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

Multiple Choice Questions

1. To Steinbeck, Texas is not so much a place as a _________________________.
(a) nightmare
(b) mistake
(c) state of mind
(d) dream

2. What disrupts the family visit?
(a) Poker games
(b) Political arguments
(c) A big storm
(d) Too much beer drinking

3. What holiday does Steinbeck celebrate with his wife in Texas?
(a) Yom Kippur
(b) Christmas
(c) Halloween
(d) Thanksgiving

4. Of what does the Columbia River region remind Steinbeck?
(a) Lewis & Clark's expedition
(b) Fly fishing with his father
(c) His childhood along the Pacific coast
(d) Camping trips with his son

5. What is the only valuable thing that happens on this day?
(a) Steinbeck sees Niagara Falls.
(b) Steinbeck has a good steak dinner.
(c) Steinbeck writes in a journal.
(d) Steinbeck talks to his wife from a pay phone.

6. Where does Steinbeck go for a family visit?
(a) His cousin's house
(b) His uncle's house
(c) His sister's house
(d) His brother's house

7. What impresses Steinbeck at the rest stops?
(a) The variety of goods in the vending machines
(b) The dog walking areas
(c) The really clean facilities
(d) The friendliness of other travelers

8. To which state would Steinbeck like to move?
(a) Montana
(b) North Dakota
(c) South Dakota
(d) Wyoming

9. What returns for Mrs. Steinbeck when she talks to a fellow Texan?
(a) Her manners
(b) Her Texas accent
(c) Her distrust
(d) Her temper

10. What does Steinbeck enjoy in Idaho?
(a) Snow-capped mountains
(b) Fly fishing
(c) Baked potatoes
(d) Wildflowers

11. What prevents Steinbeck from moving to the answer to #126?
(a) There are no great restaurants.
(b) There are no major league baseball teams.
(c) There are no big cities.
(d) There is no ocean.

12. What impresses Steinbeck about the Oregon coast?
(a) The fog
(b) The orchards
(c) The rocks
(d) Sequoia trees

13. What is the evening meal where Steinbeck stops at a rental cabin and lunch room?
(a) Ham & beans and ice cream
(b) Corned beef & cabbage and lemon pie
(c) Cheeseburger & fries and pudding
(d) Beef stew & biscuits and chocolate cake

14. Where does Steinbeck head after Bismarck?
(a) The Bad Lands
(b) Mount Rushmore
(c) The Painted Desert
(d) The Wisconsin Dells

15. According to Steinbeck, what do people living in a bland world crave?
(a) Travel magazines about foreign countries
(b) Restaurants serving spicy foods
(c) Sex and violence in their fiction
(d) Science fiction books

Short Answer Questions

1. What commotion has erupted in the city where Steinbeck stops?

2. What starts to slow Steinbeck's progress?

3. Which author wrote that you can't go home again?

4. Who does Steinbeck believe was properly impressed with the country they trekked?

5. What is Steinbeck given when he asks for a reading light?

(see the answer keys)

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