Have You "Red" This Book? Trivia Quiz

Answer: Raccoon

The 1961 book is about a boy named Billy who works for two years to scrape up money to buy two coonhounds. He names them Old Dan and Little Ann. With the help of his grandfather, the dogs are trained to become formidable raccoon hunters. Word of their skill spreads through the community and it is not long before they are entered in a championship hunting match. Through blizzard-like conditions, and with injuries, the team wins the medal and prize money for the family.

Unfortunately, later the dogs and Billy run across a mountain lion and the animal gravely injures Old Dan, who dies. Little Ann soon follows him in death from sheer heartbreak. Billy is extremely sad but, when he later visits his pets' graves, he sees a red fern growing which he thinks only God's angels can deliver.

The author, a high school dropout, burned this manuscript before his wife convinced him to rewrite it. The sales started out slowly but after a few motivational speeches to schools, the book became a hit. It has sold more than 6 million copies so far.

Answer: Alex Cross

In this sixth novel featuring the character Alex Cross, a series of robberies has occurred. They have a grisly touch to them, however, as the employees or their families are killed if demands are not met. The man behind the crimes calls himself the Mastermind. Cross spends long hours, while in the middle of breaking up with his son's mother, following the trails laid down by the criminal.

It becomes a series of cat and mouse games. Cross works with multiple law enforcement agencies and eventually ends up at a local mental institution where he believes a patient there is working hand-in-hand with one of his doctors to coordinate the criminal efforts.

After several twists in the plot, it is then shockingly revealed that one of Cross's own friends and co-workers is the evil genius.

Answer: Henry VIII

Margaret Beaufort was born in 1443 and was married into the Tudor family in order to help secure an heir for the Lancaster line. The House of Lancaster used a red rose as their symbol, and were part of the War of the Roses against the House of York. Margaret was married at only twelve and a mother to a little boy named Henry by the time she was only fourteen. From the moment he was born she began scheming and working to get him to the throne of England.

These were turbulent times and the novel details some of the things she felt she had to undertake.

These included marrying for title rather than love, sending her son to exile to protect him, and even promising him in wedlock to her bitter enemy's daughter. Her plans worked and he became King Henry VII, and Margaret lived long enough to see her grandson become the infamous King Henry VIII.

Answer: Submarine

Clancy, whose work was full of technical jargon, originally sent the manuscript for "The Hunt For Red October" to the Naval Institute Press who quickly saw the possibility for a best seller. The book depicts a Russian submarine commander who is planning to defect to the United States with his state-of-the-art vessel.

The Russians find out about his plan and send the whole Northern Fleet after him. Meanwhile, Jack Ryan of the CIA figures out the scheme and steps in to try to get the sub to America safely.

He and the Russian captain, Ramius, stage a fake sub accident and even destroy an empty American sub to create fragments. The race to America involves altercations on board and even submarine battles beneath the waves. The action -acked novel ends with the safe docking of the sub in Virginia.

Answer: Winnie the Pooh

A.A. Milne (A.A. short for Alan Alexander) was best known for his works featuring the lovable bear named Winnie the Pooh. However, Milne also enjoyed mysteries and in 1922 he wrote a murder mystery for his father. It was considered a genre called "locked door mystery", where it was seemingly impossible for a character to get in and out of the scene while committing a crime.

This crime was a murder which took place during a house party in the English countryside. The host's brother arrives from Australia only to later be found shot dead. An amateur sleuth who was visiting a friend starts the deduction process.

The twists and turns involve servant gossip, secret passages, ghosts, and clever dialogue. Something very different from the Hundred Acres Wood!

Answer: Mars

Darrow is a sixteen year old miner living under the surface of Mars to help make the planet habitable above ground. He is of the lower Red caste. After his wife is killed and he finds out his caste will never be freed, he joins a resistance group. Through them, he undergoes surgery and training and pretends to be a member of the Golds.

While infiltrating their society, he must use inner strength to make sure he does not become one of them emotionally. He also joins forces with others, and begins a series of attacks in order to take over the planet.

In contrast to other Golds, he gains the faith of his soldiers rather than treating them like slaves. The author fills the book with Roman mythology references and keeps the reader on the edge of the seat until the last page!

Answer: Covered wagon train

Steinbeck follows a young boy named Jody. In the first section, Jody is given a red pony as a gift and works hard to take care of the animal. Unfortunately, it gets sick and wanders off while Jody, exhausted, fell asleep. When Jody awakens he finds the horse dead and must deal with the complex ideas of life and death.

The second section is about Jody meeting an old man who stays at the ranch and who disappears one day after taking an ancient horse. Jody begins to contemplate life away from his family.

The third section is about another horse named Nellie. Jody works hard to pay for her to be bred and is excited about the new colt. However, there are complications and Nellie must die for her colt to live. Jody learns about hard choices in life.

The last section is all about how Jody's grandfather came west as the leader of a wagon train. Although many family members are tired of the stories, Jody likes them because they prove that it is truly not the destination but the journey that always means something.

Answer: Psychology

C.G. Jung's ideas helped create a branch of psychology called analytical psychology which strives for one's personal wholeness. Jung and his counterpart, Sigmund Freud, split ways during Jung's thirties and shortly thereafter Jung began to focus on his inner life. Even though he had accomplished much to satisfy his ego, he felt his inner soul was in jeopardy.

In the book he interviews his internal demons, describes his repressed dreams, and analyzes his own artwork. There are many debates about whether Jung himself was going through a neurotic breakdown while writing the tome but others point to the fact he was still close to his family and continued seeing private patients.

Answer: A wound

A young soldier named Henry is with a Union regiment and is anxiously awaiting the first battle. He has often wondered if he will be brave and strong like he promised his family. When the first wave of the battle occurs against the Confederates, Henry was pinned in on all sides and could only shuffle along with the troops. Exhausted, he awoke from a nap to find a second wave of battle and, seeing others running, joined them in escaping from the scene.

When he finally rested, he realized that his division had actually won the skirmish and he had deserted.

He was ashamed that others around him were wounded, showing their "badge of courage". He got in an altercation with a soldier and was hit on the head. When he ran across his regiment they assumed he had been wounded in battle.

Henry took this as a sign and became a terrific leader and role model in the next set of battles. He even led the charge carrying the flag and not a weapon. He felt redeemed.

Answer: Cave art

Pastoureau theorizes that the color red, symbolic of fire and blood, holds a great deal of history and importance in the world. He noted that ancient Ice Age peoples used ochre in their cave art while later civilizations described colors such as red, white, and black much more than other shades.

He describes how, over time, it has been used by both Catholic cardinals to represent the blood of Christ and for prostitutes to alienate them from others in society. He "blames" the discovery of the color spectrum to move red to the outer edges instead of the center of colors.

He points out that even though it does not seem to be as utilized today, the color red still has been a dominant and enduring color in both art and everyday life.