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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 suddenly shows up at one of Chick's college baseball games, causing him to fight back emotion?

2. What does Posey tell Chick about how she happens to visit people who are dying?

3. What does Miss Thelma say will be her legacy after she dies?

4. What dish does this Italian woman make that Posey thinks Len Benetto always wanted over Posey's version of the same dish?

5. What did chick always think was important to a person's memory?

Short Essay Questions

1. What did Posey often do for some of the patients in the hospital where she worked as a nurse?

2. What does Chick admit embarrassed him about his mother as a child?

3. Who encouraged Chick to drop out of college?

4. Why was Posey not impressed with Chick's baseball scholarship?

5. To whom does Posey take Chick to visit after dinner?

6. What does Chick hear when he answers the phone at Rose's house?

7. What metaphor did Posey often use for the death of her patients when she was a nurse?

8. What does the Italian woman say when she catches sight of Posey and Chick in her mirror?

9. Why was Posey fired from her job as a nurse?

10. What happens when Chick hears the strange voice once again?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Discuss character development. Chick changes from the time he is a boy until he becomes an adult, then changes again as he becomes an adult and must deal with his mother's death. Discuss how these changes come about, what causes them, and how they affect Chick's overall attitude toward life. Discuss how these changes bring about other changes in Chick's life, such as his divorce, and how they affect his relationships with those he cares about.

Essay Topic 2

Discuss ghost stories. Why does the narrator suggest this novel might be a ghost story? Is this novel a ghost story? Who are the ghosts? Are they scary ghosts? Is this novel meant to frighten the reader? Explain. How do the ghosts in this novel change the course of the main character's life? Is this a good change?

Essay Topic 3

Discuss one of the following themes in detail, citing examples from the novel:

1) Death

2) Suicide

3) Father-Son Relationships

4) Mother-Son Relationships

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 760 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample