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This test consists of 15 multiple choice questions and 5 short answer questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. How does the narrator say she often thought of her sister when she was young?
(a) As a separate person.
(b) As a ghost.
(c) As an unfinished version of herself.
(d) As a better version of herself.

2. Who took care of Harold's body after he died?
(a) His brothers.
(b) Anna.
(c) Harold's parents.
(d) His uncle.

3. What are some places the narrator says her mother had been and her father "longed to visit" (para. 13)?
(a) Venice, Rome, Mexico, France, and Spain.
(b) Africa, Australia, China, and Japan.
(c) Portugal, Morocco, London, and Thailand.
(d) Egypt, Hawaii, Moscow and Berlin.

4. How did the fire get put out on the day of the disaster?
(a) By rain and men's jackets.
(b) Locals volunteers threw buckets of water on it.
(c) The ringleader and other performers used a fire extinguisher.
(d) The fire department.

5. What is the narrator's father's occupation?
(a) Doctor.
(b) Trapeze artist.
(c) Lawyer.
(d) Teacher.

6. What did the narrator's mother once tell her one would be amazed by?
(a) How many things a mother can do.
(b) How scared she was each time she performed.
(c) How much money a trapeze artist makes.
(d) How many things you can do when falling.

7. What type of weather does the narrator describe in paragraph 12 when discussing her sister's grave?
(a) Rain.
(b) Humidity.
(c) Snow.
(d) Sunshine.

8. Where was Harold Avalon buried?
(a) In the family plot in the backyard.
(b) He was cremated.
(c) In the circus cemetery.
(d) In the cemetery near their house.

9. Where is Anna's first child buried?
(a) She was cremated.
(b) In the backyard plot.
(c) In a cemetery near their house in New Hampshire.
(d) In the circus cemetery.

10. What does the narrator think must have happened to her mother after she was taken to the hospital the day of the disaster?
(a) She miscarried.
(b) She lost her vision.
(c) She hemmorhaged.
(d) She found out her husband died.

11. How did Anna get severely injured during the disaster?
(a) A rescuer broke her arm trying to help her.
(b) The tent toppled her and she got a concussion
(c) She burned her hands trying to grab onto something.
(d) She fell from her swing and broke her leg.

12. Who is said to have taken Anna in as a child and trained her to perform?
(a) The ringleader.
(b) The Avalons.
(c) Her neighbors.
(d) Her aunt.

13. Where did the narrator sometimes go when she was a child "just to sit" (para. 11)?
(a) Her grandmother's garden.
(b) Her school playground.
(c) A nearby brook.
(d) Her sister's grave.

14. What happened to Anna's baby after the disaster?
(a) She miscarried.
(b) He was born and Anna named him Harold.
(c) She was born premature.
(d) It was stillborn.

15. Where had the narrator's mother taught her to dive off a board?
(a) Their backyard pool.
(b) Her cousin's pool.
(c) The YMCA.
(d) The town pool.

Short Answer Questions

1. Where did the narrator's mother and father meet?

2. Where had the narrator's father "spent his war" as explained in paragraph 13?

3. What word does the narrator use to describe her mother's time in the hospital?

4. What is the first thing Anna did the day of the disaster when she did not feel her husband's hands?

5. How many people died during the disaster?

(see the answer keys)

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