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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. Why is Nora congratulated by the other members?

2. What is the cave dwelling called?

3. Who is the wrangler hired by Goddard?

4. How does Bill Smithback arrive at the marina in Page, Arizona?

5. After a preliminary survey of the city of Quivira was completed, what structure did the group assemble and get ready to enter?

Short Essay Questions

1. How does John tell them that a person becomes a witch?

2. What items are unusual in the cliff dwelling?

3. What is the cosmography that still runs through most present day southwestern Native American religions?

4. What does John Beiyoodzin call the people responsible for killing the expedition's horses?

5. What circumstances surrounding the GPS are a problem and why?

6. What does Dr. Blakewood want Nora to do when she tells him about her father's letter?

7. What tradition did Nora's father follow from other early explorers such as Frank Wetherill?

8. After Teresa's attack and murder, what had happened to her?

9. Why was the ridge Nora was seeking called the Devil's Backbone?

10. How does Skip suggest Nora find the road their father claims in his letter to have followed?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

In the early chapters of the book, Nora has a distinct disdain for Bill. She mentally puts him down and is openly sarcastic and either unresponsive or her responses to him are negatively charged. This changes dramatically by the end of the book as he wins her trust and her heart. How did he lose it to begin with? What single event almost kept him single? What was the turning point? How did he finally change her mind about him? This was an issue that involved a confrontation, a revelation, and an act of selflessness. Be sure to name them all.

Essay Topic 2

As part of the deal that Dr. Goddard makes with Nora, his daughter Sloane is to be allowed to join the expedition. What is Nora's first impression of Sloane? What motivates Dr. Goddard to insist that she attend? What is his agenda? What conclusions can be drawn about his intentions based on his history, and through him, Sloane's intentions? What specific passages support your conclusions.

Essay Topic 3

In Chapter 31, Aragon has spends the entire night going over the bones that they found in the crawlspace. His revelations are disturbing at the very least and uncover some conflicting observations. Why does it make Nora and Aragon nervous? After an entire night absorbed in the task of understanding the bones and their history, how does he believe they connect to the skull found in Anasazi cave they explored before finding Quivira? What is the overall significance of this find?

(see the answer keys)

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