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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 does the novel take place?

2. What does Maddy make to go along with her and Arthur's first lunch together in Section 1?

3. What book is Maddy's English class reading in Section 1?

4. When did Frank buy Nola's engagement ring?

5. What does Lucille reveal to Frank in Section 2?

Short Essay Questions

1. What do Lucille and Arthur talk about in Section 2?

2. How does Anderson respond to Maddy's pregnancy when she tells him, in Section 2?

3. What does Arthur find in his mail in Section 2?

4. What happens in the car when Anderson picks Maddy up in Section 1?

5. Who is Gordon and how did he come into Nola and Arthur's life?

6. What is happening "more and more often" (4) to Arthur in Section 1?

7. Who is Anderson and what is the first impression the reader gets of him in Section One?

8. How does Lucille's new relationship with Frank, in Section 2, change her?

9. What do we learn about Maddy's mom in Section 1?

10. Who is Mr. Lyons and how does Maddy describe him in Section 1?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

In the novel, Berg writes, "Frankly saying, who cares what happens before we're born and after we die? The question is, what do we do in the meantime?" (132). How does this quote highlight some of the key themes in the novel?

Essay Topic 2

Analyze the theme of love in the novel. How is it expressed? What is Berg saying about Love?

Essay Topic 3

How do Arthur and Maddy change one another throughout the course of the novel?

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