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

Multiple Choice Questions

1. According to Reta, what can "help us turn down the volume of our own interior discourse"?
(a) Novels.
(b) Family.
(c) Work.
(d) Nature.

2. In Reta's letter to Ford-Halpern, what is "an endless series of obstacles, an alignment of locked doors"?
(a) Emma's loss.
(b) Danielle's obstacles.
(c) Norah's world.
(d) Reta's mind.

3. Who lost her own son to a heroin overdose?
(a) Tracy.
(b) Danielle.
(c) Alicia.
(d) Emma.

4. What has been able to distract Reta from grieving for Norah?
(a) Her family.
(b) Her house.
(c) Her novel.
(d) Her friends.

5. What title does Arthur suggest for Reta's novel?
(a) Bud.
(b) Blossom.
(c) Bloom.
(d) Bear Fruit.

6. What is the exception Reta is going to make regarding the letter to the short story writer?
(a) Reta is actually going to send it.
(b) Reta is going to publish it.
(c) Reta is going to burn it.
(d) Reta is not going to send it.

7. What does Reta notice on Norah's wrists?
(a) Bandaids and gauze.
(b) Scabs and red sores.
(c) Scratches and bruises.
(d) Scabs and tattoos.

8. What is the name of the hospital that Norah is in?
(a) Toronto General Hospital.
(b) Ontario General Hospital.
(c) Ontario Psychiatric Hospital.
(d) Toronto Psychiatric Hospital.

9. What does Reta find "ugly, vast, and arresting" as she and Tom walk in the cemetery?
(a) An old oak tree.
(b) A stone monument.
(c) The sky above them.
(d) The icy field.

10. What is the short story writer's name who Reta writes a letter to?
(a) Richard Smiley.
(b) Robert Spiller.
(c) Renee Simon.
(d) Russell Sandor.

11. What does Natalie remind her family about how long Norah has been wearing her garden gloves?
(a) That Norah has been wearing them since the previous summer.
(b) That Norah has been wearing them since the previous fall.
(c) That Norah has been wearing them since the previous spring.
(d) That Norah has been wearing them since the previous winter.

12. What list does Lois have arranged in alphabetical order in her recipe box?
(a) A list of one hundred breakfasts.
(b) A list of one hundred dinners.
(c) A list of one hundred desserts.
(d) A list of one hundred lunches.

13. What does Tracy Halliday want a huge jar of marbles to represent for Norah?
(a) The number of Saturdays in Norah's life if she were to live to be eighty.
(b) The number of prayers Norah's family has said for her.
(c) The number of visitors Norah will have on her street corner.
(d) The number of memories Tracy has of her.

14. In her letter to Ford-Halpern, how does Reta think other daughters can be protected from Norah's fate?
(a) By imposing stricter vagrancy laws.
(b) By sacrificing happiness for honor.
(c) By giving speeches across the country.
(d) By allowing them to be fully human.

15. In her review of a female author, Helt states that all relationships are seen through the lens of what?
(a) Sexual harmony.
(b) Erotic love.
(c) Sensual yearning.
(d) Platonic longing.

Short Answer Questions

1. In her letter about the obituary in the Globe and Mail, what does Reta state she has missed out on?

2. According to Arthur, Roman is an ___________ and ___________ character.

3. What newspaper does Emily Helt write for?

4. According to Reta, what is the most egregious change Arthur suggests she make in her novel?

5. During lunch, why is Danielle disappointed with Reta's decision to write another novel?

(see the answer keys)

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