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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. What town is not on any maps?

2. How does Leon die?

3. Who is Kennedy?

4. Who is Jude?

5. Where does Stella tell Kennedy she is from the first time she asks?

Short Essay Questions

1. Who are Reginald and Loretta Walker?

2. Where does Stella tell Kennedy she is from the first time she asks?

3. Who is Early Jones?

4. Who is Sam?

5. Who spoke up during an emergency meeting in the Palace Estates?

6. Where does Jude go to college?

7. Who helps Desiree look for Stella?

8. Who is Barry?

9. Who was Reese before he moved to L.A.?

10. What does Blake think happened to Stella's family?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Write an essay in which you examine how the novel handles the concept of leaving home. Which characters in the novel leave home, and why? What are their relationships to their respective homes, and in what ways do these relationships continue to affect them even after they leave? Use evidence from the text for support.

Essay Topic 2

Write an essay in which you examine the relationship between Stella and Loretta Walker. Why is Stella so hesitant to befriend Loretta, and for what reasons does their relationship eventually fizzle out? What impact does Loretta leave on Stella? Use evidence from the text for support.

Essay Topic 3

Write an essay in which you examine how The Vanishing Half handles the concept of returning home. Which characters in the novel return home, and why? In what ways has their understanding of or relationship to home changed or stayed the same since returning? Use evidence from the text for support.

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 505 words (approx. 2 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample