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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 is the setting of Chapter 8?

2. Who is the astronaut being interviewed on the episode of Shooting Stars that appears in Chapter 2?

3. When did NASA pick its first astronauts for the Orpheus mission, according to Cal in Chapter 2?

4. Who is the reporter from KHOU-TV that interviews Cal in his driveway in Chapter 6?

5. Where is Cal supposed to start an internship next week in Chapter 3?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why does Cal feel his family is inadequate as a NASA family?

2. Who is Donna Szleifer? What does she say to Cal at the party in Chapter 9?

3. What major event drives the action in Chapter 13?

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

5. How does Cal describe the way he is perceived by others in the opening of the novel?

6. What item of clothing does Cal restrain from wearing in Texas on most occasions? Why?

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

8. How do Cal and Leon differ in their perspectives of the future?

9. How is the Tucker home described?

10. What are Cal's first impressions of Leon?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Discuss the importance of setting in The Gravity of Us. Where does Cal live in the beginning of the novel? Where does he move? How are these settings compared? Why is setting important to the plot of this novel?

Essay Topic 2

Describe and discuss three examples of irony in The Gravity of Us. What purpose does each example serve? Does the author point out irony directly? How does the author employ verbal, situational, and dramatic irony in the narrative?

Essay Topic 3

Discuss the family relationships in The Gravity of Us. How does Cal perceive his parents and their relationship in the beginning of the novel? How do those perceptions change? How does Leon feel about his family?

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