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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 season and episode of Shooting Stars appears at the end of Chapter 12?

2. Who is said to have a promising career in gymnastics in the episode of Shooting Stars that closes Chapter 3?

3. How does Cal describe his diet in Chapter 1?

4. How many viewers does Cal describe watching his weekly update live in the beginning of Chapter 1?

5. Where is Deb working in Chapter 3?

Short Essay Questions

1. Who is Mark Bannon in the novel?

2. Where do Cal and Leon kiss for the first time? What happens after they kiss?

3. Why would Cal's career ambitions be threatened if his father were accepted at NASA?

4. Describe Cal's dad. What has his career been like until the opening of the novel? How does it change?

5. Where does Cal spend time with Leon at the party in Chapter 9? Why?

6. Where does Cal meet Deb in Chapter 1? Why is this setting noteworthy?

7. What is Cal's social media outlet, and what is his standing in the beginning of the novel?

8. How does the theme of selfishness play out through the character of Cal's father?

9. Who is Jeremy and what role does he play in the novel?

10. Why does Cal become upset over a message in Chapter 8?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Discuss Cal's actions against StarWatch in The Gravity of Us. Why does Cal take offense at StarWatch and the way the network portrays the astronauts and their families? Who does Cal solicit to help him expose StarWatch? What becomes of StarWatch at the end of the novel?

Essay Topic 2

Compare and contrast the characters of Leon and Cal in the novel. How are they similar? How are they different? How would you compare their perspectives of their circumstances and their futures?

Essay Topic 3

Describe and discuss three examples of foreshadowing in the novel. What event is foreshadowed? How does the author indicate this event? Does the author make use of red herrings in the narrative? How do these examples serve the text?

(see the answer keys)

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