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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 kind of game are the boys playing on the train in "The Troop Train"?

2. Who does Grandma say pieced the quilt that Joey and Mary Alice find in the attic in "Things with Wings"?

3. Who is the proprietress of the Coffee Pot Cafe?

4. Outside of what town does Joe Dowdel wait for his train to take off in "The Troop Train"?

5. How old is Junior Stubbs said to be in "The Phantom Brakeman"?

Short Essay Questions

1. What fight breaks out during the parade in “Centennial Summer"? How is the fight resolved?

2. How does Grandma Dowdel succeed in getting Effie Wilcox her house back in “Things with Wings"?

3. How is the theme of friendship developed in the stories from A Long Way from Chicago?

4. How old are Mary Alice and Joey when they visit Grandma Dowdel in “Centennial Summer"? How have they grown as characters?

5. What is the significance of Nehi sodas in “The Phantom Brakeman”?

6. What exchange takes place between Joey and Junior Stubbs by the privy in “The Phantom Brakeman”?

7. What does the sign say that greets Joey and Mary Alice when they arrive at Grandma's town in “Centennial Summer"?

8. How does Joey contact Grandma Dowdel in “The Troop Train"? What information does he relay to her?

9. What is implied by the conversation between Joey and Grandma at the end of “The Phantom Brakeman”?

10. How has Grandma Dowdel's demeanor changed in the beginning of “Things with Wings"? Why?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

What does Grandma Dowdel achieve by lying to the Peoria reporter in “Shotgun Cheatham’s Last Night above Ground"? How do Grandma's actions in this story impact the town where she lives? What are Joey and Mary Alice's impressions of Grandma's actions?

Essay Topic 2

Compare and contrast the characters of Grandma Dowdel and Idella Eubanks in the stories. How are these women similar? How do they differ? What conflicts arise between Grandma Dowdel and Idella Eubanks? How are the conflicts resolved?

Essay Topic 3

Describe and discuss the character of Effie Wilcox in A Long Way from Chicago. How old is Mrs. Wilcox? What is Mrs. Wilcox's relationship like with Grandma Dowdel? How does their relationship change in the course of the narrative?

(see the answer keys)

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