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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. Can Jacob heal the horse he examines?

2. What is the only thing Jacob is able to take from his parents' home?

3. Who is coming to visit Jacob that day?

4. What does Jacob retrieve from the camel and zebra cars?

5. What does Uncle Al order be done with Jacob?

Short Essay Questions

1. What does Camel promise Jacob?

2. Who comes to Jacob's defense? Why?

3. Why does Jacob become angry with Rosemary, one of his nurses at the assisted-living center?

4. Why does Jacob not wish to sit at his regular table at mealtime?

5. For how long has Jacob kept this secret?

6. What does Jacob conclude about Marlena's horse?

7. Why is Marlena angry with August the following day?

8. What does the doctor prescribe for Jacob?

9. What does elderly Jacob spend his day doing?

10. Where does Jacob go after walking out on his final exams?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Why does Jacob decide to join the circus as a young man? Why does Jacob again choose to join the circus as an old man? What does Jacob, both young and old, hope to achieve by joining the circus? What does the circus mean to Jacob? Is joining the circus as an old man only about nostalgia? Why or why not?

Essay Topic 2

What is redlighted? How is someone redlighted? Why does Uncle Al redlight his workers? Why does Uncle Al not simply fire these people? Is redlighting legal? Could this happen in modern times? Are Camel and Walter redlighted? Why? What does Jacob eventually learn happened to them? Why does Jacob not go back to look for them?

Essay Topic 3

Discuss Prohibition. What is Prohibition? Why was it enacted? How does it affect the common man? How does pPohibition play a role in this novel? Who is directly affected by Prohibition? Who is indirectly affected? Why do you think the author chose to set her novel during prohibition? How would the novel be different if the author had set the story in a different era? Whose life would have been different? Why?

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This section contains 752 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample