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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. When does Cal set his interview with Brendan to go live in Chapter 24?

2. What state is U.S. Representative Halima Ali said to represent in Chapter 23?

3. What issue does Leon struggle with?

4. Who does Cal set out to go see in Chapter 22?

5. What model of spacecraft does Cal describe his father taking out from storage in Chapter 17?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why does Leon feel upset at the celebration party in Chapter 17?

2. What cassette tape does Cal find in his room in Chapter 25? What does it signify?

3. What does Cal decide to do in order to reconcile with Deb in Chapter 22? Why does he change his mind?

4. Who does Cal interview first at NASA in Chapter 24? What does this character talk about?

5. What does Kiara reveal on the Shooting Stars finale in Chapter 21?

6. Who does Cal interview second at NASA in Chapter 24? What does this interview reveal?

7. Who is interviewed on Shooting Stars in the end of Chapter 20? How does the interview end?

8. How is Cal's fame described on the Shooting Stars finale in Chapter 21?

9. What has been the public response to Cal's video in Chapter 27?

10. How have Deb's circumstances changed in Chapter 21?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Describe and discuss three examples of irony in The Gravity of Us. What purpose does each example serve? Does the author point out irony directly? How does the author employ verbal, situational, and dramatic irony in the narrative?

Essay Topic 2

Discuss Cal's actions against StarWatch in The Gravity of Us. Why does Cal take offense at StarWatch and the way the network portrays the astronauts and their families? Who does Cal solicit to help him expose StarWatch? What becomes of StarWatch at the end of the novel?

Essay Topic 3

Analyze and discuss the characters or Josh and Kiara in the novel. What do these characters represent symbolically? In what ways do they serve as antagonists in the story? How do these characters evolve?

(see the answer keys)

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