Question 1

My Ántonia

Accepted Answer

Jim Burden narrates the book about frontier Nebraska. He is joined by the title character who eventually becomes his best friend.  Mr Shimerda kills himself at the end of winter and Jim has to fight off the lecehrous Mr. Cutter.

Question 2

The Sound and the Fury

Accepted Answer

Follows the Compson family including the mentally handicapped Benjy, the intelligent but troubled Quentin, the cruel and racist Jason, and the rest of the family.  Quentin kills himself after lamenting the state of the south and fate of his sister Caddy.

Question 3

For Whom the Bell Tolls

Accepted Answer

Narrator Robert Jordan fights in the Spanish Civil War on the side of the republic. Jordan butts heads with guerilla Pablo and is in love with Maria. Jordan eventually refuses to be killed by a comrade after suffering a wound after blowing up a bridge.

Question 4

Alice in Wonderland

Accepted Answer

The title character finds herself in a fantasy place full of talking animals and nonsense logic. She chases after a white rabbit and meets characters such as The Cheshire Cat and The Mad Hatter. She plays a rigged game of Croquet with the Queen of Hearts.

Question 5

The Adventures of Tom Sawyer

Accepted Answer

The title character is a smart and lazy boy that uses his cunning to convince other children to whitewash a fence. He pursues Becky Thatcher and is eventually trapped with her in cave also containing Injun Joe, a  criminal. He befriends Huckleberry Finn.

Question 6

Gravity's Rainbow

Accepted Answer

The novel focuses on the characters trying to find the Schwarzgerät a device to be installed in a v-2 rocket called "00000". The whole novel follows many characters like Pirate Prentice and Tyrone Slothrop.

Question 7

The Age of Innocence

Accepted Answer

Newland Archer spends the novel balancing his safe marriage to May Welland and his desire for her cousin Ellen Olenska who is in turbulent marriage with a Polish Count. Eventually he stays with May and raises his son.

Question 8

Dracula

Accepted Answer

The titular character sickens Lucy Westenra turning her into a vampire as part of his plan to take over Britain. She is avenged by Quincy, Dr, Seward, The Harkers, Lord Godalming and Dr. Abraham Van Helsing.

Question 9

Dune

Accepted Answer

Paul Atreides and his mother are stranded on Arrakis after treachery by the Baron Harkonnen. They ally with the native Fremen to retake the planet and seize its spice, a drug that halts again and allows for space travel.

Question 10

Uncle Tom's Cabin

Accepted Answer

The book follows the title character as well as Eliza and Eva as they attempt to escape slavery. The title character is sold to Simon Legree, a cruel slave owner, who eventually kills him.

Question 11

Daisy Miller

Accepted Answer

The book chronicles the courtship of the title character by Winterbourne. They meet in Switzerland then Rome where Winterbourne is infatuated with her but finds her to be to frivolous and flirtacious. At the end of the book she dies of "Roman Fever".

Question 12

The Old Man and the Sea

Accepted Answer

The novel follows Santiago an unlucky fisherman. Santiago sets out to break his bad luck. He hooks a marlin and holds the line for 2 days before he can kill it. After lashing it to the boat the fish is devoured by sharks before he reaches shore.

Question 13

Of Mice and Men

Accepted Answer

The smart George and the mentally handicapped Lenny both struggle to find work . Lenny accidentally kills a woman and to save him from a  mob George kills him while telling him about the rabbits they had hoped to own.

Question 14

The Call of the Wild

Accepted Answer

The dog Buck is stolen from his owners and sent to Canada where he is a sled dog. He kills lead dog, Spitz and become lead dog. He is sold and resold and is freed by Thornton, a prospector. He avenges Thornton's death by natives and joins a wolfpack.

Question 15

The Bluest Eye

Accepted Answer

The book follows Pecola, a young black girl in Lorain, Ohio in the 40s. She desires the title object because she believe it will make her beautiful. She is eventually raped by her father Cholly and her premature child dies leaving her insane.

Question 16

Slaughterhouse Five

Accepted Answer

Follows Billy Pilgrim throughout his life and focuses on the his enduring of the allied firebombing of Dresden while he was a Prisoner of War.

Question 17

The Autobiography of Alice B. Toklas

Accepted Answer

Tells the life story of the title character as she becomes an expatriot and meets the author in Paris and becomes her life partner.

Question 18

The Devil's Dictionary

Accepted Answer

A Satirical word book with definitions that extend barbs at politics, philosophy, and espouse the author's own world view.

Question 19

Lord of the Flies

Accepted Answer

A group of young boys are crashed on a tropical island where they slowly descend into more primitive behavior. Ralph leads one faction while the cruel Jack leads the choir boys. The epileptic Simon is torn to pieces after being mistaken for a beasty.

Question 20

The Last of the Mohicans

Accepted Answer

Natty Bumppo, going by Hawk-Eye and Chingachgook with his son Uncas assist the Munro sisters as they try and reach fort William Henry which is under siege. 2nd in Leatherstocking tales.

Question 21

Little Women

Accepted Answer

Follows the March sisters, Meg, Jo, Amy, and Beth as they fall in love and weather sickness and heartbreak. Laurie, Professor Bhaer, and John Brook each marry a sister. Beth dies from scarlet fever.

Question 22

Walden

Accepted Answer

An account of the author's two years living at the title pond in the wilderness while on a quest for self reliance.

Question 23

The House of Mirth

Accepted Answer

Follows Lily Bart, an upper class impoverished socialite. Her desire to find a husband is driven both by love and a need to regain wealth. Eventually her  social indiscretions cause problems. She falls for Lawrence Selden but dies before he proposes.

Question 24

To Kill a Mockingbird

Accepted Answer

Focuses on the trial of Tom Robinson as defended by the main character, Scout's, father, Atticus Finch. Also follows Jem, her brother, and Dill, a friend based on Truman Capote.

Question 25

On the Road

Accepted Answer

Follows Sal Paradise and Dean Moriarty as they traverse America causing trouble and leaving a wake of social destruction. Heavily based on the authors own experiences.

Question 26

The Great Gatsby

Accepted Answer

Follows Nick Carraway as he lives in West Egg. He meets the mysterious Jay Gatsby who is in love with Daisy Buchanan who is married to the callous Tom. After Tom's mistress is killed her husband murders Gatsby.

Question 27

The Jungle

Accepted Answer

Follows Jugris Rudkus, a Lithuanian immigrant in Chicago as he works in meat packing. Shows the horrors of the industry and ends with a socialist party meeting.

Question 28

The Wonderful Wizard of Oz

Accepted Answer

A young girl name Dorothy's home crashes down on top of a witch wearing silver shoes. She is told she must travel to Emerald City and then defeat the Wicked Witch of the West to go home. She gathers a Lion, Tin Man, and Scarecrow as companions.

Question 29

Main Street

Accepted Answer

Follows Carol Milford and her many attempts to redesign and remake the small fictional town of Gopher Prairie, Minnesota. She is stymied by the local cliques and yet she remains defiant.

Question 30

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn

Accepted Answer

Follows the title character as he gets into trouble and is kidnapped by Pap before escaping and rowing down the Mississippi river with the runaway slave Jim.

Question 31

The Bell Jar

Accepted Answer

Semiautobiographical account of Esther Greenwood. She descends into psychosis after her literary ambitions go awry. She recovers with help from Dr. Nolan.

Question 32

The Red Badge of Courage

Accepted Answer

Henry Fleming a union soldier of the 304th is a coward but receives the title wound after fleeing battle. When his friend Jim Conklin dies he becomes brave and leads a successful charge against confederate troops.

Question 33

The Scarlet Letter

Accepted Answer

Follows Hester Prynne, in Puritan Massachusetts, as she gives birth to a child through an affair with Arthur DImmesdale when she thought her husband, Roger Chillingworth was dead. Her sentence is to wear the scarlet “A” for the rest of her life.

Question 34

Catch-22

Accepted Answer

Follows Joh Yossarian, a bomber pilot as he tries to navigate world war 2. It hosts other characters such as Milo Minderbinder, Nately, and Hungry Joe as they are based on the island of Pianosa.

Question 35

Frankenstein

Accepted Answer

Follows the title Dr. He describes to Captain Walton how he created a monster but was undone by his creation when it murdered his brother, framed his housekeeper, and killed his wife. The monster appears when the title character dies and kills itself.

Question 36

Jurassic Park

Accepted Answer

John Hammond is the owner of the title location on Isla Nublar. The main attraction is live dinosaurs. Dennis Nedry tries to steal embryos and shuts the power off letting the dinos loose.

Question 37

The Joy Luck Club

Accepted Answer

4 Chinese American women and their daughters life stories are told in a series of vignettes interspersed with their title Mahjong Group.

Question 38

The Catcher in the Rye

Accepted Answer

Holden Caulfield is expelled from Pencey Prep. He is annoyed with people he sees as phony. The only person he appreciates is his sister Phoebe.

Question 39

Fahrenheit 451

Accepted Answer

Guy Montag is a fireman that burns books. His wife Mildred is obsessed with media. Guy hides books in his vent but when Captain Beatty confronts him he kill Beatty with a flamethrower. Guy flees the city just before it is destroyed by a nuke.

Question 40

Arrowsmith

Accepted Answer

The misanthropic main character, Martin is a brilliant but womanizing and principled scientist. He destroy his career but after treating a plague outbreak it is rebuilt. He secludes himself instead of taking a high position, abandoning his 3rd wife.

Question 41

Moby Dick

Accepted Answer

Ishmael is a wahler on board the Pequod. He befriends Queequeg and they help the mad Captain Ahab chase the title whale all over the ocean.

Question 42

Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret

Accepted Answer

Following a sixth grade girl, this book explores religion and addresses the common issues associated with adolescent girls going through puberty, such as buying her first bra and liking boys.

Question 43

The Awakening

Accepted Answer

Set in Louisiana at the end of the 19th century, this book follows Edna Pontellier and her struggle with gender roles and social constraints for  women.

Question 44

Beloved

Accepted Answer

Tells the story of Sethe, a formerly enslaved woman, and her daughter whose Cincinnati house is haunted by a malicious spirit. Based on the true story of Margaret Garner, an escaped slave.

Question 45

Native Son

Accepted Answer

Follows Bigger Thomas, a black man living in Chicago, who is put on trial for committing murder. It is one of the earliest successful attempts to explain the racial divide in America in the social conditions imposed on African Americans.

Question 46

The Grapes of Wrath

Accepted Answer

Tom Joad and his family travel with the reverend Jim Casy to California to get better work during the dustbowl. Ends with Rose of Sharon saving a starving man with her breast milk.

Question 47

O Pioneers!

Accepted Answer

Follows the Bergson family in the fictional Hanover Nebraska as they try to navigate love and the financial situation on the prairie.

Question 48

Breakfast at Tiffany's

Accepted Answer

The book is narrated by an unnamed new york socialite who befriends and chronicles the exploits of Holly Golightly who is described as "an American Geisha" as she has no job and lives by socializing with wealthy men.

Question 49

Their Eyes Were Watching God

Accepted Answer

The book follows Janie Crawford as she goes from being married off to a farmer before running away with the ambitious Jody Starks. When Jody dies she becomes wealthy and marries "Tea Cakes" who she shoots in self defense after he is bitten by a rabid dog.

Question 50

Tess of the d'Urbervilles

Accepted Answer

The title character is in love with Angel Clare but is raped by Alec. When Angel finds out about the rape he leaves her. Years later Angel tries to get her back but she has become Alec's mistress. She is executed for Alec's murder at the end of the book.

Question 51

Far From the Madding Crowd

Accepted Answer

Bathsheba Everdene's romantic exploits revolve around Gabriel Oak, William Boldwood, and Sergeant Frank Troy. When she marries Troy she is unhappy and finds he has abandoned Fanny Robin. When Boldwood kills Troy, Bathsheba marries Gabriel.

Easy Lit

Lit for dummies

Term	Definition
My Ántonia	Jim Burden narrates the book about frontier Nebraska. He is joined by the title character who eventually becomes his best friend. Mr Shimerda kills himself at the end of winter and Jim has to fight off the lecehrous Mr. Cutter.	Willa Cather
The Sound and the Fury	Follows the Compson family including the mentally handicapped Benjy, the intelligent but troubled Quentin, the cruel and racist Jason, and the rest of the family. Quentin kills himself after lamenting the state of the south and fate of his sister Caddy.	William Faulkner
For Whom the Bell Tolls	Narrator Robert Jordan fights in the Spanish Civil War on the side of the republic. Jordan butts heads with guerilla Pablo and is in love with Maria. Jordan eventually refuses to be killed by a comrade after suffering a wound after blowing up a bridge.	Ernest Hemingway
Alice in Wonderland	The title character finds herself in a fantasy place full of talking animals and nonsense logic. She chases after a white rabbit and meets characters such as The Cheshire Cat and The Mad Hatter. She plays a rigged game of Croquet with the Queen of Hearts.	Lewis Carroll
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer	The title character is a smart and lazy boy that uses his cunning to convince other children to whitewash a fence. He pursues Becky Thatcher and is eventually trapped with her in cave also containing Injun Joe, a criminal. He befriends Huckleberry Finn.	Mark Twain
Gravity's Rainbow	The novel focuses on the characters trying to find the Schwarzgerät a device to be installed in a v-2 rocket called "00000". The whole novel follows many characters like Pirate Prentice and Tyrone Slothrop.	Thomas Pynchon
The Age of Innocence	Newland Archer spends the novel balancing his safe marriage to May Welland and his desire for her cousin Ellen Olenska who is in turbulent marriage with a Polish Count. Eventually he stays with May and raises his son.	Edith Wharton
Dracula	The titular character sickens Lucy Westenra turning her into a vampire as part of his plan to take over Britain. She is avenged by Quincy, Dr, Seward, The Harkers, Lord Godalming and Dr. Abraham Van Helsing.	Bram Stoker
Dune	Paul Atreides and his mother are stranded on Arrakis after treachery by the Baron Harkonnen. They ally with the native Fremen to retake the planet and seize its spice, a drug that halts again and allows for space travel.	Frank Herbert
Uncle Tom's Cabin	The book follows the title character as well as Eliza and Eva as they attempt to escape slavery. The title character is sold to Simon Legree, a cruel slave owner, who eventually kills him.	Harriet Beecher Stowe
Daisy Miller	The book chronicles the courtship of the title character by Winterbourne. They meet in Switzerland then Rome where Winterbourne is infatuated with her but finds her to be to frivolous and flirtacious. At the end of the book she dies of "Roman Fever".	Henry James
The Old Man and the Sea	The novel follows Santiago an unlucky fisherman. Santiago sets out to break his bad luck. He hooks a marlin and holds the line for 2 days before he can kill it. After lashing it to the boat the fish is devoured by sharks before he reaches shore.	Ernest Hemingway
Of Mice and Men	The smart George and the mentally handicapped Lenny both struggle to find work . Lenny accidentally kills a woman and to save him from a mob George kills him while telling him about the rabbits they had hoped to own.	John Steinbeck
The Call of the Wild	The dog Buck is stolen from his owners and sent to Canada where he is a sled dog. He kills lead dog, Spitz and become lead dog. He is sold and resold and is freed by Thornton, a prospector. He avenges Thornton's death by natives and joins a wolfpack.	Jack London
The Bluest Eye	The book follows Pecola, a young black girl in Lorain, Ohio in the 40s. She desires the title object because she believe it will make her beautiful. She is eventually raped by her father Cholly and her premature child dies leaving her insane.	Toni Morrison
Slaughterhouse Five	Follows Billy Pilgrim throughout his life and focuses on the his enduring of the allied firebombing of Dresden while he was a Prisoner of War.	Kurt Vonnegut
The Autobiography of Alice B. Toklas	Tells the life story of the title character as she becomes an expatriot and meets the author in Paris and becomes her life partner.	Gertrude Stein
The Devil's Dictionary	A Satirical word book with definitions that extend barbs at politics, philosophy, and espouse the author's own world view.	Ambrose Bierce
Lord of the Flies	A group of young boys are crashed on a tropical island where they slowly descend into more primitive behavior. Ralph leads one faction while the cruel Jack leads the choir boys. The epileptic Simon is torn to pieces after being mistaken for a beasty.	William Golding
The Last of the Mohicans	Natty Bumppo, going by Hawk-Eye and Chingachgook with his son Uncas assist the Munro sisters as they try and reach fort William Henry which is under siege. 2nd in Leatherstocking tales.	James Fenimore Cooper
Little Women	Follows the March sisters, Meg, Jo, Amy, and Beth as they fall in love and weather sickness and heartbreak. Laurie, Professor Bhaer, and John Brook each marry a sister. Beth dies from scarlet fever.	Louisa May Alcott
Walden	An account of the author's two years living at the title pond in the wilderness while on a quest for self reliance.	Henry David Thoreau
The House of Mirth	Follows Lily Bart, an upper class impoverished socialite. Her desire to find a husband is driven both by love and a need to regain wealth. Eventually her social indiscretions cause problems. She falls for Lawrence Selden but dies before he proposes.	Edith Wharton
To Kill a Mockingbird	Focuses on the trial of Tom Robinson as defended by the main character, Scout's, father, Atticus Finch. Also follows Jem, her brother, and Dill, a friend based on Truman Capote.	Harper Lee
On the Road	Follows Sal Paradise and Dean Moriarty as they traverse America causing trouble and leaving a wake of social destruction. Heavily based on the authors own experiences.	Jack Kerouac
The Great Gatsby	Follows Nick Carraway as he lives in West Egg. He meets the mysterious Jay Gatsby who is in love with Daisy Buchanan who is married to the callous Tom. After Tom's mistress is killed her husband murders Gatsby.	F. Scott Fitzgerald
The Jungle	Follows Jugris Rudkus, a Lithuanian immigrant in Chicago as he works in meat packing. Shows the horrors of the industry and ends with a socialist party meeting.	Upton Sinclair
The Wonderful Wizard of Oz	A young girl name Dorothy's home crashes down on top of a witch wearing silver shoes. She is told she must travel to Emerald City and then defeat the Wicked Witch of the West to go home. She gathers a Lion, Tin Man, and Scarecrow as companions.	L. Frank Baum
Main Street	Follows Carol Milford and her many attempts to redesign and remake the small fictional town of Gopher Prairie, Minnesota. She is stymied by the local cliques and yet she remains defiant.	Sinclair Lewis
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn	Follows the title character as he gets into trouble and is kidnapped by Pap before escaping and rowing down the Mississippi river with the runaway slave Jim.	Mark Twain
The Bell Jar	Semiautobiographical account of Esther Greenwood. She descends into psychosis after her literary ambitions go awry. She recovers with help from Dr. Nolan.	Sylvia Plath
The Red Badge of Courage	Henry Fleming a union soldier of the 304th is a coward but receives the title wound after fleeing battle. When his friend Jim Conklin dies he becomes brave and leads a successful charge against confederate troops.	Stephen Crane
The Scarlet Letter	Follows Hester Prynne, in Puritan Massachusetts, as she gives birth to a child through an affair with Arthur DImmesdale when she thought her husband, Roger Chillingworth was dead. Her sentence is to wear the scarlet “A” for the rest of her life.	Nathaniel Hawthorne
Catch-22	Follows Joh Yossarian, a bomber pilot as he tries to navigate world war 2. It hosts other characters such as Milo Minderbinder, Nately, and Hungry Joe as they are based on the island of Pianosa.	Joseph Heller
Frankenstein	Follows the title Dr. He describes to Captain Walton how he created a monster but was undone by his creation when it murdered his brother, framed his housekeeper, and killed his wife. The monster appears when the title character dies and kills itself.	Mary Shelley
Jurassic Park	John Hammond is the owner of the title location on Isla Nublar. The main attraction is live dinosaurs. Dennis Nedry tries to steal embryos and shuts the power off letting the dinos loose.	Michael Crichton
The Joy Luck Club	4 Chinese American women and their daughters life stories are told in a series of vignettes interspersed with their title Mahjong Group.	Amy Tan
The Catcher in the Rye	Holden Caulfield is expelled from Pencey Prep. He is annoyed with people he sees as phony. The only person he appreciates is his sister Phoebe.	J.D. Salinger
Fahrenheit 451	Guy Montag is a fireman that burns books. His wife Mildred is obsessed with media. Guy hides books in his vent but when Captain Beatty confronts him he kill Beatty with a flamethrower. Guy flees the city just before it is destroyed by a nuke.	Ray Bradbury
Arrowsmith	The misanthropic main character, Martin is a brilliant but womanizing and principled scientist. He destroy his career but after treating a plague outbreak it is rebuilt. He secludes himself instead of taking a high position, abandoning his 3rd wife.	Sinclair Lewis
Moby Dick	Ishmael is a wahler on board the Pequod. He befriends Queequeg and they help the mad Captain Ahab chase the title whale all over the ocean.	Herman Melville
Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret	Following a sixth grade girl, this book explores religion and addresses the common issues associated with adolescent girls going through puberty, such as buying her first bra and liking boys.	Judy Blume
The Awakening	Set in Louisiana at the end of the 19th century, this book follows Edna Pontellier and her struggle with gender roles and social constraints for women.	Kate Chopin
Beloved	Tells the story of Sethe, a formerly enslaved woman, and her daughter whose Cincinnati house is haunted by a malicious spirit. Based on the true story of Margaret Garner, an escaped slave.	Toni Morrison
Native Son	Follows Bigger Thomas, a black man living in Chicago, who is put on trial for committing murder. It is one of the earliest successful attempts to explain the racial divide in America in the social conditions imposed on African Americans.	Richard Wright
The Grapes of Wrath	Tom Joad and his family travel with the reverend Jim Casy to California to get better work during the dustbowl. Ends with Rose of Sharon saving a starving man with her breast milk.	John Steinbeck
O Pioneers!	Follows the Bergson family in the fictional Hanover Nebraska as they try to navigate love and the financial situation on the prairie.	Willa Cather
Breakfast at Tiffany's	The book is narrated by an unnamed new york socialite who befriends and chronicles the exploits of Holly Golightly who is described as "an American Geisha" as she has no job and lives by socializing with wealthy men.	Truman Capote
Their Eyes Were Watching God	The book follows Janie Crawford as she goes from being married off to a farmer before running away with the ambitious Jody Starks. When Jody dies she becomes wealthy and marries "Tea Cakes" who she shoots in self defense after he is bitten by a rabid dog.	Zora Neale Hurston
Tess of the d'Urbervilles	The title character is in love with Angel Clare but is raped by Alec. When Angel finds out about the rape he leaves her. Years later Angel tries to get her back but she has become Alec's mistress. She is executed for Alec's murder at the end of the book.	Thomas Hardy
Far From the Madding Crowd	Bathsheba Everdene's romantic exploits revolve around Gabriel Oak, William Boldwood, and Sergeant Frank Troy. When she marries Troy she is unhappy and finds he has abandoned Fanny Robin. When Boldwood kills Troy, Bathsheba marries Gabriel.	Thomas Hardy

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