A Novel State: Alabama Quiz | Literature by Region

Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. Our first stop is Alabama's capital, Montgomery. Here the author of "The Great Gatsby" and his wife Zelda lived in the early 1930s. A museum exists there to celebrate this Jazz Age author. Who is it?

Answer: F Scott Fitzgerald

Fitzgerald's wife, Zelda, was originally from Montgomery, Alabama and the couple raised their daughter there from 1931 to 1932. Fitzgerald had already written "The Great Gatsby", "This Side of Paradise", and other Jazz Age novels and was in the process of authoring "Tender Is The Night" during their stay in Alabama.

A museum outlining the Fitzgeralds' lives, their literary works, and their artwork now occupies the house.

2. Our next stop is Irondale, Alabama which is located just outside of Birmingham. Here is a small restaurant which served as the subject for the novel "Fried Green Tomatoes At The Whistle Stop Cafe". What author based her book on this dining establishment there in her hometown?

Answer: Fannie Flagg

Flagg's great-aunt owned the restaurant in Irondale, Alabama and named it the Irondale Cafe. Flagg decided to use it as a focal point in her book about the South that took place in the 1920s and 1980s. The novel, "Fried Green Tomatoes At The Whistle Stop Cafe", went on to spend over eight months on the New York Times bestseller list and was also made into a movie.

The cafe is still open and is serving all kinds of mouth watering Southern dishes!

3. We now head to Monroeville, Alabama which is nicknamed Alabama's Literary Capital. It is here that Truman Capote befriended his neighbor who went on to pen "To Kill A Mockingbird". What Pultizer Prize winning author are we talking about?

Answer: Harper Lee

Harper Lee grew up in Monroeville, Alabama as a tomboy and spent much of her youth collaborating with her neighbor, Truman Capote. They remained friends until his death. Her first novel, "To Kill A Mockingbird", was published in 1960 and went on to become a bestseller as well as a popular movie which earned several Oscar awards.

The courthouse in Lee's hometown was copied for the movie and can still be seen and toured today.

4. Our next stop takes us to Thomasville, Alabama. Here a local storyteller and journalist wrote a series of books about ghostly sightings throughout the Southern United States. One of her more popular books was "13 Alabama Ghosts and Jeffrey". Who are we talking about?

Answer: Kathryn Tucker Windham

Kathryn Tucker was born in Selma, Alabama and grew up in Thomasville where she listened to her father tell ghost stories to the neighborhood. After marrying Windham and obtaining a journalism degree, she went on to write over 20 books. Many of these featured a ghost she claims to have met whose name was Jeffrey.

Her spooky tales and incredible photographs are preserved and shown in a museum dedicated to her at the Alabama Southern Community College.

5. Our next stop is Tuskegee, Alabama which is the site of the Tuskegee Institute where this author presided and worked from 1881 until his death. This former slave penned multiple books including his autobiography entitled "Up From Slavery". What author and leader of the African American community are we discussing?

Answer: Booker T Washington

Washington was born into slavery in Virginia, but went on to graduate from college and was hired to lead the Tuskegee Institute in Alabama. He was a very eloquent speaker and quickly rose to become a strong figure in the anti-violent movement to help the lives of other African Americans.

His bestselling book of 1901, "Up From Slavery", details his journey and is a popular nonfiction book as well as having been adapted for a television documentary.

6. Our next stop is down on the Gulf Coast in Mobile, Alabama. This is the home of the WWI veteran and author of the "Reedyville" books including his most famous, entitled "The Looking Glass". What author is this?

Answer: William March

March grew up in Mobile, Alabama to a family who was so poor that he had to quit school to help with the family and did not graduate until he was 20 years old. He went on to serve in WWI and used that experience, along with his post service trauma, to write several novels.

He also wrote about a fictional town in Alabama called "Reedyville" which culminated in his most popular novel entitled "The Looking Glass". March died before he could see some of his works enacted on the Broadway stages.

7. While we are in Mobile, Alabama we will also make note of another author from there. He served in the Vietnam War and wrote several non-fiction books and a couple of fiction novels, including "Forrest Gump". Who is this author who likes to write about the South?

Answer: Winston Groom

Groom, raised in Mobile, served in the Vietnam War and later was a journalist in Washington, DC. He decided to settle back in Alabama and write books. He wrote many non-fiction books over such topics as the Civil War and the American West. In 1986 he wrote "Forrest Gump" which became famous when it was made into a movie in the 1990s and went on to score several Oscar awards.

8. We now head to Demopolis, Alabama where this author of many plays frequently visited since her family was a wealthy part of the community. She stirred controversy with her political leanings but that did not stop her from penning many memoirs and screenplays including "The Little Foxes". Who is this?

Answer: Lillian Hellman

Hellman's mother's side of the family were lucrative bankers in Demopolis, Alabama and Lillian spent much time there. She began writing Broadway plays in the 1930s and one of her biggest hits, that ran for over 400 performances, was "The Little Foxes" which went on to become a Hollywood hit.

Hellman, and her author boyfriend Dashiell Hammett, were heavily censured during the 1950s during the McCarthy Anti-Communist trials. Even though her career took a dip, she went on to write many more plays, short stories, and her own memoirs.

9. You might think our next stop is in Key West, Florida, but we are actually back outside of Mobile, Alabama. Here the author of several books, including "A Pirate Looks At 50", lived. He is perhaps best known for his music, though, including "Margaritaville" and "Cheeseburger in Paradise". Who is this author and musician?

Answer: Jimmy Buffett

Buffett spent most of his childhood outside of Mobile, Alabama, where he quickly became attracted to sailing and the outdoors. He used these experiences to help cultivate an almost-beach-bum reputation and a huge group of followers called "Parrotheads".

In the late '90s, while continuing to tour with his band, he began writing novels (fiction and nonfiction) including "A Pirate Looks At Fifty", which quickly reached bestselling status. In addition to all of this, he owns multiple businesses and always finds time to do charity work for his beloved Gulf Coast.

10. Our final stop takes us to Tuscumbia, Alabama where this lady was born and raised. Although blind, deaf, and unable to speak (as a child), she went on to write several books about her experiences, including "The Story of My Life". Who is this author and educator?

Answer: Helen Keller

Helen Keller was born and lived in Tuscumbia, Alabama where, at the age of only 19 months, she became deaf and blind after an illness. Her parents hired a teacher named Anne Sullivan who broke through the barriers and introduced Keller to a whole new world. Keller was the first blind-deaf person to graduate from college and became a world-renowned speaker.

She also wrote several books including "The Story of My Life", where she documented her experiences and helped change people's opinions of those with handicaps.

Her life was also shown in the movie "The Miracle Worker".

Source: Author stephgm67

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor looney_tunes before going online.
Any errors found in FunTrivia content are routinely corrected through our feedback system.

A Novel State: Alabama Trivia Quiz

Come with me as we visit Alabama and focus on the various authors who have ties to towns and cities across the state. We'll visit each town and you tell me, based on the clues, who is connected to that area.

NEXT>

NEXT>

NEXT>

NEXT>

NEXT>

NEXT>

NEXT>

NEXT>

NEXT>