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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 does Charlie tell Olympia that makes her concerned?

2. What happened to Olympia's parents?

3. Who does Veronica threaten to move in with if her mother makes her attend the ball?

4. Which sport does Harry and Olympia love to play together?

5. Which ball are the girls invited to attend?

Short Essay Questions

1. What does Chauncey threaten to do if Veronica refuses to attend the ball?

2. Why does Olympia want the girls to go the ball?

3. How do Harry and Olympia meet?

4. What is Virginia's big news?

5. How is Harry different than Olympia's previous husband, Chauncey?

6. Why does Olympia call Chauncey after Charlie recommends that she does?

7. What are Charlie's summer plans?

8. Why is Olympia so surprised about how pleasant Chauncey is during their phone conversation in Chapter 4?

9. How do the twins react to hearing about The Arches invitation?

10. What makes Olympia such a great woman?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Olympia has high expectations for her children, but also shows each of them unconditional love. What makes Olympia a good parent? What makes her a good wife?

Essay Topic 2

How does the setting of the novel affect the plot and characters?

Essay Topic 3

Harry chooses to skip the ball because he thinks it is a racist event. How is Olympia's bringing Margaret and Frieda to the ball more of a statement against discriminating behavior than Harry's refusal to come? Explain your reasoning.

(see the answer keys)

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