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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. Who makes the plan about what to do in the wake of Derek's death?

2. What does Derek say that prompts Charlie to attack Derek?

3. What did Dara and Marie do every year with their mother at the end of The Nutcracker?

4. What does Derek say about Corbin that turns Dara's stomach?

5. What knows better than the brain what is needed to survive, in Dara's experiences?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why does Bailey Bloom refuse to stop dancing in rehearsal, even after she gets sick?

2. How does Derek die in Part IV?

3. What does Charlie do once a month in an homage to Dara's mother?

4. What does Dara learn from the newspaper report of Derek's death that unsettles her?

5. What does Marie do outside that is strange and sad in the immediate aftermath of Derek's death?

6. Why does Dara call Mrs. Bloom in Part III?

7. What is Dara relieved about regarding Marie in the wake of Derek's death?

8. What does Dara's mother tell Dara and Marie is an essential part of being a serious dancer?

9. What are some things the jealous students do to Bailey Bloom in Parts I - III?

10. How does Dara react to Mrs. Bloom's story about Derek?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

What are some of the traumas and difficulties Dara, Charlie and Marie survived in the aftermath of living with Mr. and Mrs. Durant? How do each of these characters remember their childhoods together in the Durant house? Write an essay explaining your answers, citing specific references to the text to help support your conclusions.

Essay Topic 2

How do the other students treat Bailey Bloom after she is cast as Clara in The Nutcracker, and what does this behavior reveal about the nature of ballet and its students, in Dara's opinion? Write an essay explaining your answers.

Essay Topic 3

What terrible memories and truths does Marie finally force Dara to confront in the end of the novel, and how does the sisters' relationship change in the aftermath of these revelations? Write an essay explaining your answers, citing specific references to the text to help support your conclusions.

(see the answer keys)

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