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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. In Joel’s will, it states that the house at One Cloud Street is left to Sam Pickles with what provision?

2. What animal belonging to the Lamb family is said to talk in tongues in Chapter V?

3. What is the name of Sam Pickles’s father in the novel?

4. What month is it when the warm weather begins in Australia, according to the narrator in Chapter V?

5. The people who frequent the grocery store at Number One Cloud Street assume that who owns the building in Chapter III?

Short Essay Questions

1. What can the character of Rose Pickles be seen to represent symbolically in Chapter I?

2. What are Rose Pickles’s perceptions of her parents, as seen in Chapter I of the novel?

3. What is the central event that dominates Chapter II? Why is this event important in the story?

4. How does the Lamb family perceive the concept of “luck,” as seen in the second half of Chapter III? What symbolizes this perception?

5. How do Sam’s actions in Chapter III propel the plot of the narrative forward?

6. How is the concept of “luck” perceived by the members of the Pickles family? Where did this perception of luck derive from?

7. What is author Tim Winton’s focus in Chapter V? How does this chapter serve the novel?

8. Who moves into Cloudstreet after Quick Lamb has left home in Chapter V? How is this character introduced?

9. How does Sam’s change of luck affect the outcome of events that take place in Chapter IV?

10. What is significant about the author’s depiction of the house on Cloud Street in Chapter III?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Analyze and discuss Quick’s reasons for leaving home in Chapter V. How have the changes in the family dynamic led to Quick’s decision to leave? Where has Lester Lamb been performing in Perth at this time? How does Quick feel about his father’s performances?

Essay Topic 2

Analyze and discuss the character of Rose Pickles and the narrative focus on Rose in Chapter I. How old is Rose when the novel begins? What is Rose’s relationship like with her brothers and parents? How does Rose’s character evolve throughout the novel?

Essay Topic 3

Discuss the author’s depiction of the house at Number One Cloud Street in the novel. How large is the house? What history of the home is detailed in Chapter III? In what ways is the author’s depiction of the house similar to his depiction of the novel’s characters? What does this foreshadow?

(see the answer keys)

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