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

Multiple Choice Questions

1. According to the friend who advised Reta as a young writer, what do obituaries contain?
(a) The soil of life.
(b) The putty of life.
(c) The seeds of life.
(d) The dough of life.

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

3. Why is Reta alarmed by the sight of Norah's hands?
(a) They are scarred.
(b) They are cut.
(c) They are bruised.
(d) They are broken.

4. What is Norah doing when Reta first sees her in the hospital?
(a) Eating.
(b) Sleeping.
(c) Reading.
(d) Praying.

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

6. What does Francis Quinn tell Reta and Tom about the gloves Norah has been wearing?
(a) That Norah wears them in the bath.
(b) That Norah wears them at dinner.
(c) That Norah wears them to pray.
(d) That Norah wears them to bed.

7. Arthur tells Reta the day after Christmas that he is filled with admiration for what?
(a) Norah's resolve.
(b) Roman's faith.
(c) Reta's talent.
(d) Alicia's goodness.

8. What does Reta remember about Tom's childhood as they walk in the cemetery?
(a) She remembers that his mother was a terrible housekeeper.
(b) She remembers that his family lost their fortune.
(c) She remembers that Tom ran away from home.
(d) She remembers that his father was in the army.

9. Who does Arthur frighten when he accidentally knocks over the object at Reta's house?
(a) Christine.
(b) Pet.
(c) Natalie.
(d) Reta.

10. Whose wedding is Reta worried about?
(a) Reta and Tom's.
(b) Marietta and Colin's.
(c) Norah and Ben's.
(d) Alicia and Roman's.

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

12. The nature of _______dominates the conversation between Reta and Danielle at lunch.
(a) Love.
(b) Faith.
(c) Forgiveness.
(d) Virtue.

13. Why does Reta have difficulty carrying on a conversation with Arthur when he comes o her home for the first time?
(a) Because she is preoccupied.
(b) Because he asks too many questions.
(c) Because she doesn't understand him.
(d) Because he never stops speaking.

14. In her letter about the obituary in the Globe and Mail, what kind of days does Reta write that she is going through?
(a) Dismal.
(b) Unhappy.
(c) Bleak.
(d) Fearful.

15. According to Reta, what is the most egregious change Arthur suggests she make in her novel?
(a) That she make Alicia the focus instead of Roman.
(b) That she make Roman the focus instead of Alicia.
(c) That she introduce another character to marry Alicia.
(d) That she introduce another character to marry Roman.

Short Answer Questions

1. What question about Norah does Lois Winters ask every night at dinner?

2. Why do Christine and Natalie think something terrible must have happened to Norah?

3. Who has been appointed to a university Chair in Theology?

4. What newspaper does Emily Helt write for?

5. In Reta's letter to Ford-Halpern, what is "an endless series of obstacles, an alignment of locked doors"?

(see the answer keys)

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