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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. To whom is Beth introduced in Chapter 3?

2. Why are the children given tranquilizers?

3. Who is the best volleyball player?

4. What is the name of the orphanage in which Beth is placed?

5. What job does Mr. Shaibel have at the orphanage?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why does Beth attempt to steal pills from the pharmacy?

2. How does the reader know that Beth stole pills from Mrs. Wheatley?

3. What does Beth use to fall asleep at night? Why?

4. Where is Beth placed, initially, at her first chess tournament? Why?

5. Why does Beth push past her fear of Mr. Shaibel?

6. How was Beth able to beat all of Mr. Ganz’s chess students?

7. What is Beth’s punishment for attempting to stealing green pills?

8. How does the reader first learn about Beth’s appearance? How does she describe herself?

9. What do most of the chess players at the tournament have in common?

10. How does Beth lose her fear of volleyball?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

In Chapter 12, Beth quickly spirals down into alcohol abuse. What leads to this? How is this foreshadowed? What are the repercussions of her actions? How does she save herself and her career from alcoholism? What does this say about her?

Essay Topic 2

In Chapter 8, when Beth plays the young prodigy and asks him what he will do once he is world champion. How will he spend the rest of his life? He looks at her puzzled. How would Beth have responded to this question if she had been asked when she was young? Why might Beth have asked this question? Might she also be asking herself this question? How does the struggle between Beth’s commitment to chess and life outside of chess show itself throughout the book?

Essay Topic 3

Beth is insecure in many ways. What are a few of them? How do you know this? In what is she secure? In what ways is she confident? How does learning make her confident? What can be learned by this?

(see the answer keys)

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