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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 flies to Los Angeles to appear on The Alice Ponds Show?

2. Right before bed in Chapter 14, how is Shawn feeling?

3. Who is initially confused in the dream about the angels?

4. When his father comes into Shawn's room, perhaps to kill him, how does Shawn feel?

5. Paul gets on the bus with his teammates to go to what destination?

Short Essay Questions

1. What is in Shawn's father's bedroom that is reminiscent of the virtual ride through the cosmos at the science center and why is this significant?

2. Why is it significant that Shawn's father volunteers to take care of Shawn by himself overnight and sends Vonda home?

3. The morning after Ally spends the night, why does Shawn think that something is wrong?

4. After he sees his father's appearance on The Alice Ponds Show, why does Shawn say that he is floating in an ocean of negativity?

5. Paul and Shawn's mother have opposite views about Sydney, Shawn's father. Who does Shawn agree with and what is his opinion of his father?

6. Why does Paul grab Cindy by the shirt front and pull back his fist to hit her?

7. In Chapter 14, why does Shawn fall asleep exhausted at ten o'clock that night?

8. What does Shawn mean when he says that "invisibility has its advantages" when it comes to girls?

9. What does Shawn try to tell his father over and over again in Chapter 16, and why?

10. On The Alice Ponds Show, there is a clip of an interview between Sydney McDaniel and Earl Detraux. What does Earl Detraux look like and what is his demeanor?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Watching The Alice Ponds Show, it is apparent that both Sydney McDaniel and Earl Detraux say that killing their children is about doing the right thing for the kids. Write an essay about the theme of parental responsibility and mercy killing a disabled child as it relates to Sydney and/or Earl. Pick one of these topics to write about.

Topic 1) What is Sydney's attitude toward the mercy killing a disabled child? It is analogous to what type of disciplinary action a parent might take? How does he relate it to parental responsibility? What is his attitude toward Earl's mercy killing of his child, Collin? Who or what does Sydney say killed Collin?

Topic 2) What is Earl's attitude toward the mercy killing of his own son? Why does he say he smothers him? How does he relate it to parental responsibility? What does he say when asked how he would feel if a cure for Collin is invented? How does this relate to parental responsibility? Is Earl's behavior an example of a mature level of parental responsibility? Why or why not?

Topic 3) What are the similarities and differences between Sydney's and Earl's point of view on parental responsibility and mercy killing a disabled child. Do you think that Earl's actions influence Sydney, validate Sydney's already-existing point of view, or something else? Is Sydney's thought process about mercy killing a disabled child indicative of a mature level of parental responsibility? Why or why not?

Essay Topic 2

Shawn mentions that he actually enjoys the weird irony that he is the smartest person in his class and yet he is considered the most ineducable. Irony seems to be a theme in Stuck in Neutral.

Part 1) Identify five instances of irony within Stuck in Neutral. Explain why these instances can be considered ironic. Identify each instance by the type of irony: verbal, situational, or dramatic?

Part 2) What is the function of irony within the novel? What is the author trying to get across to the reader by the use of irony? Is there a pattern? To support the argument, use examples from the novel.

Essay Topic 3

At the end of the novel, Sydney McDaniel comes into the room, sits down, and takes a quilted pillow from Shawn's oversized crib. Sydney cries as he speaks to Shawn and then confesses that he does not know what to do. Shawn is suddenly able to focus on his father and he thinks he finally connects with his father. Then Shawn has a seizure and floats away, realizing that he is flying free either way. So the novel ends without answering the question of whether Sydney kills Shawn. Is logical that Shawn has a seizure when he does in this chapter? Why or why not? What is the function of the seizure in this chapter? Did the author chose a cowardly or lazy way to end this novel? If not, why is it appropriate that the novel ends without answering the questions of whether Sydney kills Shawn?

(see the answer keys)

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