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This test consists of 5 multiple choice questions, 5 short answer questions, and 10 short essay questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. When Meg and Beth talk on the phone during Meg's vacation, what memory from their childhoods do they jokingly allude to?
(a) Lorelei's obsession with the foils from chocolate eggs.
(b) Colin's plan to take a family trip to Greece.
(c) Rhys's strange habit of staring into space.
(d) Beth's habit of trying to collect all the pink eggs at Easter.

2. What does Lorelei make too many of for every Easter lunch?
(a) Carrots.
(b) Cakes.
(c) Potatoes.
(d) Rolls.

3. How is Vicky's attitude toward Meg's children similar to Lorelei's?
(a) They both think that Meg has too many children.
(b) They both think that Meg's children are undisciplined.
(c) They both think that Meg's children are just a way to hold on to Bill.
(d) They both think that Meg does not spend enough time with the children.

4. When Rory comes to visit for Easter, what has changed about his hair?
(a) He has shaved it off and tattooed his scalp.
(b) He has dyed it scarlet, to match Kayleigh's hair.
(c) It is long, dirty, and matted.
(d) Its color has reverted to the pale yellow of his childhood.

5. From clues in Lorelei's emails, which character can the reader infer has died by 2010?
(a) Vicky.
(b) Beth.
(c) Pandora.
(d) Rory.

Short Answer Questions

1. What is Lorelei looking for when she discovers that some of her things are missing?

2. Which is the only room in Bird House that Meg and Molly find is free of Lorelei's hoarded objects?

3. What gesture of Jason's does Beth compare favorably with Bill's usual behavior?

4. What is Meg's reaction to the news about Lorelei and Vicky's romantic relationship?

5. When Lorelei discovers things missing from her "office," what does she believe has happened?

Short Essay Questions

1. How does Rory's new friend inspire him to make a change in his life?

2. What is ironic about Lorelei's characterization of Meg's "frantic reproduction" (1)?

3. How does the perspective shift between Meg and Beth after Meg tries to call Beth back clarify Beth's intentions in calling and her reasons for not answering when Meg calls back?

4. How does the very first passage describing a Bird family Easter egg hunt characterize Meg?

5. When Meg and Molly go in to start clearing out Lorelei's house, why is it such a relief to them when they reach the landing of the stairs?

6. What lie does Vicky tell Meg about Lorelei's hoarding during Easter of 1999, and why does she tell this lie?

7. During their vacation to Greece, what details demonstrate that Bill is not as involved with the family as Meg is?

8. How does the robbery at Bird House end Colin's dream of going to Greece?

9. What foreshadowing alerts the reader that something terrible has happened between Meg and Beth?

10. What is the one thing about Lorelei that Vicky cannot understand, and how does she try to reconcile herself to it?

(see the answer keys)

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