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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. How does Lulu's father get into the house?

2. Where does Lulu's mother send Merry during the argument?

3. Joey is almost a licensed _______________.

4. What does the bully do to Merry one night?

5. Where is Joey found when Lulu returns with help?

Short Essay Questions

1. What is Lulu's secret wish as she encounters her father at the cemetery?

2. How do family members treat Lulu and Merry because of their father?

3. What responsibility does Lulu feel toward Merry at the orphanage?

4. Why does Merry feel obligated to visit her father in prison?

5. Who is Grandma Zelda?

6. How do Joey and Celeste's passions eventually lead to murder?

7. Into whose home do Lulu and Merry move in as foster children and what directions does Lulu give Merry about how to behave and what to say?

8. How does Merry feel about being at the Cohens' house after she and Lulu have been there for a year?

9. In what ways do Lulu and Merry learn lessons of abandonment early in their lives?

10. How does Joey plead in the murder of his wife and what is his sentence?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Merry is no stranger to hurt and pain. From what you know about Merry in this book, what are her biggest sorrows and worst betrayals? How does she manage through them? How do her coping skills evidence themselves in many aspects of her life? Explain.

Essay Topic 2

The author used more than one iteration on the theme of loss. Identify at least two examples about loss in the book and then explain why the examples support the theme.

Essay Topic 3

THE MURDERER'S DAUGHTERS is a classic example of a coming-of-age story. What does that classification entail? Why does this book fit into this category?

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