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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. Novalee sees Retha Holloway. Who is she?

2. Because of Lexie's condition, where do Lexie's children stay?

3. What city do most of the letters written to Americus come from?

4. Where does Novalee locate Forney in Chapter 35?

5. While Novalee leaves to do another photography job, who does Americus stay with?

Short Essay Questions

1. What is meant by Lexie finally finding good luck?

2. Who is Ray and how does he change Novalee's life?

3. What happens with the women Willy Jack charms?

4. How does Forney leaving affect everyone?

5. Why are Certain and Moses suffering with broken hearts in Chapter 25?

6. Why does Brummett call Novalee at the start of Chapter 29?

7. In Chapter 33, how are both good and bad luck shown?

8. Contrast "pick of the litter" in the conversations between Novalee and Lexie.

9. What is important to Novalee as she decorates her new house?

10. What made Novalee take a job as a photographer?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Three main settings in the story are Wal-Mart, the library, and the hospital. While these are not the only settings, how do these settings contribute to the outcome of the story? Would the story outcome be different if there was no library? Would Forney and Novalee have met? If not, in what setting would they have met to keep with the story line?

Essay Topic 2

Willy Jack is known to use women and get what he wants. Some of the women Willy Jack encounters are passive while others are assertive. List and describe the women Willy Jack comes into contact with and the interaction between them. Do the women get even with him or not?

Essay Topic 3

The buckeye tree and the Christmas tree are important in this story. To whom are they important? Why and how are they important? Is there a relationship between these trees and superstition?

(see the answer keys)

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