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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. Where is Jeannette going when she first sees Rose Mary at the beginning of the book?

2. Rex and Rose Mary make some money for the family by:

3. Why does Rex take the children to the zoo?

4. What happens when the children are traveling in the back of the U-haul to Battle Mountain?

5. Where did Jeannette's mother grow up?

Short Essay Questions

1. What are Rex's feelings about how the family finances should be handled? How does he manage money?

2. "The Glass Castle" is the author's story of the unusual, and some would say tragic, circumstances of her childhood. What is the author's tone as she tells her story? How does this reflect who she is as a person?

3. How does Rose Mary's philosophy of life make it difficult for her to hold a job?

4. How does Rose Mary try to make the family's Christmas in Phoenix special, and what happens to ruin it for them all?

5. Why do you think Rose Mary continues to refuse help from her adult children?

6. Why does the Walls family frequently pack up and move in the middle of the night?

7. Why does Jeannette ask the cab driver to go back to the apartment after she sees her mother from afar in Part 1?

8. How does the author describe her father in Part 2 of the book?

9. How do Lori and Jeannette help take responsibility for the new baby, Maureen, on the trip to their new home in Part 2?

10. What does the glass castle represent, not only to Rex, but to the rest of the family as well?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Rose Mary's philosophy is that art and freedom are more important than material things. However, she takes this philosophy too far in failing to provide for her children's basic needs. Describe Rose Mary's philosophy of life and parenting. Consider:

1) What is it that makes it so difficult for her to take responsibility?

2) How is she able to justify allowing her children to live in impoverished conditions because of her choices?

3) Recount a few of her actions that demonstrate her philosophy in action.

Essay Topic 2

The title of the memoir is significant in its symbolism as something unfinished, or unrealized within the author's family. Discuss the title and its significance, considering the following:

1) How does the glass castle represent the unrealized dreams of the family, or the things that the family may never have?

2) What does the glass castle mean to Rex? How does it represent Rex's unrealized potential?

2) Why do you feel that the author chose this title? How does it relate to the memoir as a whole, and to her feelings about her childhood?

Essay Topic 3

One of the author's earliest memories is of being badly burned while she is cooking by herself as a small child. She spends several weeks in the hospital, during which time she is not unhappy. In fact, she responds to the incident in a calm manner that belies her age.

1) What are Jeannette's memories of the incident? How does she react to the staff at the hospital?

2) How does Jeannette respond to the staff when they tell her that she is going to be all right?

3) What is her father's response to the incident? Do you find it surprising, or is it typical of him?

4) What do both Jeannette's and her parents' way of dealing with this incident say about each of their personalities and ways of approaching life?

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