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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 was the first African American female astronaut?

2. What is Donna Szleifer's position at NASA?

3. Where did Cal first meet Deb?

4. Where does Cal say his father just flew back from in Chapter 1?

5. In what Brooklyn neighborhood does Deb work in Chapter 7?

Short Essay Questions

1. What does Cal learn about Leon in Chapter 9? How does he react?

2. Who is Donna Szleifer? What does she say to Cal at the party in Chapter 9?

3. Why would Cal's career ambitions be threatened if his father were accepted at NASA?

4. How do Cal and Leon differ in their perspectives of the future?

5. Where does Cal spend time with Leon at the party in Chapter 9? Why?

6. What is StarWatch, and how would you compare it to contemporary media?

7. Why does Cal feel his family is inadequate as a NASA family?

8. Describe Cal's dad. What has his career been like until the opening of the novel? How does it change?

9. What item of clothing does Cal restrain from wearing in Texas on most occasions? Why?

10. Who does Cal interview at NASA in Chapter 12? Why does this become important?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Analyze and discuss Cal's relationship with Deb. How do Cal and Deb know one another? How is their history described? How does their relationship change in the course of the novel?

Essay Topic 2

Analyze and discuss the narrative style in The Gravity of Us. From what perspective is the story related? In what tense is it related? Why are these choices important?

Essay Topic 3

Discuss the importance of setting in The Gravity of Us. Where does Cal live in the beginning of the novel? Where does he move? How are these settings compared? Why is setting important to the plot of this novel?

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