Literature Trivia Questions
1,195 trivia questions with answers, all ages. Multiple-choice trivia with answers, sorted by topic and level. Reveal the answers below, pick one at random, or present them full-screen.
- 1.
When close to his goal, The Dark Tower, Roland is attacked by Mordred. Who saves Rolands life, but dies in the process?
- AOy
- BEddie
- CJake
- DSusannah
Answer: Oy - 2.
In the novel Nicolae, Rayford Steele is able to gain secret information about Nicolaes plans via a secret one way intercom that had been installed in Nicolaes plane, The Condor 216. Who placed the intercom in the plane?
- ABuck
- BEarl Halliday
- CChloe
- DPontifex Peter Matthews
Answer: Earl Halliday - 3.
The paraplegic Marty Coslaw is a character in which Stephen King story?
- AThe Stand
- BBag of Bones
- CNight Shift
- DSilver Bullet
Answer: Silver Bullet - 4.
Once born, the child carried by Susannah/Mia was called what?
- AGalahad
- BArthur
- CMordred
- DStephen
Answer: Mordred - 5.
Who lost the list of passwords for the Gryffindor tower in Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban?
- APadma Patil
- BNeville Longbottom
- CDean Thomas
- DRon Weasley
Answer: Neville Longbottom - 6.
Newspaper magnates Joseph Pulitzer and William Hearst are regarded as the originators of this type of journalism.
- AGonzo journalism
- Byellow journalism
- Cinvestigating journalism
- Dambush journalism
Answer: yellow journalism - 7.
This 1971 Dr. Seuss book about a mossy, bossy creature, the Once-ler and the Truffula trees has been banned by some schools and libraries for its anti-forestry industry content.
- AHorton Hears a Who!
- BFox in Socks
- CThe Lorax
- DThe Butter Battle Book
Answer: The Lorax - 8.
One aspect of the physical constitution of fictional officer Hornblowers isolates him from a simple human pleasure. What is it?
- AHornblower has no sense of smell or taste resulting in joyless eating.
- BTone deafness prevents Hornblower from enjoying or even comprehending music.
- CDyslexia, or a dyslexia-like condition, prevents Hornblower from being able to read and write.
- DPoor eyesight and color blindness result in his inability to comprehend beauty and art.
Answer: Tone deafness prevents Hornblower from enjoying or even comprehending music. - 9.
This nature lover felt that poetry should reflect the simple tongue of the common man and that poetry is basically "emotion recollected in tranquility." Which renowned poet penned "Tintern Abbey" and "I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud."
- AWilliam Wordsworth
- BWilliam Blake
- CCharles Lamb
- DSamuel Taylor Coleridge
Answer: William Wordsworth - 10.
Which of the following women was not married to John Steinbeck?
- ACarol Henning Steinbeck Brown
- BGwyndolyn Conger Steinbeck
- CElaine Anderson Scott Steinbeck
- DMary Steinbeck Dekker
Answer: Mary Steinbeck Dekker - 11.
What does Farid secretly call Orpheus in the book Inkspell?
- ACheeseface
- BJunkface
- CMoonhead
- DFatty
Answer: Cheeseface - 12.
In what year did Ernest Hemingway die?
- A1971
- B1961
- C1955
- D1960
Answer: 1961 - 13.
The drama, My Own Private Idaho, starring Keanu Reeves and the late River Phoenix, is adapted from this Shakespeare play.
- ARichard III
- BHenry IV
- CKing John
- DHenry VI
Answer: Henry IV - 14.
This romantic hero is a wealthy gentleman who at first feels superior to Elizabeth Bennet and ignores her. Later, however, he falls in love with her, which is a blow to his pride.
- AMr. Bingley
- BMr. Darcy
- CColonel Forster
- DPaul Morel
Answer: Mr. Darcy - 15.
In this famous play Claudius murders his brother, the King of Denmark, and marries the widowed Queen Gertrude.
- AKing Lear
- BHamlet
- C'The Merchant of Venice'
- D'The Tempest'
Answer: Hamlet - 16.
What language did Jules Verne study at the boarding school at the Saint Donatien College, where he was sent at the age of nine?
- AGreek
- BEnglish
- CSpanish
- DLatin
Answer: Latin - 17.
What was the popular rumor that circulated about Dick Francis's books?
- AHis wife wrote them.
- BHe paid a ghostwriter to write them.
- CHis son wrote them.
- DThey contained subliminal messages.
Answer: His wife wrote them. - 18.
Which term refers to a prose fiction work that is longer than a short story but shorter than a novel?
- AAn allegory
- BAn intermediary tale
- CA novella
- DA tale
Answer: A novella - 19.
In the novel 1984, written by George Orwell, what is the name of the totalitarian regime that controls Oceania?
- AINGSOC
- BNeo-Bolshevism
- CEarth Alliance
- DObliteration of the Self
Answer: INGSOC - 20.
What house was Cho Chang in, as explained in Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, Order of the Pheonix, and Goblet of Fire?
- ASlytherin
- BHufflepuff
- CRavenclaw
- DGriffyndor
Answer: Ravenclaw - 21.
What was the title of Dorothy Parker's first poetry collection?
- AThe Fan
- BResume
- CDeath Taxes
- DEnough Rope
Answer: Enough Rope - 22.
Which of these novels is not part of the popular Rabbit series written by John Updike?
- ARabbit Is Rich
- BRabbit Redux
- CRabbit, Run
- DRabbit in Love
Answer: Rabbit in Love - 23.
Which novel by John Grisham was conceived on a road trip to Florida while thinking about stolen books with his wife?
- AThe Litigators
- BGray Mountain
- CRogue Lawyer
- DCamino Island
Answer: Camino Island - 24.
In the book The Neverending Story, what kind of creature is Engywook?
- AElf
- BGoblin
- CGnome
- DTroll
Answer: Gnome - 25.
This book that launched the Discworld series was first published in the U.K. in 1983.
- APyramids
- BThe Light Fantastic
- CThe Colour of Magic
- DSourcery
Answer: The Colour of Magic - 26.
Published in 1963, The Bell Jar is this poets only novel. It was published under the pseudonym Victoria Lucas.
- AEsther Greenwood
- BSylvia Plath
- CW. D. Snodgrass
- DAssia Wevill
Answer: Sylvia Plath - 27.
What dystopian novel is set in Oceania, an intercontinental super-state ruled by an enigmatic dictator?
- AFahrenheit 451
- BNineteen Eighty-Four
- CNine Tomorrows
- DTwenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea
Answer: Nineteen Eighty-Four - 28.
In the book, Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers, does Eowyn have romantic interest in Aragorn?
- ANo
- BYes
Answer: Yes - 29.
Nadine Gordimer won the 1991 Nobel Prize in Literature but many of her works were banned in her native country. What is her native country?
- AThe Soviet Union
- BThe Union of South Africa
- CBelgium
- DRomania
Answer: The Union of South Africa - 30.
Voyage of the Dawn Treader was written by this author.
- AT S Elliot
- BLewis Carrol
- CC S Lewis
- DBrothers Grimm
Answer: C S Lewis - 31.
The Old Man and the Sea brought Ernest Hemingway enormous success and earned him the Noble Prize in Literature in what year?
- A1960
- B1953
- C1952
- D1954
Answer: 1954 - 32.
What is James Potter called by Lily Evans in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix?
- AAn ignorant git
- BA selfish, bullying toerag
- CA bullying, selfish git
- DA big-headed git
Answer: A selfish, bullying toerag - 33.
Dr. Alex Delaware is the creation of which of these authors?
- ARoss McDonald
- BJonathan Kellerman
- CFaye Kellerman
- DKathy Reichs
Answer: Jonathan Kellerman - 34.
In the book Wizard and Glass, the gunslingers and Oy disembark from the monorail train at which station?
- ATower Heights
- BGrand Central Station
- CHambry
- DTopeka
Answer: Topeka - 35.
In The Lies Of Locke Lamora, what does "Lamora" mean in Throne Therin?
- AJustice
- BChaos
- CShadow
- DThievery
Answer: Shadow - 36.
Who portrayed Ashley Wilkes in the popular movie Gone with the Wind?
- AVoctor Jory
- BGary Cooper
- CLeslie Howard
- DGroucho Marx
Answer: Leslie Howard - 37.
In the book All Creatures Great and Small, what was Tristans favorite type of cigarettes?
- AGarshaw
- BRed Rover
- CWoodbine
- DDuncan
Answer: Woodbine - 38.
What novels includes characters named Sethe, Liz Granacher, Paul D. McKnight, Charlie McKnight?
- ABeloved
- BA Passage to India
- CThe Color Purple
- DSatanic Verses
Answer: Beloved - 39.
Who is the Shakespearean villain who had his own brother executed and innocent children killed because they were hindrances to his kingly ambition?
- AAaron the Moor
- BOthello
- CRichard III
- DEdmund
Answer: Richard III - 40.
What is the name of the mouse in the book The Green Mile?
- AMr. Bojangles
- BMr. Jingles
- CMr. Mousie
- DMr. Delacroix
Answer: Mr. Jingles - 41.
In which book by Mark Twain is Jim a major character?
- APuddnhead Wilson
- BThe Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County
- CHuckleberry Finn
- DThe Adventures of Tom Sawyer
Answer: Huckleberry Finn - 42.
In the film Gone with the Wind, when Rhett and Scarlett came back from their honeymoon they brought a gift for Mammy. What was it?
- AWhite silk petticoat
- BFur coat
- CRed silk petticoat
- DWhite silk nightgown
Answer: Red silk petticoat - 43.
As the novel Nicolae ends, which 2 members of the Tribulation Force are unaccounted for?
- AChloe and Buck
- BAmanda and Buck
- CChloe and Rayford
- DChloe and Amanda
Answer: Chloe and Amanda - 44.
What work by Alexandre Dumas, Sr. inspired Hercules Poirot how to solve the case in The Augean Stables?
- AThe Queens Necklace
- BThe Black Tulip
- CThe Regents Daughter
- DThe Gold Thieves
Answer: The Queens Necklace - 45.
In chapter 7 of Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, titled The Boggart in the Wardrobe, a severed hand comes out of the wardrobe for Seamus Finnegan.
- AYes
- BNo
Answer: No - 46.
In the English poem The Rime of the Ancient Mariner, which dead crew member helped the Mariner pull on a rope after the crew rose from the dead?
- AThe Mariners best friend
- BThe Mariners nephew
- CThe ships cook
- DThe captain of the ship
Answer: The Mariners nephew - 47.
What animal was the main character in the horror movie Cujo?
- ASnake
- BDog
- CCat
- DAlligator
Answer: Dog - 48.
Sporting a male pseudonym, what female French novelist maintained a romantic relationship with Frederic Chopin from 1837-1847?
- AGeorge Eliot
- BElizabeth Barrett Browning
- CGeorge Sand
- DGeorge Orwell
Answer: George Sand - 49.
What Nobel Prize-winning author depicted fictional character George F. Babbitt, whose surname has become synonymous with a business or professional man who conforms unthinkingly to dominant middle-class standards?
- AJohn Steinbeck
- BWilliam Faulkner
- CSinclair Lewis
- DSAUL BELLOW
Answer: Sinclair Lewis - 50.
What does the alethiometer tell Lyra she must do, in the book The Subtle Knife?
- AFind The Subtle Knife
- BSearch for a scholar who knows about dust
- CFind Lord Asriel
- DHelp Will find his father
Answer: Help Will find his father
How to use these trivia questions
- Warm-up. Open a lesson or meeting with 3–5 questions — enough to wake the room, short enough to keep the agenda.
- Review game. Pick 10 questions on the topic you just taught and play them in teams; discuss every wrong answer.
- Quiz night. Mix two or three topics, read each question twice, and give 20 seconds before revealing the answer.
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