Midwest Authors Quiz | People

Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. Ray Bradbury, a fantasy, science fiction, horror and mystery writer, was born in Waukegan, Illinois. He spent many of his early years in Waukegan. What personal oddity is he know for?

Answer: He never obtained a driver's license

Even though Bradbury has lived for many years in Los Angeles, one of the most car intensive cities in the world, Bradbury has never obtained a driver's license.

George H. W. Bush couldn't stand broccoli.

Many writers are known for only writing late at night, but Bradbury wasn't one of them. Bradbury wrote every day. He did this supposedly due to an incident in his youth which made him want to "live forever." He used writing to do this. Bradbury died on June 5, 2012 at the age of 91.

Bradbury doesn't favor book burning and censorship, as his "Fahrenheit 451" so ably points out. (JMElston)

2. Mark Twain, the pen name of Samuel Langhorne Clemens, was born in Florida, Missouri on November 30, 1835. What other event occurred in November 1835 that left a lasting impression on him?

Answer: The appearance of Halley's Comet

He is quoted as saying he intended to go out with Halley's Comet and it would be the biggest disappointment of his life if he didn't. He died in April 1910 -- the same month as the comet's return. His boyhood home and Tom Sawyer's cave are open to the public in Hannibal, Missouri. Mark Twain National Forest in South Central Missouri was established in 1939.

The Sultana sank in 1865, the Mexican-American War started in 1846 and Missouri became a state in 1821. (Duchess716)

3. Iowa State professors Annabelle Irwin and Lee Hadley collaborated to write several young adult novels. Among them were "So Long at the Fair", "Abby, My Love", and "Kim/Kimi". Under what combined pen name did they publish?

Answer: Hadley Irwin

Lee Hadley and Annabelle Irwin were both native Iowans. Over three decades they collaborated on more than a dozen young adult novels, many dealing gracefully with serious themes such as suicide, racism, and incest. Hadley died of cancer in 1995. Irwin passed away in 1998 from complications of hepatitis C. (carmeller)

4. Best-selling author Bill Bryson has written at least 20 books on travel, language, and other interesting facets of life. He may have been inspired to write by his parents, both of whom were journalists for the local newspaper, "The Register", while he was growing up. In what Midwestern city was Bill Bryson raised, still home to "The Register" in 2011?

Answer: Des Moines, Iowa

According to his memoir, "The Life and Times of the Thunderbolt Kid", Bryson grew up near Grand Avenue in the heart of Des Moines, Iowa. His father was a well-known sportswriter and his mother wrote for the women's section of the Des Moines "Register". (carmeller)

5. When asked if Lucas, the hero in his "Prey" novels would ever be killed off, what did Midwestern author John Sandford say in reply?

Answer: "No. My editor told me it would kill the sales of the backstock."

John Sandford graduated from the University of Iowa in 1966. The talented writer of crime solving novels plans on continuing his "Prey" series as well as exploring other writing opportunities. Born John Roswell Camp, John Sandford is his pseudonym, derived from an ancestor who fought in the Civil War. (spaudrey)

6. Laura Ingalls Wilder grew up in the late 1800s. She wrote a very popular book series that has been published in over 40 different languages, and the series is autobiographical of her life of living in a pioneer family. What is the book series?

Answer: "Little House"

Laura Ingalls Wilder lived in Minnesota, Kansas, Wisconsin, and the Dakotas at some point during her lifetime. She wrote nine books in the "Little House" series including "Little House on the Prairie" and "Little House in the Big Woods." (Little-kat)

7. Born and raised in St Louis, MO, this feminist author was widely criticized for her ground breaking novel, "The Awakening" published in 1899. She died before the novel achieved the critical acclaim it now holds. Who was this author?

Answer: Kate Chopin

"The Awakening" deals with a woman's attempt to free herself from the oppressive society that overwhelms her. It was criticized for its alleged immorality. Chopin died in 1904 while attending the St Louis World's Fair. "The Awakening" is considered a classic as one of the first feminist novels and one of the first American modern novels. (Duchess716)

8. This Nobel Prize-winning author was born in Lorain, Ohio in 1931. Her works include "Song of Solomon" and "Beloved". A favorite of Oprah Winfrey, who is this famous Midwestern author?

Answer: Toni Morrison

Toni Morrison's work "Beloved" was made into a movie in 1998 starring Oprah Winfrey and Danny Glover. In addition to the Nobel Prize, Toni has won the Pearl Buck Award and the National Humanities Medal. She has published over fifteen works over forty years. (spaudrey)

9. Bantam Books hired this 20th Century fledgling author from Jamestown, North Dakota to write Western novels on contract. With 89 novels with 225 million copies sold and a Presidential Medal of Freedom later, I would say Bantam made a good move. What popular Midwestern author's Western novels include "Hondo" and "The Quick and the Dead"?

Answer: Louis L'Amour

L'Amour did some early writing for magazines, and tried his hand at publishing some western novels with some success, but when Bantam's contracted Western novelist wasn't producing to his contract's requirements, L'Amour stepped and volunteered to take the contract over.

He wrote two novels a year, increased the contract to three a year, and Western fans of both books, along with some movies which used his books as plotlines, are better off because of it. Louis L'Amour passed away in 1988 at the age of 80, writing until the end. (spaudrey)

10. Zane Grey, an author of adventure novels and stories of the Old West, was born in Zanesville, Ohio. What was his birth name?

Answer: Pearl Zane Gray

Zane Grey was born January 31, 1872 and spent his early years in Ohio before going to college in Pennsylvania. He started a dental practice in New York City in 1896 using the name Dr. Zane Grey. He moved his family to California in 1918. Grey became one of the first millionaire authors.

Ebenezer Zane, a Revolutionary War patriot, was a maternal ancestor of Grey's. Zanesville is named after him. Romer Carl "Reddy" Grey was Grey's brother. Grey Zane was made up.

I'm not sure why Gray was changed to Grey. (JMElston)

Source: Author JMElston

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

Midwest Authors Trivia Quiz

This is a quiz about authors with Midwest connections by members of the MidWest USA Team. How much do you know about these famous writers? Take our quiz and learn more.

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