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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 Crazy Joe say Larry's mysterious woman turns into?

2. When does Tony McIlhenny disappear?

3. In Chapter 1, why doesn't the boy's mother want him to cross by the window at the top of the stairs?

4. Who is Ena?

5. Where are the boy's father's sisters sent to live after the death of their parents?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why does the boy throw a rock at Sergeant Burke's police car?

2. Describe the events surrounding the distillery and what happens to it.

3. What memory does the boy have of an interaction between him and Crazy Joe?

4. When the boy's father takes him and his brother Liam out on the boat, what does his father reveal to them and why does it make the boy feel uncomfortable?

5. Why is the boy uncomfortable with the sympathy he feels for the police after Rory Hannaway's death?

6. What local belief surrounds the Field of the Disappeared?

7. What happens to Larry McLaughlin?

8. How is the boy's father's life seen as very difficult and sad?

9. Describe the boy's relationship with his mother.

10. Why is the disappearance of Uncle Eddie such a mystery?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

As the novel progresses, the mystery of Eddie's disappearance is pieced together by the boy narrator.

1. What does the boy learn about his family because of the family secret?

2. How has the boy's relationship with his parents changed as the secret has been revealed?

3. How has the boy's determination to find out the secret changed as the secret slowly becomes revealed?

Essay Topic 2

Compare and contrast Aunt Katie and the boy's mother.

1.) Why does the boy's mother react negatively toward Katie?

2.) Compare and contrast the women's behavior toward the boy narrator.

3.) Ultimately, they both experience the loss of the same man. How does it affect each of them?

Essay Topic 3

Which characters in the novel would be considered guides for the boy narrator? What do they teach him? Are they positive or negative mentors?

(see the answer keys)

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