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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. What does the man Nathaniel knows as The Darter seem most interested in in his conversations with The Moth?

2. Why does Agnes faint one night at work in the section titled "The Mussel Boat"?

3. Who is The Darter's girlfriend for a time that Nathaniel warms to?

4. What is the name of the dance club in Bromley where Nathaniel takes Agnes one night?

5. What does Nathaniel's sister do when they realize their mother has lied to them in the section titled "Hell-Fire"?

Short Essay Questions

1. What does Nathaniel think he sees while dancing with Agnes one night at The White Hart club in Bromley?

2. What story does Nathaniel's mother tell her children about the family of roofers who worked on her childhood home?

3. What does Olive insist that Rachel and Nathaniel do with her one evening?

4. What does Nathaniel particularly remember about Olive's temperament from his childhood?

5. How do Nathaniel and Rachel feel about becoming boarders at their new schools after their mother and father leave for Singapore in Chapter 1?

6. How does The Moth react when Nathaniel and Rachel turn up unexpectedly at the house in London when they should be at school?

7. What does Nathaniel especially remember about his visit to his father's Unilever office?

8. How is Arthur McCash different from other guests who had cycled through Ruvigny Gardens?

9. What do The Darter and Olive Lawrence eat that is quite unusual on their first dinner date, and why does Olive agree to eat it?

10. What does Nathaniel's and Rachel's brief time alone with their mother just before she leaves for Singapore feel like for Nathaniel?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Write an essay analyzing Nathaniel's relationship with The Darter. Why does he tell Agnes The Darter is his father, and what does this action say about how Nathaniel feels about The Darter?

Essay Topic 2

How does Nathaniel's conduct when he secures a job at Britain's classified archives relate to Rose's activities as a covert agent during and after WWII? Write an essay comparing and contrasting Nathaniel's and Rose's professional conduct and aims.

Essay Topic 3

Write an essay exploring how The Moth's explanation of the word "schwer" relates to the larger theme of the long, destructive, and lingering effects of war on individuals, families, and nations.

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