A Tree Grows in Brooklyn (novel) - Quiz
  • 1. Who is the author of A Tree Grows in Brooklyn?
A) Cornelius Nolan
B) Harper & Brothers
C) Francie Nolan
D) Betty Smith
  • 2. In what year was A Tree Grows in Brooklyn published?
A) 1943
B) 1940
C) 1912
D) 2012
  • 3. What was the original non-fiction title of the manuscript?
A) A Tree Grows in Brooklyn
B) They Lived in Brooklyn
C) Growing Up in Williamsburg
D) The Nolan Family Story
  • 4. Which publisher held the contest that led to the book's publication?
A) Brooklyn Press
B) Library of Congress
C) Harper & Brothers
D) Williamsburg Publishing
  • 5. What is the main metaphor of the novel?
A) The junk business
B) The tree of heaven
C) The singing waiter
D) The tenement buildings
  • 6. What is the scientific name of the tree mentioned in the book?
A) Acer saccharum
B) Pinus sylvestris
C) Ailanthus altissima
D) Quercus robur
  • 7. In 2012, which organization listed the book as one that shaped America?
A) The Brooklyn Historical Society
B) The Armed Services Committee
C) Library of Congress
D) Harper & Brothers
  • 8. How many books is the novel divided into?
A) Six
B) Four
C) Five
D) Three
  • 9. In what year does Book One open?
A) 1942
B) 1943
C) 1940
D) 1912
  • 10. How old is Francie Nolan at the beginning of the novel?
A) 11
B) 12
C) 10
D) 9
  • 11. What is Francie's brother's nickname?
A) Neeley
B) Frank
C) Johnny
D) Corn
  • 12. What is Johnny Nolan's profession?
A) Librarian
B) Junk dealer
C) Singing waiter
D) Building cleaner
  • 13. What is the primary cause of Johnny Nolan's inability to hold a steady job?
A) Laziness
B) Health issues
C) Alcoholism
D) Lack of talent
  • 14. What is Katie Nolan's primary occupation?
A) Junk selling
B) Singing waiter
C) Writer
D) Cleaning apartment buildings
  • 15. What does Francie use to escape from the poverty of her daily existence?
A) Selling junk
B) Working odd jobs
C) Imagination and reading
D) Singing songs
  • 16. Why was the book released in an Armed Services Edition?
A) To be sold at military bases
B) To serve as a training manual
C) To teach soldiers about Brooklyn
D) To fit in a uniform pocket
  • 17. What specific personality traits does Francie admire in her father?
A) Wealthy, educated, and generous
B) Handsome, talented, imaginative, and sentimental
C) Strict, hardworking, and stoic
D) Angry, distant, and powerful
  • 18. What is the nationality of Katie's parents?
A) Austria
B) Germany
C) Italy
D) Ireland
  • 19. Who are the parents of Johnny and Katie?
A) Immigrants
B) Native-born Americans
C) Second-generation citizens
D) Expatriates
  • 20. Why does Johnny begin drinking heavily?
A) He hates living in Williamsburg
B) He loses his job
C) He is grieving his parents
D) He panics about Katie's pregnancies
  • 21. Which child does Katie resent in Book Two?
A) Annie Laurie
B) Francie
C) Neeley
D) Sissy
  • 22. What does Katie resolve to give her children?
A) A fortune
B) A musical education
C) A house in the country
D) A better life
  • 23. What is the main reason the Nolans move twice in their first seven years?
A) Public disgraces
B) Landlord disputes
C) Lack of money
D) Fire hazards
  • 24. Whose babysitting efforts cause a public disgrace for the Nolans?
A) Johnny
B) Aunt Sissy
C) A neighbor
D) Katie
  • 25. How old is Francie when she attends the school next door in Book Three?
A) Eight
B) Nine
C) Seven
D) Six
  • 26. Who supports Francie's transfer to a better school district?
A) Johnny
B) Aunt Sissy
C) Katie
D) Miss Garnder
  • 27. How does Katie save Francie's life?
A) She nurses her through a plague
B) She finds her when she is lost
C) She pulls her from a fire
D) She shoots a child-rapist/murderer
  • 28. On what holiday does Johnny die?
A) Christmas Day
B) Easter
C) New Year's Day
D) Thanksgiving
  • 29. What is the cause of Johnny's death?
A) Alcoholism-induced pneumonia
B) Heart failure
C) Influenza
D) A workplace accident
  • 30. What does Katie do with the life insurance money?
A) Pays for a respectable burial
B) Buys a new home
C) Invests in a business
D) Pays for Francie's schooling
  • 31. What action does Katie take to reduce family expenses after Johnny's death?
A) Moves to a cheaper apartment
B) Sells the furniture
C) Cancels the children's life insurance
D) Stops buying meat
  • 32. What is the name of the new baby born in May 1916?
A) Annie Laurie
B) Rose
C) Mary
D) Sissy
  • 33. What does Francie write for graduation that gets rejected?
A) A play
B) An essay
C) A short story
D) A poem
  • 34. When does Francie graduate from grade school?
A) December
B) July
C) June
D) May
  • 35. What does graduation allow Francie to come to terms with?
A) Her mother's preference for Neeley
B) Her lack of talent
C) Her father's death
D) Her poverty
  • 36. What was the nationality of Johnny's parents?
A) Austria
B) Ireland
C) England
D) Scotland
  • 37. What is Francie's first job?
A) Press clipping office clerk
B) Artificial flower factory worker
C) Teacher's assistant
D) Teletype operator
  • 38. What job does Francie get after leaving the clipping office?
A) Secretary
B) Waitress
C) Pianist
D) Teletype operator
  • 39. Who helps Francie pass her college-level summer courses?
A) Johnny Nolan
B) Ben Blake
C) Lee Rhynor
D) Michael McShane
  • 40. Who proposes marriage to Katie in 1918?
A) Michael McShane
B) Ben Blake
C) Lee Rhynor
D) Johnny Nolan
  • 41. What was Michael McShane's original occupation?
A) Police officer
B) Factory owner
C) Teacher
D) Soldier
  • 42. How old is Francie at the start of Book Five?
A) 21
B) Almost 17
C) 14
D) 18
  • 43. Which young girl reminds Francie of her younger self?
A) Katie
B) Neeley
C) Lee
D) Florry
  • 44. What name does Sissy give to all her husbands and lovers before Steve?
A) John
B) William
C) Thomas
D) James
  • 45. How many stillborn children did Sissy have before having a healthy son?
A) Ten
B) Two
C) Five
D) Zero
  • 46. Which character becomes a nun?
A) Katie
B) Eliza
C) Sissy
D) Evy
  • 47. What is Willie's occupation before he leaves Evy?
A) Singing waiter
B) Milk-wagon driver
C) Policeman
D) Construction worker
  • 48. Which relative acts as a moral and practical guide for the Rommely daughters?
A) Mary Rommely
B) Thomas Rommely
C) Evy
D) Sissy
  • 49. Who is Francie's first real date?
A) Ben Blake
B) Steve
C) Lee Rhynor
D) Neeley
  • 50. What does Thomas Rommely forbid his family from speaking in the house?
A) German
B) Latin
C) Austrian
D) English
  • 51. How many children does Evy have?
A) Four
B) Three
C) Five
D) Two
  • 52. How does the text describe the book's relationship with naturalism?
A) It is a prime example of pure naturalism.
B) It explicitly rejects all naturalistic themes.
C) It contains naturalistic elements but is not fundamentally naturalistic.
D) It is defined primarily as a naturalistic work.
  • 53. What is suggested about traditional notions of right and wrong in the context of extreme poverty?
A) Extreme poverty changes the criteria by which these notions should be judged.
B) Traditional notions should be upheld regardless of poverty.
C) Poverty strengthens traditional moral standards.
D) Poverty makes traditional notions of right and wrong irrelevant.
  • 54. Why was the book significant during World War II?
A) It was used as a military training manual.
B) It was the only book allowed to be shipped overseas.
C) It was used to teach soldiers how to read.
D) It was a popular Armed Services Edition book.
  • 55. Who mentions finding inspiration in Francie Nolan in their 2005 memoir?
A) Jeannette Walls
B) Anne Rice
C) Cindy Morgan
D) Betty Smith
  • 56. According to the text, which of these is NOT an issue the book addresses?
A) The space race
B) Coming of age
C) Exploitation
D) Education
  • 57. Which rapper references the title of the book in the songs 'Some How, Some Way' and 'Interlude'?
A) Jay-Z
B) Positive K
C) Talib Kweli
D) Snoop Dogg
  • 58. Which artist refers to 'A Tree Grows in Brooklyn' in the Blackstar track 'Respiration'?
A) Positive K
B) Drake
C) Talib Kweli
D) Jay-Z
  • 59. Who recorded a song titled 'A Tree grows in Brooklyn' on a 2018 album?
A) Rosemary Rice
B) Abbi Jacobson
C) D'Arcy Carden
D) Olivia Chaney
  • 60. Which network aired the 'Studio One' adaptation of the book in 1947?
A) NBC
B) CBS
C) HBO
D) ABC
  • 61. Who starred as Francie in the 1947 CBS 'Studio One' production?
A) Abbi Jacobson
B) Rosemary Rice
C) Olivia Chaney
D) D'Arcy Carden
  • 62. In the HBO miniseries 'Band of Brothers', which character is seen reading the book?
A) Ricky
B) Super Grover
C) Frank Perconte
D) Dan
  • 63. The 'Batman' episode 'An Egg Grows in Gotham' features which villain?
A) The Joker
B) The Penguin
C) Egghead
D) The Riddler
  • 64. Which animated series features an episode titled 'A Tree Grows In Lawndale'?
A) Sesame Street
B) The Simpsons
C) Batman
D) Daria
  • 65. Which television show featured a Super Grover segment set 'where two trees grow in Brooklyn'?
A) Gossip Girl
B) Sesame Street
C) Will and Grace
D) The Simpsons
  • 66. Which season of 'The Simpsons' includes an episode called 'A Tree Grows in Springfield'?
A) Season 1
B) Season 17
C) Season 24
D) Season 4
  • 67. In which documentary series can a soldier be seen reading the book during D-Day preparations?
A) Morning Show
B) Studio One
C) The World at War
D) Band of Brothers
  • 68. In 'A League of Their Own' (2022), which character recommends the book to Carson Shaw?
A) Abbi Jacobson
B) Blair
C) Greta
D) Frank Perconte
  • 69. In 'Gossip Girl', which character tells Dan that they don't have to plant a tree just because one grows in Brooklyn?
A) Blair
B) Grace
C) Carson Shaw
D) Lucy
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