High Tide in Tuscon QUIZ

What part of building the pond does Kingsolver describe as 'a miracle'?

• a. That the pond water rose and fell steadily

• b. That the bulldozer did not tleuin the land

• c. That the pond did not leak after the first rainfall

• d. That the pond was teeming with life just hours after being built

How did the battle of the two bull snakes over the same frog turn out?

• a. The frog was torn in half

• b. one bill snake won and the other slithered away

• c. The frog escaped and hopped away

• d. The bull snakes let go of the frog and fought each other

How did Kingsolver refer to herself the building of the pond?

• a. Creator

• b. Quail

• c. Believer

• d. Goddess

What best states the overall theme of the narrative?

• a. Everything on Earth needs water to survive

• b. Ponds, like cities all across the world, are teeming with life

• c. If you stop for a moment, you will realize the world is an amazing place

• d. A pond is a perfect analogy of the cold indifference of the universe

What best describes Kingsolver's writing style in this piece?

• a. Descriptive

• b. Dull

• c. Scientific

• d. Cold

What does Kingsolver mean when she describes the hatched dragonfly eggs as 'creeping armadas of larvae'?

• a. There was only one larva

• b. There were many larvae

• c. The larvae fought against each other

• d. The larvae carried disease

Kingsolver's story of the bull snakes and the frog shows that she thinks-

• a. everything in nature needs to eat

• b. the strong win in the end

• c. it is better to be the predator than the prey

• d. nature can be beautiful, but it is also ruthless

When Kingsolver describes the Cooper's hawk as 'the steadiest male presence in my life' she is—

• a. hinting that for many years she had bad luck with men

• b. saying that she believes the hawk was looking out for her

• c. telling the reader that the Cooper's hawk is loyal and reliable

• d. instilling a sense of awe in the reader about hawks

Kingsolver relays the story that her bulldozer friend described her attitude as 'absurd optimism' because she wanted to show-

• a. that not everyone believed in her vision

• b. that her friend had a strange sense of humor

• c. that she was popular and outgoing

• d. that the story was pure fiction

What does the word ABSURD mean in these lines: 'All the rest of the time this little valley lay empty, a toasted rock patch pierced with cactus. I cleared a brush, and what my bulldozer friend viewed as absurd optimism, directed the proceedings'

• a. hopeful

• b. logical

• c. foolish

• d. bashful