Literature Trivia Questions — page 8

Having survived a shipwreck, this character from the comedy Twelfth Night poses as a boy, named Cesario, and enters the service of Duke Orsino.

• ACordelia
• BViola
• CBianca
• DOlivia

Of the following, which Stephen King novel was published earliest?

• A"Cujo"
• B"Christine"
• C"IT"
• D"Misery"

In a saloon, the gunslinger from Stephen Kings self-titled novel hears a crowd singing what tune that is well known in our world?

• ARock Around the Clock
• BGimme Shelter
• CHey Jude
• DOh My Darlin Clementine

Holden Caulfields dream to be a catcher in the rye and to guard children playing in a rye field on the edge of a cliff is based on his mishearing of the poem Comin Through the Rye. What poet, known in Scotland as The Bard, wrote that poem?

• ARobert Burns
• BLord Byron
• CThomas Campbell
• DWilliam Blake

In Nathanial Hawthornes The House of the Seven Gables, the destitute Hepzibah Pyncheon lives in the house and supports her brother, Clifford, who has just been released from jail. Why was he in jail?

• AKidnapping
• BBurglary
• CAdultary
• DMurder

What is the full name of English writer Terry Pratchett born in 1948?

• ATerence David John Pratchett
• BTerrance Dewar John Pratchett
• CTerence Joseph Elias Pratchett
• DTerry Joseph Pratchett

Which author co-wrote "The Communist Manifesto" alongside Karl Marx?

• APaul Lafargue
• BFriedrich Engels
• CAlexander Kerensky
• DRobert Owen

Last night I dreamt I went to Manderley again is the first sentence of this literary work.

• ARebecca
• BJane Eyre
• CEmma
• DWuthering Heights

Who was the author of the 1954 novel, "Lord of the Flies"?

• AF. Scott Fitzgerald
• BStephen King
• CWilliam Golding
• DHunter Fox

This massive novel, consisting of 18 chapters, chronicles the events of one single day in the life of the protagonist Leopold Bloom.

• AFinnegans Wake
• BA Portrait of the Artist as a Young man
• CDubliners
• DUlysses

When does the action in the novel, The Mezzanine take place?

• ASpring of 1987
• BDuring the protagonists morning commute to work
• CDuring the protagonists lunch hour
• DDuring the 10 A.M. coffee break

In the Hellraiser film series, what is the name of the puzzle-box used to open the gateway to the other world?

• ALament configuration
• BPandemonium configuration
• CLacrimal configuration
• DMidnight configuration

What happened when Fudge fell off the jungle gym in Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing?

• AHe bit his lip.
• BHe swallowed his top front teeth.
• CHe got a black eye.
• DHe broke his arm.

In this book, based on a true story, Truman Capote recounts the murders of Herb Clutter, a rich farmer from Kansas, his wife Bonnie, his sixteen-year-old daughter Nancy, and his fifteen-year-old son, Kenyon.

• A'The Glass Key'
• B'In Cold Blood'
• C'Red Harvest'
• D'The Moving Target'

Which of the following is the world's best-selling book?

• AThe Lord of the Rings
• BThe Da Vinci Code
• CHarry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone
• DThe Little Prince

In Janet Evanovichs series of books, Stephanie Plums relationship with her boyfriend is often overshadowed by her crush on this character.

• AVinnie
• BAlfred
• CRanger
• DAlex

How did Bilbo Baggins come across the One Ring in the novel The Fellowship of the Ring?

• AThorin Oakenshield gave it to him as a gift after the Battle of Five Armies.
• BGollum gives it to him after their riddles.
• CWhen he gets lost in the goblins cave, he finds it in the dirt.
• DHe found it in the dragons lair during his journey.

In which novel did Mark Twain- Special Travelling Correspondent of the Alta appear?

• AThe Gilded Age
• BThe Damned Human Race
• CThe Innocents Abroad
• DLife on the Mississippi

What was the name of Edgar Allan Poe's last book to be published?

• AThe Pit and the Pendulum
• BThe Masque of the Red Death
• CBerenice
• DEureka

Cohen the Barbarian, the greatest hero that Discworld has ever produced, is about 90 years old. He thinks that which one of these is not one of the greatest things in life?

• AGood dentistry
• BSoft lavatory paper
• CA lovely bit of music
• DHot water baths

Mary Shelley is the author of what classic horror story?

• AFrankenstein
• BThe Legend of Sleepy Hollow
• CStrange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde
• DDracula

I saw a man pursuing the horizon; Round and round they sped. I was disturbed at this; I accosted the man. It is futile, I said. You can never — You lie, he cried, And ran on.

• AStephen Crane
• BRobert Lowell
• CWalt Whitman
• DDenise Levertov

What creatures does the Mariner watch swimming in the sea beyond the shadow of the ship in The Rime of the Ancient Mariner?

• AWater snakes
• BWhales
• CDolphins
• DSchools of fish

What fantasy novel, focusing on the adventures of the Pevensie siblings and set approximately in 1940, appeared on Time magazines 100 Best English-language Novels?

• AThe Lord of the Rings
• BThe Painted Bird
• CThe Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe
• DThe Chronicles of Prydain

Which elf did the Hobbits talk to on their way to Bree in the novel The Fellowship of the Ring?

• AGil-Galad
• BGlorfindel
• CGildor
• DFinarfin

Which great movie ends with this line: Victory is Ours!?

• AThe Battleship Potempkin
• BDuck Soup
• CThe Great Dictator
• DDr. Strangelove

In the novel Ark Angel, what natural disaster does Alex Rider think would occur if the leader of Force Three was to sneeze?

• ATsunami
• BEarthquake
• CVolcanic Eruption
• DLandslide

The title of the 2004 movie Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind was taken from the poem Eloisa to Abelard written by which English poet?

• AEdgar Allan Poe
• BPercy Bysshe Shelley
• CAlfred Tennyson
• DAlexander Pope

What was the name of Captain Nemo's submarine in "20,000 Leagues Under the Sea"?

• AThe Poseidon
• BThe Neptune
• CThe Atlantis
• DThe Nautilus

This actress played the little girl, Amanda, in the horror movie Cats Eye.

• AAlyssa Milano
• BMolly Ringwald
• CPatricia Benson
• DDrew Barrymore

Happy families are all alike; every unhappy family is unhappy in its own way. Arguably the best of his works, Tolstoy severely criticizes the highest circles of Russian society through this tragic love story of two of its members, one of them being Alexei Vronsky.

• AAnna Karenina
• BThe Power of Darkness
• CFamily Happiness
• DA Confession

Ian Malcolm, a character from the book Jurassic Park, is an expert in which field?

• AChaos Theory
• BLanguages
• CHistory
• DGeology

Who did Piers Anthony collaborate with to write the Kelvin of Rudd series?

• ARobert E. Margroff
• BMercedes Lackey
• CStephen King
• DR.L. Stine

Which of these best describes the plot line of the novel Turnabout by Thorne Smith?

• AA voodoo witch places a curse on a vain young man.
• BThe husband and wifes bodies are magically interchanged.
• CA 17th century witch is transported to the 20th Century.
• DA skeleton is returned to life.

Does Will ever find his father in His Dark Materials trilogy?

• AYes
• BNo

During the Peace of Amiens," fictional adventure series character Hornblower is beached and penniless. How does Hornblower make ends meet during this period?

• AWorking as a fishing boat captain
• BPrize fighting
• CPlaying whist
• DGambling on horses

It turns out that people like reading about crime. The top-selling English-language author of all time is:

• AVirginia Woolf
• BAgatha Christie
• CEdgar-Allan Poe
• DBen Johnson

In Phillip Pullmans The Subtle Knife, who does Lyra, the protagonist of the first book, meet first in the new world?

• AAngelica
• BWill
• CMoxie
• DTullio

Name the headstrong and sharp-tongued woman whose feisty spirit is tamed by Petruccio in Shakespeares comedy The Taming of the Shrew?

• ABianca
• BOphelia
• CKatherina (Kate)
• DCordelia

Which Shakespeare comedy contains the following lesser known characters: Quince, Snug, Snout, Flute, Bottom, and Starveling?

• AAs You Like It
• BA Midsummer Nights Dream
• CThe Tempest
• DMuch Ado About Nothing

Which of these characters from the novel Pride and Prejudice is Elizabeth Bennets neighbour and friend?

• ACharlotte Lucas
• BMrs. Hurst
• CMrs. Gardner
• DMiss Bingley

In the novel The Glorious Pool by Thorne Smith, what happens to the middle-aged man, his wife, and his mistress?

• AThey are turned into a lion, a monkey and a donkey.
• BThey become young again.
• CThey are made invisible by an alien.
• DThey die and become spirits.

In which classic novel is there a character named Homer Simpson?

• AThe Day of the Locust
• BCatch-22
• CA Separate Peace
• DOf Mice and Men

During the missile crisis of the 1960s, this book was banned in the USA and the UK.

• ABrave New World
• B1984
• CDown and Out in London and Paris
• DThe Lotus Eaters

What classic satirical novel by Jonathan Swift was banned in Ireland for being wicked and obscene?

• AA Journal to Stella
• BRobinson Crusoe
• CA Modest Proposal
• DGullivers Travels

What are the names of Roland's mother and father in The Dark Tower series?

• AGabrielle and Steven
• BGillian and Roland
• CGabrielle and Roland
• DGillian and Steven

In the novel Twilight, Carlisle found Edward whilst working in a hospital in Chicago. What was Edward dying of?

• ATyphoid Fever
• BSpanish Influenza
• CScarlet Fever
• DTuberculosis

Fictional character Alex Rider says that the leader of Force Three has what parts of the world tattooed on the back of his head?

• AThe US and Canada
• BRussia and China
• CBrazil and West Africa
• DEurope

What city does the typical family of four reside in in the classic story Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing?

• AChicago
• BAlbuquerque
• CNew York City
• DBoston

He is largely considered to be the most popular American poet of the 19th century as well as the first professional American poet.

• AHenry Wadsworth Longfellow
• BNathaniel Hawthorne
• CRobert Frost
• DEdgar Allen Poe