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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. Who takes a weapon away from James in Chapter 9?

2. Which object in an award-winning film is discussed by three characters in Chapter 13?

3. Who was the first character to ever suggest that Crabtree may one day be Grady's literary editor?

4. What term does Grady apply to Albert Vetch early in Chapter 1?

5. What was the topic of the first college class Crabtree and Grady ever took together?

Short Essay Questions

1. What does Grady mean when he repeatedly refers to the "midnight disease" (23) in the novel?

2. How does Grady react, inwardly and outwardly, to the news Sara delivers in Chapter 5?

3. What does Grady see as the main difficulty he is having with completing his fourth novel Wonder Boys?

4. Though Grady cannot remember the night of his father's suicide, he remembers what other event vividly from around that time?

5. Who is Q?

6. How do Q's ideas included in his lecture in Chapter 10 echo those in Grady's philosophy about the "midnight disease" (23)?

7. What type of narrator is featured in Michael Chabon's novel Wonder Boys?

8. How old was Grady when his mother died and what was the cause of her death, as revealed in Chapter 11?

9. In what way does the motif of dreams emerge in Chapter 3 and for what purpose does Chabon utilize the motif?

10. What is the significance of the date January 14, 1954 featured in Chapter 8?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

What messages does Chabon send about friendship in the novel Wonder Boys and what themes are employed in order to send these messages to the reader?

Essay Topic 2

Read a lengthy interview with Chabon. Write an essay explaining the connection between several of Chabon’s answers and a major theme presented within the text of Wonder Boys.

Essay Topic 3

Discuss how the themes of truth and lies are interwoven within the novel’s narrative.

(see the answer keys)

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