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This test consists of 15 multiple choice questions and 5 short answer questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. Why did Darren lose his job?
(a) He stole from the till.
(b) He could not read.
(c) He lied about his experience.
(d) He stopped showing up.

2. What kind of car does Darren see himself driving?
(a) A black pickup truck.
(b) A silver Fiero.
(c) A gray Aston Martin.
(d) A white Cadillac.

3. How does Jonathan characterize the Topeka Foundation?
(a) Infamous.
(b) World famous.
(c) Virtually unknown.
(d) Locally famous.

4. How did Darren believe he acquired magic powers?
(a) By rubbing poison ivy.
(b) By kissing a girl.
(c) By entering a dark cave.
(d) By repeating a chant.

5. What does Adam say spreads Americans?
(a) Smartphones.
(b) The 24-hour news cycle.
(c) Manipulative ads.
(d) Highways.

6. What does Jane say caused her language to end in pure sound?
(a) Her reaction to the man on the playground.
(b) Her experience viewing sculptures on acid.
(c) Her feelings when she realized her father had abused her.
(d) Her anger when she saw Adam bullying Amber.

7. What did Darren believe he was responsible for?
(a) His father’s death.
(b) His developmental delays.
(c) Adam’s concussion.
(d) His ostracism.

8. Where does Darren go for hot water for free?
(a) McDonalds.
(b) Arby’s.
(c) Taco Bell.
(d) Burger King.

9. Whose voice is asking the reader to explain what led to the picture of Adam with Bob Dole?
(a) A therapist.
(b) A student.
(c) A police officer.
(d) A parent.

10. What did Jonathan’s therapist see in Jonathan’s fascination with the Ziegler story?
(a) Revenge fantasies.
(b) Megalomania.
(c) Projected self-loathing.
(d) Dreams of grandeur.

11. What is the spread in debate?
(a) A technique for picking apart opponents’ arguments.
(b) A technique for scoring points by speaking at high speeds.
(c) A technique for misleading opponents’ arguments.
(d) A technique for refuting opponents’ arguments through inference.

12. Where was Sima’s family from?
(a) Ecuador.
(b) Somalia.
(c) Iran.
(d) India.

13. What does the narrator say is the result of the spread?
(a) Drivel.
(b) Non sequiturs.
(c) Labyrinths of logic.
(d) Insight.

14. What did Jonathan ask his subjects to do for his dissertation research?
(a) Debate him.
(b) Read quickly.
(c) Sing scat songs.
(d) Read gibberish.

15. Where would Darren put the things he had dreamed about and found?
(a) In the big pockets of his cargo pants.
(b) In a duffel bag.
(c) In a painted box he kept.
(d) Under his bed.

Short Answer Questions

1. What is Darren doing at the beginning of the novel?

2. What was Jonathan studying for his dissertation?

3. Where is Darren when the novel begins?

4. What does Darren like about Stan at the Surplus store?

5. Where is Ziegler carted away to, at the end of the story?

(see the answer keys)

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