hassler?

5. What is the Leary group's view of the Pranksters?

Short Essay Questions

1. Who is the subject of this book and why does Wolfe want to write about him?

2. Kesey moves his family and the Pranksters out to La Honda, California. Describe the new home.

3. How is Kesey's second novel, Sometimes a Great Nation, received? How does Kesey react to the reviews?

4. What happens to Perry Lane in July 1963?

5. Why do the Prankster feel it's critical not to talk about their experience on the trip?

6. Describe Wolfe's initial meeting with Kesey.

7. Describe the state of mind and general condition that leads Sandy to take the Unauthorized Acid:

8. By the end of the Unitarian conference, the younger Unitarians are so taken with the Pranksters, what do they do?

9. How do the Pranksters view the Beauty Witch's descent into madness?

10. Kesey compares this time in American History to what other time in ancient history?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Why does Kesey oppose anti-war rallies? Explain how he demonstrates this point of view when he appears at a rally at Berkeley.

Essay Topic 2

Do any of the Pranksters really know what to make of Kesey? Why do they find it so easy to follow him? Do they understand what they're doing? Or is it all fun and games for them?

Essay Topic 3

Do you think the mixed, almost bad reviews of Sometimes a Great Nation hurt Kesey? Or did he sincerely believe that the bus was a new art form? What does he mean when he points to the bus and suggests it's a totally new art form?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 757 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample