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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 Kayleigh from?

2. When Beth returns to Bird House from London, what triggers her memories of herself and her siblings as children?

3. What is the name of the man that Rory smokes and drinks with at the commune while Kayleigh takes care of their daughter?

4. At the end of Chapter 3, where are Rory and Kayleigh headed?

5. What does Kayleigh accuse Vicky of?

Short Essay Questions

1. What is Alfie's full name, and what is its significance?

2. Based on Lorelei's emails, what seems to be true about her own childhood and its impact on the way she parents her own children?

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

4. How does Colin end up as Lorelei's next-door neighbor?

5. Describe Bill and Beth's relationship as it stands in April of 1999.

6. What does Rory think is Lorelei's way of dealing with Rhys's death?

7. What sign of growth does Lorelei show in her New Years email to Jim?

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

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

10. How does Beth's relationship with Jason result from the actions of other people in Beth's life?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Are the Bird siblings estranged from one another because of the kind of household they grew up in, and because of circumstances beyond their control--like Rhys's death? Or is their estrangement more due to the siblings' personalities and differing worldviews? Or is the problem some combination of both? Write an essay in which you take a position about what has really caused the Bird siblings to grow so far apart from one another. Support your ideas with evidence drawn from throughout the novel.

Essay Topic 2

In one lesson, you made predictions about how the novel would end based on whether the Birds can learn to follow Vicky's advice and "Look after each other" (313). Now that you have read the novel's actual ending, do you think that the family members have or have not been able to follow Vicky's advice? What evidence is there in the text to support your interpretation? Write an essay in which you use the novel's final chapters to make a case for or against the idea that the Birds have finally learned how to support and nurture one another.

Essay Topic 3

After finishing the book, the reader should be able to infer where Lorelei was headed in her car on the last day of her life. What motivated her to finally leave Bird House and try to get to Jim's on this particular day? If Jim had been available to answer her emails, do you think she would have gotten in her car to try to get to Gateshead? If Jim had really been trying to end the relationship, what would have happened had Lorelei actually made it to Gateshead? What do you think prevented Lorelei from thinking in a more levelheaded way? Most importantly, why did Jewell choose to have Lorelei die during this first attempt to flee Bird House? Write an essay that takes and defends a position on the significance of Lorelei's death during her attempt to leave Bird House. Consider what this timing says about Lorelei's relationship to the house and the past, and what it says about her relationships with other people--especially romantic partners. Support your assertions with evidence drawn from throughout the text.

(see the answer keys)

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