View a FREE sample

This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. What does Goolrick grow to despise?

2. What does Goolrick do with the girl next door?

3. What did Goolrick's brother claim to do in one day?

4. What does Goolrick watch by the river that excites him?

5. Who watches him do this to the girl next door?

Short Essay Questions

1. Explain that pageants of Mrs. Lackman's classes.

2. Explain the title of this chapter, "Such Charming Hands."

3. Explain what happens when Goolrick runs into the boys from school.

4. Describe the creek and explain why it is "violently sexy".

5. Explain what Goolrick means by calling his brother "a sly one" (pg. 124).

6. Describe the events that took place with Roy and Goolrick's brother in the field.

7. Explain Goolrick's story of his "real" parents.

8. Explain Mrs. Lackman's process for bathroom breaks, and why it doesn't work with the children.

9. What does Goolrick mean when he points out that they boys thought he was one of them?

10. What does Goolrick mean when he says he has spent his life looking for the thing that will make him into whom he wants to be?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Throughout the novel, there are mentions of how Goolrick was treated differently than the other children by his parents. Locate at least five examples of how Goolrick was treated differently, and explain them, in detail. What are the examples? What do they suggest about how Mother and Father felt about Goolrick? Why do you think they felt this way? How do you think these actions made Goolrick feel?

Essay Topic 2

Choose one of the major themes in the novel, and discuss it. Some examples of themes are child abuse, alcoholism, depression, and the lifestyle of the 1950s and 1960s. Include how Goolrick approached the theme, its purpose in the novel, how it was conveyed to the reader, and how the people in the book reacted to the scenarios this theme presented.

Essay Topic 3

Compare and contrast Goolrick's parents at the height of their popularity with them at the end of their lives. How did they change, and why? What does this suggest about the role of alcohol in their decline? Do you think the changes in society also played a factor? Why or why not? How did their secret with Goolrick's molestation play a part in their decline?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 1,107 words (approx. 4 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample