Below you will find a set of study guide questions that you can answer as you read through your summer reading novel. Although completing these questions is not a requirement, doing so will help you learn the material in order to be successful on your summer reading exam in first term. You can use your study guide answers on the exam itself, so it is in your best interest to complete them to the best of your ability!
You may choose to maintain a physical notebook with your answers to these questions, or you may choose to complete your answers in a digital format.
You may choose to maintain a physical notebook with your answers to these questions, or you may choose to complete your answers in a digital format.
Prologue
1. What has happened to Dana’s arm?
2. Who was questioning Kevin? Why?
3. What did Kevin tell the police?
Chapter 1 - “The River”
1. What is significant about the date June 9, 1976?
2. Where does Dana find herself when she regains consciousness?
3. Who is Rufus? Describe him. How does Dana save Rufus?
4. How does Rufus’ mother react to Dana?
5. Does Kevin believe Dana’s story? Why, or why not?
6. What does Dana remember about Rufus’ mother?
7. What is Dana afraid of?
Chapter 2 - “The Fire”
1. Why does Dana not want to go anywhere for her birthday?
2. Who is the red-haired boy playing with fire? How does Dana know him?
3. Where did Rufus first remember seeing Dana?
4. What does Dana mean by, “if he hadn’t set fire to the draperies, I may still be home”?
5. What state does Rufus live in? What year does Rufus tell Dana it is? How does Dana react?
6. Who is Hagar Weylin Blake?
7. Who is Alice? What does Dana learn about her?
8. What does Rufus want Dana to call him? Why?
9. What remark does Rufus make about Dana’s pants? How is this significant?
10. What does, “Paperless blacks were fair game for any white” mean?
11. What are “Patrols”?
12. Describe what happens when the Patrols arrive at Alice’s house.
13. According to Alice, what is one of the redeeming qualities of Rufus?
14. Who does Alice resemble?
15. Why are the Patrols after Dana? How is she able to escape?
16. Where does Dana wake up? what condition is she in?
17. According to Kevin, how long has Dana been gone?
18. Why does Dana not want to go to the hospital?
19. What does Kevin put in Dana’s tote bag for time traveling?
20. According to Dana, what is a Patroller? How does she know this?
21. What information are Kevin and Dana looking for in the history books?
22. Why was it against the law for slaves to learn how to read and write in antebellum South?
23. What ability can Dana use to get home from time traveling?
24. According to Dana, how is she different from her ancestors?
Chapter 3 - “The Fall”
1. How did Dana and Kevin meet?
2. What does Dana and Kevin have in common?
3. What does Kevin look like?
4. What is Dana’s educational background?
5. How is Kevin able to go back in time with Dana?
6. What trouble is Rufus in? Who is with him?
7. What does Kevin tell Rufus regarding Dana? How does Rufus react? Why?
8. What does Dana decide to tell Rufus the truth about? Why?
9. Summarize what Rufus knows about California.
10. According to Kevin, what happened in 1820?
11. Describe how Tom Weylin treats his son.
12. Where does Dana tell Weylin she is from? How does Weylin react?
13. Describe the Weylin house.
14. How does Margaret Weylin’s treat Rufus?
15. How does Margaret Weylin feel about Dana? Why?
16. Who is Carrie? What is her handicap? Who is Sarah?
17. How do the other slaves feel about Margaret Weylin?
18. What does Nigel warn Dana about?
19. What does Carrie give Dana to eat? Why does Dana hesitate before eating it?
20. How does Carrie react to Rufus’ screaming? Why?
21. What has happened to Sarah’s children and husband?
22. What job does Tom Weylin offer Kevin?
23. What story does Kevin invent for himself and his wife’s safety?
24. What does Dana ask Kevin to help her to do? Why?
25. What plantation work does Dana help with?
26. Why is Kevin concerned about Dana’s well-being?
27. What does Kevin think of Margaret Weylin?
28. What does Kevin mean by, “Margaret’s had a lot of practice not noticing”?
29. What does Dana begin reading to Rufus? What does Rufus feel about it?
30. What question does Tom Weylin ask Dana? Why?
31. What purpose did the field hand’s whipping serve?
32. Why does Margaret Weylin slap Dana? How does Dana react?
33. Describe Margaret Weylin’s daily activities.
34. How does Sarah feel about Margaret Weylin? Why?
35. What does Sarah advise Dana to do? Why?
36. Who is Luke?
37. What advice does Luke give to Nigel and Dana?
38. What happens when Tom Weylin catches Dana reading in the library?
39. What game of the slave children upsets Dana? Why?
40. How do Kevin and Dana’s feelings about life in the 1800’s and slavery differ?
41. How does Rufus insult his father? How does Tom Weylin react?
42. Who is Virgie?
43. How does Rufus treat his mother?
44. Why does Dana say, “If anything went wrong, there would be blacks to take their revenge on me when the whites finished”?
45. What crime has Dana committed? How is she punished?
Chapter 4 - “The Fight”
1. What does Kevin ask Dana to do? How does Dana feel about it?
2. What reservations does Dana have about marrying Kevin? How do their families react?
3. Where does Dana wake up? What condition is she in?
4. What does Dana’s cousin assume when she sees her?
5. What does Dana find herself reading? Why is she so struck by it?
6. Where does Alice wake up?
7. What is happening to Rufus? Why?
8. Why does Dana decide to help Rufus?
9. What does Alice tell Dana about Kevin?
10. What is to become of Alice and Isaac?
11. What lie does Rufus accept?
12. Does Rufus really “love” Alice? Why, or why not?
13. What could happen to Isaac and Alice if they are caught?
14. What does Dana mean by, “We should never lie to each other; you and I, we both have too much opportunity for retaliation”?
15. Where is Kevin Franklin?
16. How does Tom Weylin react to Dana. What did Tom Weylin say about Kevin?
17. What has happened to Luke?
18. Who is the father of Carrie’s baby? Does Tom Weylin approve? Why, or why not?
19. What does Rufus promise to do for Dana?
20. Where has Margaret Weylin left? Why?
21. Who is Jake Edwards? What is his reputation? Who is he related to?
22. What does Rufus make Dana do? Why? How does Dana react?
23. Why does Rufus go into town?
24. What is Sarah’s new position in the house?
25. What does Dana mean by, “she was the kind of woman who would be held in contempt during the militant 1960’s”?
26. What happened to Alice as a result of her running away with Isaac? What happened to Isaac?
27. What does Sarah warn Dana about? Why?
28. What does Sarah tell Dana to ask Nigel about? Why?
29. Who was almost sold to the South? Why?
30. What is Alice’s mental and physical condition? How does Rufus feel about this? Why?
31. Who is preparing dinner for the Weylins? Why?
32. How does Alice remember what happened to her? How does she react to the news?
33. Why is Alice angry at Dana?
34. Who congratulates Nigel for the birth of his son with Carrie? Why?
35. What is Weylin’s opinion about Alice and Dana?
36. Why is Dana working so hard? How do the black plantation people feel about this?
37. What demand does Rufus ask of Dana that involves Alice? How does Alice react?
38. What does Alice ultimately decide to do?
39. Who helps make Dana aware that Rufus is not being honest with her? How does she help?
40. What does Dana decide to do with this news? How does the situation end?
41. How is Alice punished for running away?
42. Who does not protect Alice? Why?
43. Who ends up taking care of Alice?
44. What does Dana mean by, “See how easily slaves are made”?
45. What good news does Rufus share with Dana?
46. Who wrote the letter to Kevin? Why?
47. What happened to Tess? Why?
48. What is Nigel able to prevent from happening? How?
49. What does Dana mean by, “Slavery was a long, slow process of dulling”?
50. How does Alice react to Kevin?
51. What do Kevin and Dana decide to do right away? Why?
Chapter 5 - “The Storm”
1. Why does Kevin have difficult readjusting to his home in 1976?
2. What was his life like when Dana was gone?
3. What does Dana add to her denim bag?
4. Why does Dana return to save Rufus this time? What had Rufus been doing?
5. How does Tom Weylin treat Dana differently?
6. How is Dana’s attitude toward Tom Weylin different?
7. What does Dana threaten if she is beaten again? How does Tom Weylin react?
8. What is ague? According to Nigel, who has ague?
9. What does Dana ask Nigel to do? Why?
10. What does Dana ask Tom Weylin to do? How does he react? Why?
11. How is Dana able to help Rufus?
12. How has Alice changed? How many babies has Alive had with Rufus?
13. How does Tom Weylin die? Who is Rufus angry with over it? Why?
14. According to Alice, why did both of her babies die?
15. Who does Rufus send in to the field? Why?
16. Describe Dana’s experience in the fields.
17. What new task does Rufus ask Dana to do? How does Dana react?
18. What does Rufus tell Dana about Alice? How does Dana feel about it?
19. Describe Margaret Weylin. How has she changed?
20. What does Margaret Weylin ask Dana to do? How does Dana feel about it?
21. What is a coffle?
22. What makes Dana realize that Rufus is just like his father, Tom Weylin?
23. What does Nigel mean by, “[s]he means the devil with people who say anything but what you are”?
24. Why does Dana hug Carrie?
25. What does Rufus ask Dana to do? Why? What does Rufus threaten to do?
26. Who says, “You really are only one woman. Did you know that”? How does Alice interpret this remark?
27. Describe the kind of party the blacks have?
28. How does Rufus feel about his son?
29. Why is Alice asking Dana for laudanum?
30. What does Alice name her newborn baby? What does Dana think about the name? Why?
31. What do Alice and Dana have an argument about?
32. What does Rufus promise he will do with the children he fathered with Alice?
33. How much longer does Dana plan to stay at the Weylin plantation? Why?
34. What worries Dana about Sam James talking to her?
35. What happens to Sam James? Why? How does Dana react?
36. What extreme measure does Dana take to get home? Why?
Chapter 6 - “The Rope”
1. Where does Dana wake up? Who treats her injuries?
2. What does Dana mean by, “It’s real now, isn’t it? We talked about it before – God knows how long ago – but somehow, it was abstract then. Now Kevin, if you can’t even say it, how can you expect me to do it”?
3. How long are Kevin and Dana able to stay together?
4. How is life different for both Dana and Kevin?
5. What difficult question does Kevin have for Dana? How does Dana answer?
6. What concerns does Dana have if Rufus dies?
7. What happened to Alice? Why?
8. Where are Alice and Rufus’ children?
9. What does Dana tell Rufus he must do?
10. Describe Alice’s funeral.
11. What does Rufus do at the Court House?
12. What does Rufus ask Dana to stay and do? How does Dana answer?
13. What choice does Rufus make? How does this lead to Dana killing him?
14. What happens to Dana when she kills Rufus?
Epilogue
1. Where do Kevin and Dana travel to? Why?
2. What happened to Rufus’s house? What slaves were sold? What slaves were not sold?
3. What is meant by, “older people who looked at Kevin and me, then looked again”? What still exists in Kevin and Dana’s world?
1. What has happened to Dana’s arm?
2. Who was questioning Kevin? Why?
3. What did Kevin tell the police?
Chapter 1 - “The River”
1. What is significant about the date June 9, 1976?
2. Where does Dana find herself when she regains consciousness?
3. Who is Rufus? Describe him. How does Dana save Rufus?
4. How does Rufus’ mother react to Dana?
5. Does Kevin believe Dana’s story? Why, or why not?
6. What does Dana remember about Rufus’ mother?
7. What is Dana afraid of?
Chapter 2 - “The Fire”
1. Why does Dana not want to go anywhere for her birthday?
2. Who is the red-haired boy playing with fire? How does Dana know him?
3. Where did Rufus first remember seeing Dana?
4. What does Dana mean by, “if he hadn’t set fire to the draperies, I may still be home”?
5. What state does Rufus live in? What year does Rufus tell Dana it is? How does Dana react?
6. Who is Hagar Weylin Blake?
7. Who is Alice? What does Dana learn about her?
8. What does Rufus want Dana to call him? Why?
9. What remark does Rufus make about Dana’s pants? How is this significant?
10. What does, “Paperless blacks were fair game for any white” mean?
11. What are “Patrols”?
12. Describe what happens when the Patrols arrive at Alice’s house.
13. According to Alice, what is one of the redeeming qualities of Rufus?
14. Who does Alice resemble?
15. Why are the Patrols after Dana? How is she able to escape?
16. Where does Dana wake up? what condition is she in?
17. According to Kevin, how long has Dana been gone?
18. Why does Dana not want to go to the hospital?
19. What does Kevin put in Dana’s tote bag for time traveling?
20. According to Dana, what is a Patroller? How does she know this?
21. What information are Kevin and Dana looking for in the history books?
22. Why was it against the law for slaves to learn how to read and write in antebellum South?
23. What ability can Dana use to get home from time traveling?
24. According to Dana, how is she different from her ancestors?
Chapter 3 - “The Fall”
1. How did Dana and Kevin meet?
2. What does Dana and Kevin have in common?
3. What does Kevin look like?
4. What is Dana’s educational background?
5. How is Kevin able to go back in time with Dana?
6. What trouble is Rufus in? Who is with him?
7. What does Kevin tell Rufus regarding Dana? How does Rufus react? Why?
8. What does Dana decide to tell Rufus the truth about? Why?
9. Summarize what Rufus knows about California.
10. According to Kevin, what happened in 1820?
11. Describe how Tom Weylin treats his son.
12. Where does Dana tell Weylin she is from? How does Weylin react?
13. Describe the Weylin house.
14. How does Margaret Weylin’s treat Rufus?
15. How does Margaret Weylin feel about Dana? Why?
16. Who is Carrie? What is her handicap? Who is Sarah?
17. How do the other slaves feel about Margaret Weylin?
18. What does Nigel warn Dana about?
19. What does Carrie give Dana to eat? Why does Dana hesitate before eating it?
20. How does Carrie react to Rufus’ screaming? Why?
21. What has happened to Sarah’s children and husband?
22. What job does Tom Weylin offer Kevin?
23. What story does Kevin invent for himself and his wife’s safety?
24. What does Dana ask Kevin to help her to do? Why?
25. What plantation work does Dana help with?
26. Why is Kevin concerned about Dana’s well-being?
27. What does Kevin think of Margaret Weylin?
28. What does Kevin mean by, “Margaret’s had a lot of practice not noticing”?
29. What does Dana begin reading to Rufus? What does Rufus feel about it?
30. What question does Tom Weylin ask Dana? Why?
31. What purpose did the field hand’s whipping serve?
32. Why does Margaret Weylin slap Dana? How does Dana react?
33. Describe Margaret Weylin’s daily activities.
34. How does Sarah feel about Margaret Weylin? Why?
35. What does Sarah advise Dana to do? Why?
36. Who is Luke?
37. What advice does Luke give to Nigel and Dana?
38. What happens when Tom Weylin catches Dana reading in the library?
39. What game of the slave children upsets Dana? Why?
40. How do Kevin and Dana’s feelings about life in the 1800’s and slavery differ?
41. How does Rufus insult his father? How does Tom Weylin react?
42. Who is Virgie?
43. How does Rufus treat his mother?
44. Why does Dana say, “If anything went wrong, there would be blacks to take their revenge on me when the whites finished”?
45. What crime has Dana committed? How is she punished?
Chapter 4 - “The Fight”
1. What does Kevin ask Dana to do? How does Dana feel about it?
2. What reservations does Dana have about marrying Kevin? How do their families react?
3. Where does Dana wake up? What condition is she in?
4. What does Dana’s cousin assume when she sees her?
5. What does Dana find herself reading? Why is she so struck by it?
6. Where does Alice wake up?
7. What is happening to Rufus? Why?
8. Why does Dana decide to help Rufus?
9. What does Alice tell Dana about Kevin?
10. What is to become of Alice and Isaac?
11. What lie does Rufus accept?
12. Does Rufus really “love” Alice? Why, or why not?
13. What could happen to Isaac and Alice if they are caught?
14. What does Dana mean by, “We should never lie to each other; you and I, we both have too much opportunity for retaliation”?
15. Where is Kevin Franklin?
16. How does Tom Weylin react to Dana. What did Tom Weylin say about Kevin?
17. What has happened to Luke?
18. Who is the father of Carrie’s baby? Does Tom Weylin approve? Why, or why not?
19. What does Rufus promise to do for Dana?
20. Where has Margaret Weylin left? Why?
21. Who is Jake Edwards? What is his reputation? Who is he related to?
22. What does Rufus make Dana do? Why? How does Dana react?
23. Why does Rufus go into town?
24. What is Sarah’s new position in the house?
25. What does Dana mean by, “she was the kind of woman who would be held in contempt during the militant 1960’s”?
26. What happened to Alice as a result of her running away with Isaac? What happened to Isaac?
27. What does Sarah warn Dana about? Why?
28. What does Sarah tell Dana to ask Nigel about? Why?
29. Who was almost sold to the South? Why?
30. What is Alice’s mental and physical condition? How does Rufus feel about this? Why?
31. Who is preparing dinner for the Weylins? Why?
32. How does Alice remember what happened to her? How does she react to the news?
33. Why is Alice angry at Dana?
34. Who congratulates Nigel for the birth of his son with Carrie? Why?
35. What is Weylin’s opinion about Alice and Dana?
36. Why is Dana working so hard? How do the black plantation people feel about this?
37. What demand does Rufus ask of Dana that involves Alice? How does Alice react?
38. What does Alice ultimately decide to do?
39. Who helps make Dana aware that Rufus is not being honest with her? How does she help?
40. What does Dana decide to do with this news? How does the situation end?
41. How is Alice punished for running away?
42. Who does not protect Alice? Why?
43. Who ends up taking care of Alice?
44. What does Dana mean by, “See how easily slaves are made”?
45. What good news does Rufus share with Dana?
46. Who wrote the letter to Kevin? Why?
47. What happened to Tess? Why?
48. What is Nigel able to prevent from happening? How?
49. What does Dana mean by, “Slavery was a long, slow process of dulling”?
50. How does Alice react to Kevin?
51. What do Kevin and Dana decide to do right away? Why?
Chapter 5 - “The Storm”
1. Why does Kevin have difficult readjusting to his home in 1976?
2. What was his life like when Dana was gone?
3. What does Dana add to her denim bag?
4. Why does Dana return to save Rufus this time? What had Rufus been doing?
5. How does Tom Weylin treat Dana differently?
6. How is Dana’s attitude toward Tom Weylin different?
7. What does Dana threaten if she is beaten again? How does Tom Weylin react?
8. What is ague? According to Nigel, who has ague?
9. What does Dana ask Nigel to do? Why?
10. What does Dana ask Tom Weylin to do? How does he react? Why?
11. How is Dana able to help Rufus?
12. How has Alice changed? How many babies has Alive had with Rufus?
13. How does Tom Weylin die? Who is Rufus angry with over it? Why?
14. According to Alice, why did both of her babies die?
15. Who does Rufus send in to the field? Why?
16. Describe Dana’s experience in the fields.
17. What new task does Rufus ask Dana to do? How does Dana react?
18. What does Rufus tell Dana about Alice? How does Dana feel about it?
19. Describe Margaret Weylin. How has she changed?
20. What does Margaret Weylin ask Dana to do? How does Dana feel about it?
21. What is a coffle?
22. What makes Dana realize that Rufus is just like his father, Tom Weylin?
23. What does Nigel mean by, “[s]he means the devil with people who say anything but what you are”?
24. Why does Dana hug Carrie?
25. What does Rufus ask Dana to do? Why? What does Rufus threaten to do?
26. Who says, “You really are only one woman. Did you know that”? How does Alice interpret this remark?
27. Describe the kind of party the blacks have?
28. How does Rufus feel about his son?
29. Why is Alice asking Dana for laudanum?
30. What does Alice name her newborn baby? What does Dana think about the name? Why?
31. What do Alice and Dana have an argument about?
32. What does Rufus promise he will do with the children he fathered with Alice?
33. How much longer does Dana plan to stay at the Weylin plantation? Why?
34. What worries Dana about Sam James talking to her?
35. What happens to Sam James? Why? How does Dana react?
36. What extreme measure does Dana take to get home? Why?
Chapter 6 - “The Rope”
1. Where does Dana wake up? Who treats her injuries?
2. What does Dana mean by, “It’s real now, isn’t it? We talked about it before – God knows how long ago – but somehow, it was abstract then. Now Kevin, if you can’t even say it, how can you expect me to do it”?
3. How long are Kevin and Dana able to stay together?
4. How is life different for both Dana and Kevin?
5. What difficult question does Kevin have for Dana? How does Dana answer?
6. What concerns does Dana have if Rufus dies?
7. What happened to Alice? Why?
8. Where are Alice and Rufus’ children?
9. What does Dana tell Rufus he must do?
10. Describe Alice’s funeral.
11. What does Rufus do at the Court House?
12. What does Rufus ask Dana to stay and do? How does Dana answer?
13. What choice does Rufus make? How does this lead to Dana killing him?
14. What happens to Dana when she kills Rufus?
Epilogue
1. Where do Kevin and Dana travel to? Why?
2. What happened to Rufus’s house? What slaves were sold? What slaves were not sold?
3. What is meant by, “older people who looked at Kevin and me, then looked again”? What still exists in Kevin and Dana’s world?
© 2018-2023 Upper Cape Tech English Department | Last updated June 8, 2023.