View a FREE sample

This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. When Penn arrives back in Natchez after the trip to Colorado, a fax is waiting for him. This fax tells him about ____________.

2. What does Penn promise Caitlin in exchange for her help with the Payton case?

3. When Livy shows up at Penn's house, the two take a drive. Where do they go?

4. What do Livy and Penn find when they return from their drive?

5. Who does Penn end up going to Biscuits and Blues with for drinks?

Short Essay Questions

1. How does the person who interrupts Penn at Biscuit and Blues learn that her birth certificate does not list a father's name?

2. When Penn arrives at his interview in Colorado, the interviewee does not want to talk. What changes the interviewee's mind?

3. What discrepancy catches Penn's eye about the Fairlane that is sitting in Althea's garden?

4. Why did Caitlin originally not want to publish Penn's accusations about Marston in her paper?

5. When Annie is returned to Penn, there is also a note for Penn. What does the note say?

6. Where does the judge who orders the boxes removed from the Marston family home for safekeeping have the boxes taken to?

7. What advice does Penn's Colorado interviewee give to Penn regarding the Payton case?

8. Describe one retaliatory event that occurs after Penn's accusations are published in the paper.

9. According to Penn, why had Portman wanted Hanratty extradited to Los Angeles?

10. At Ruby's funeral, Shad Johnson gets up to speak. What does Johnson say?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Ilse uses this story to examine the role that truth plays in our daily lives. Examine the author's beliefs through his storytelling. Why would the author choose this story to overlay his demonstration of the consequences realized when the truth is distorted or hidden? What did you learn from the author's discussion on truth? What other avenues, if any, could the author have used to express his beliefs? Would those avenues have been as effective as the story? Why or why not?

Essay Topic 2

Planning is an essential part of the story for several characters, as well as for the author to ensure that his plot moves forward. Identify instances in which Penn Cage and Leo Marston plan for their upcoming court fight. Identify instances in which each of these men fails to plan well. What is revealed about each of these characters through their ability ,or lack of ability, to plan? How is the strength of the author revealed in his ability to have his characters adequately plan? Be sure to support your reasoning.

Essay Topic 3

In many ways, the novel is a series of contrasts designed to heighten the reader's awareness and draw the reader deeper into the story and the intricacies of each of the story's characters. Identify at least three contrasts that are used in the novel. Describe these contrasts and determine how they impact the story's plot, as well as the reader's emotional involvement in the characters' lives. If these identified contrasts were not included in the story, what impact would their absence have on the storyline, the characters' development, and the readers' involvement?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 857 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample