The Widow by John Grisham: 20-Question Quiz
About This Quiz
This quiz covers the full arc of John Grisham’s novel The Widow. You’ll find 20 questions organized into four categories:
- Plot / Sequence (questions 1–8): Key events in order.
- Character Motivation (questions 9–13): Why characters act as they do.
- Theme / Symbol (questions 14–17): Deeper meanings.
- Synthesis (questions 18–20): Connecting ideas across the story.
Questions mix multiple-choice and short-answer formats. After the quiz, the answer key explains each correct response. Use it to check your understanding or to prepare for a book discussion.
To get the most out of the quiz, you may want to review the full book summary or browse the questions and answers. If you have finished reading and want to check the ending, see the ending explained page.
Quiz Questions
Plot / Sequence
1. Why does Eleanor “Netty” Barnett first visit Simon Latch’s law office?
- A) To contest a traffic ticket
- B) To draft a new will and replace the one Wally Thackerman wrote
- C) To hire a private investigator
- D) To report a stolen inheritance
2. What event prompts Simon to search Netty’s home for financial records?
- A) Her DUI accident
- B) The FBI raid on Chub’s bar
- C) Clyde Korsak’s arrest
- D) A letter from Wally Thackerman
3. Who makes the anonymous 911 call that stops Netty’s cremation?
- A) Simon Latch
- B) Tillie Clark
- C) Clyde Korsak
- D) Detective Barr
4. What poison is found in Netty’s body and in the cookies delivered to her hospital room?
- A) Arsenic
- B) Cyanide
- C) Thallium
- D) Strychnine
5. At what stage does Simon decide not to testify in his own defense?
- A) Before the trial begins
- B) During the prosecution’s opening statement
- C) After the defense rests its case
- D) While the jury is deliberating
6. Who is the real serial poisoner revealed at the end of the novel?
- A) Wally Thackerman
- B) Jerry Korsak
- C) Oscar Kofie
- D) Tillie Clark
7. What happens at the closed hearing where Simon’s conviction is vacated?
- A) Judge Shyam grants the motion with prejudice and dismisses all charges
- B) The jury returns a not-guilty verdict
- C) Simon pleads guilty to a lesser charge
- D) The case is moved to another venue
8. In what year does Netty die?
- A) 2014
- B) 2015
- C) 2016
- D) 2017
Character Motivation
9. Why does Simon initially agree to help Netty with her will?
- A) He feels genuine sympathy for her loneliness
- B) He sees a chance to earn substantial fees and control her estate
- C) He wants to expose Wally Thackerman’s unethical behavior
- D) He is ordered to do so by a judge
10. What is Netty’s primary reason for disinheriting her stepsons, Clyde and Jerry?
- A) She believes they are financially irresponsible
- B) She has never liked them and fears they will mismanage the money
- C) They live too far away to visit her
- D) She wants all her money to go to charity
11. Why does Tillie Clark agree to make the anonymous call after Netty’s death?
- A) She believes Simon is guilty of murder
- B) Jerry Korsak pressures her into doing it
- C) She hopes to receive a reward from the estate
- D) She is angry at Simon for firing her
12. What drives Simon’s decision to hire hacker Zander?
- A) He wants to erase evidence of his gambling debts
- B) He needs to obtain hospital personnel records to find the real killer
- C) He hopes to steal money from Netty’s accounts
- D) He plans to break into Wally Thackerman’s office
13. Why does Landy (Yolanda) agree to help Simon investigate after the trial?
- A) She is romantically involved with him and believes he is innocent
- B) She is ordered by her FBI supervisors to assist
- C) She wants to arrest the real culprit for a promotion
- D) She feels guilty for not doing more earlier
Theme / Symbol
14. What does the hidden stock portfolio represent in the novel?
- A) Netty’s intelligence and foresight
- B) The gap between appearance and reality in wealth
- C) The power of corporate America
- D) Simon’s greed
15. Which item serves as the murder weapon and a symbol of deception?
- A) The advance directive
- B) The box of ginger cookies from Tan Lu’s
- C) The will drafted by Simon
- D) The funeral insurance policy
16. The Montrouge volcano eruption mainly symbolizes:
- A) The danger of investing in a single asset
- B) The sudden collapse of wealth built over a lifetime
- C) The randomness of death
- D) Netty’s emotional state
17. How does Simon’s gambling function thematically?
- A) It shows his need for excitement and risk
- B) It parallels his legal maneuvers and ethical risks
- C) It provides a hobby that relieves stress
- D) It is a minor vice that never affects the plot
Synthesis
18. Compare Simon’s ethical decline with that of Wally Thackerman. Which statement is most accurate?
- A) Both self-deal in their clients’ wills, but Simon ultimately tries to prove his innocence
- B) Wally is innocent of any wrongdoing, while Simon is guilty of murder
- C) Simon’s actions are motivated by greed, while Wally’s are motivated by revenge
- D) Both are convicted of crimes, but Simon’s sentence is lighter
19. How does the novel define “justice” by the end?
- A) The guilty always receive punishment
- B) The legal system eventually corrects itself, but only through extra-legal investigation
- C) Innocent people are never convicted in the United States
- D) Wealth determines who goes free
20. In the final chapters, what is the most significant change in Simon’s character?
- A) He abandons his family for a new life
- B) He moves from passive greed to active, determined pursuit of the truth
- C) He becomes a hermit and stops practicing law
- D) He reconciles with his ex-wife and returns to his old habits
Answer Key
Plot / Sequence
1. B – Netty visits Simon because she signed a will drafted by Wally Thackerman that leaves everything to him in trust, and she fears it was a mistake. She wants a new one.
2. A – After Netty’s DUI accident, Simon enters her home to search for financial records to verify her wealth.
3. B – Tillie Clark admits she made the anonymous call at Jerry Korsak’s urging to stop the cremation.
4. C – The autopsy confirms thallium poisoning. Dr. Roster and others find thallium in Netty’s organs and in the ginger cookies.
5. C – After the defense rests its case, Simon’s lawyers strongly advise him not to testify, and he agrees.
6. C – Oscar Kofie, an X‑ray technician, is revealed as a serial poisoner who used thallium at multiple hospitals.
7. A – Judge Shyam grants Simon’s motion to vacate with prejudice, dismissing all charges after evidence of Kofie’s guilt is presented.
8. B – Netty dies on December 30, 2015, as stated in the chapter outlines and court timeline.
Character Motivation
9. B – Simon sees a lucrative opportunity to take control of Netty’s $20 million estate, escape his own debts, and profit from executor fees.
10. B – Netty tells Simon she loathes her stepsons and has never liked them; she does not want them to inherit anything.
11. B – Jerry Korsak pressures Tillie to make the anonymous call. She later admits this to Simon at the bar meeting.
12. B – Simon hires Zander to hack hospital personnel files to find the real killer after being convicted.
13. A – Landy and Simon rekindle their romance, and she believes he is innocent; she uses her FBI access to help investigate.
Theme / Symbol
14. B – Netty lives modestly while secretly holding millions, then the stock is nearly worthless; the hidden portfolio symbolizes the illusion of wealth.
15. B – The ginger cookies are used to deliver thallium; they are also a symbol of the trust that masks Simon’s (and later Kofie’s) betrayal.
16. B – The volcano destroys the Korsaks’ island investment and wipes out their fortune, showing how quickly wealth can vanish.
17. B – Simon’s gambling mirrors his risk‑taking with the law and ethics; both are addictive behaviors that escalate until they nearly destroy him.
Synthesis
18. A – Both lawyers insert self‑dealing gifts in wills, but Simon is wrongly convicted while Wally avoids prosecution. Simon later fights to clear his name.
19. B – Justice comes only because Simon, with help from Landy, Zander, and Alan Teel, uncovers the real killer; the system alone fails him.
20. B – In earlier chapters, Simon passively schemes for Netty’s money; after his conviction, he actively investigates, hires hackers, and travels to Scranton to prove his innocence.
What’s Next?
After completing the quiz, you can explore detailed character breakdowns or see how other readers answered community questions. If you are puzzled by the final twist, read the ending explained.