End-of-Book Test

When Brat first hears the midwife speak, what does the midwife say the boys are “mucking up”?

• her freshly starched wimple

• her flower beds

• her Spanish leather shoes

How does Beetle’s first mug of sour ale at the midwife’s house taste?

• sweet

• nasty

• watery

When Beetle pulls the nearly-drowned cat out of the sack, in what does she wrap him?

• a. a piece of her skirt

• b. a scrap from an old bedsheet

• c. her bodice

Why does Beetle always think of the midwife as Jane Sharp?

• because that is the midwife’s maiden name

• because of her sharp nose and sharp glance

• because of her sharp scissors and sharp fingernails

Why are the midwife’s bottles of ointments, powders, and syrups not labeled?

• Beetle has forgotten to put the labels on.

• The labels have fallen off in the rain.

• The midwife cannot write to make labels.

When Kate the weaver’s daughter has her baby in the field, what does it remind Beetle of?

• when she saw calves being born

• when she pulled the cat out of the bag

• when she watched an operation

What does Beetle do with the butter and eggs from Meg at the dairy while she climbs the tree to watch the midwife and the miller?

• She puts them in her bodice.

• She puts them on a rock near the path.

• She puts them in a hollow log.

What was the hangman doing at the fair?

• preparing to conduct a hanging

• helping the bailiff look for a criminal

• selling murderer’s wash water

A man at the fair mistakes Beetle for another girl named Alyce. Why is this an important moment for Beetle?

• because it makes her see how important it is to have a family

• because she realizes that she looks like an Alyce—someone who can read

• because this man ends up offering her a job at the horse races

What name does Alyce’s cat “choose” for himself?

• Purr

• Puss

• Purslane