Shark Heart Quiz: 20 Questions on Plot, Character, and Theme

Test your knowledge of Emily Habeck's Shark Heart with this 20-question quiz covering plot, character, theme, and synthesis. Each question is grounded in the novel's events. After the quiz, check the answer key for explanations. For more help, see the book overview, questions and answers, and ending explained.

Plot and Sequence 1. Multiple choice: In the opening scene, Lewis asks Wren to marry him after describing a vision of their shared future. What imagery does he use?

A) A field of bluebonnets
B) Trees growing for centuries and mushrooms marking where they lived
C) A strawberry moon
D) A hammock under the stars 2. Short answer: In June, Lewis reveals his diagnosis to Wren. What is the name of the mutation? 3. Multiple choice: During the July Fourth block party, Lewis conceals his condition from Wren by doing what?
A) Wearing a long-sleeved shirt
B) Applying ointment and refilling his water cup
C) Staying indoors
D) Avoiding food 4. Short answer: In the chapter “Scene: The Stage Manager,” Lewis assigns himself which role in Our Town? 5. Multiple choice: What event leads to Lewis’s violent outburst at the Dallas ISD lecture?
A) A student disrespects him
B) He learns he has been fired
C) The Ignoramus fails to apologize for not reading his play
D) Wren leaves him 6. Short answer: In “Wren, Age Twenty-Four,” what does Wren’s mother Angela do at the facility when Wren visits for the last time? 7. Multiple choice: After Lewis’s death, Wren discovers she is pregnant. What does she initially decide to do?
A) Keep the baby
B) Terminate the pregnancy
C) Give the baby up for adoption
D) Ask her parents for help 8. Short answer: In the final chapter, “Joy, Age Ten,” where does Wren take Joy on a spring-break road trip?

Character Motivation 9. Multiple choice: Why does Wren decline Lewis’s request to skip work and go to the zoo?

A) She has a fear of sharks
B) She has a full day of meetings
C) She doesn’t like zoos
D) She wants to avoid his transformation 10. Short answer: In “Wren, Age Nine,” why does Wren decide to become perfect? 11. Multiple choice: What motivates Lewis to write a play during his illness?
A) To make money
B) To process his transformation and leave a legacy
C) To impress Wren
D) To distract himself from pain 12. Short answer: In “Wren, Age Nineteen,” why does Wren feel an immediate pull toward Rachel? 13. Multiple choice: After Lewis’s death, why does Wren decide to keep the baby?
A) She feels guilty about terminating
B) She realizes the baby is Joy and changes her mind upon holding her
C) Lewis’s ghost convinces her
D) Her therapist advises it

Theme and Symbol 14. Multiple choice: The strawberry moon in “Scene: The Real Thing” symbolizes what?

A) The passage of time and the rarity of moments
B) Lewis’s love of fruit
C) The couple’s wedding anniversary
D) Wren’s pregnancy 15. Short answer: In “Wren, Age Six,” Angela tells Wren that when she misses her, she should go somewhere big and open and do what? 16. Multiple choice: The treehouse that Lewis designs and later Wren builds for Joy represents what?
A) Lewis’s unfinished dreams
B) The connection between generations and the persistence of love
C) Wren’s desire to control nature
D) A place to hide from grief 17. Short answer: In “Scene: A Giant,” Lewis tells Margaret that people may get new performances of the same day and that practice might be the path to what?

Synthesis 18. Multiple choice: How does Wren’s relationship with her mother Angela parallel her relationship with Lewis?

A) Both involve caring for a loved one undergoing animal mutation
B) Both end in abandonment
C) Both are marked by silence
D) Both are purely intellectual 19. Short answer: In what ways does the novel suggest that transformation can be both a loss and a gift? Provide one example from Lewis’s story and one from Angela’s. 20. Multiple choice: The novel’s ending, with Joy’s birth and growth, suggests what about legacy?
A) That children inherit only physical traits
B) That love and memory can live on through the next generation
C) That grief never fades
D) That nature always repeats itself

Answer Key

Plot and Sequence 1. B – Lewis describes trees growing for centuries, their bodies returning to soil, and mushrooms marking where they lived, as part of his vision of their shared future. 2. Carcharodon carcharias – Lewis tells Wren he has been diagnosed with a mutation called Carcharodon carcharias, which he clarifies is great white shark. 3. B – Lewis conceals his condition by applying ointment and refilling his water cup throughout the day, while pretending to enjoy the party. 4. The Stage Manager – Lewis assigns himself the role of the Stage Manager in Our Town, a fitting symbol of his role as observer and guide. 5. C – Lewis demands an apology from The Ignoramus for not reading his play; when The Ignoramus insists he did nothing wrong, Lewis strikes him with his tail. 6. She devours roadkill, climbs the cage, hisses, and extends her forked tongue – Angela, now fully animal, is unaware of Wren’s presence and behaves as a wild creature. 7. B – Wren initially decides to terminate the pregnancy, but cancels the appointment the morning of the procedure. 8. Down the California coast, including Big Sur and Morro Bay, ending at Disneyland – Wren and Joy camp at Big Sur, pass Morro Bay, and drive to Anaheim for Disneyland.

Character Motivation 9. B – Wren declines because she has a full day of meetings, though Lewis pleads for her to reschedule. 10. After being reprimanded for commenting on teachers’ mistakes – Wren decides to become perfect after a teacher scolds her for pointing out errors, leading her to suppress her observations. 11. B – Lewis writes a play about facing great change, using creative expression to process his transformation and leave something meaningful. 12. She had never considered anyone seriously, and Rachel’s openness and connection felt like a long exhale – Wren’s immediate pull toward Rachel stems from a profound, unexpected sense of peace and authenticity. 13. B – When Wren holds her newborn, she recognizes the child as Joy and changes her mind completely, naming her Joy.

Theme and Symbol 14. A – The strawberry moon, which will not recur until 2086, symbolizes the fleeting, precious nature of time and the couple’s awareness of their limited moments together. 15. Take a deep breath and notice the things they notice together—birds, clouds, moon, stars, sounds, and smells—and ask herself what she needs – Angela’s advice teaches Wren to find comfort in nature and self-awareness. 16. B – The treehouse, designed by Lewis and later built for Joy, represents the enduring connection between generations and the persistence of love beyond death. 17. Freedom – Lewis suggests that practice, or rehearsal, might be the path to freedom, implying that second chances and acceptance are possible.

Synthesis 18. A – Both Angela and Lewis undergo animal mutations, and Wren becomes a caregiver for each, facing loss and transformation. 19. Answers will vary – Lewis’s transformation brings creative mania and a final acceptance of his life, while Angela’s erases her memory but teaches Wren resilience and forgiveness. Both show loss of humanity but also moments of profound connection. 20. B – Joy embodies Lewis’s wonder and Wren’s precision, and Wren’s storytelling keeps Lewis’s memory alive, suggesting that love and memory endure through the next generation.