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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. At what town in Montana, did Tom, Bessie and Berneta leave the train?

2. What would the camptender bring when he came out to the Doig's cabin?

3. What did D. L. Doig raise as a hobby at his Montana ranch?

4. How old was Ivan's grandfather when he came to the United States?

5. During what decade did settlers first come into Ivan's area of Montana?

Short Essay Questions

1. What was different about Ruth from the other ranch cooks?

2. Why were the clockless mountain summers over for Charlie Doig when Berneta had died?

3. Can Ivan see the sickness to come in the photos of his mother?

4. How does a teacher who taught Ivan's mother describe an incident from her life?

5. What happened on Ivan's sixth birthday?

6. Describe Ivan's mother as she is seen in the photo album that he has.

7. What two things during Ivan's early weeks in the first grade set off any interest within him?

8. What did D.L. Doig raise after his ranch began to prosper?

9. Why did Ivan's father and Cliff decide to leave an outfit?

10. Where did Ivan and his parents go during the last winter of World War II?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Discuss what Ivan means when he says that "Memory is a set of sagas we live by, much the way of the Norse wildmen in their bear shirts."

Essay Topic 2

Discuss the meaning of the title of the book This House of Sky.

Essay Topic 3

Discuss how the roles that Charlie, Bessie, and Ivan played changed over the years, and how Ivan became, in a sense, the parent. Use examples from the book.

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