Q 01/05

Under which Connecticut captain does Sam Meeker first enlist in My Brother Sam Is Dead?

A) Nathan Hale

B) Ethan Allen

C) Benedict Arnold

D) Alexander Hamilton

Answer · why

C) Benedict Arnold

Benedict Arnold was a New Haven militia captain when the war began. In the novel he later bursts into the Meeker tavern while chasing British troops.

Q 02/05

For which crime is Sam Meeker wrongly condemned by his own army in My Brother Sam Is Dead?

A) Deserting his post

B) Stealing cattle

C) Spying for the British

D) Striking an officer

Answer · why

B) Stealing cattle

Stealing cattle was the charge, though Sam had run out to stop the real thieves, who overpowered him and reported him as the culprit.

Q 03/05

What nickname does the Meeker family musket, taken to war by Sam, carry in My Brother Sam Is Dead?

A) Brown Bess

B) Old Hickory

C) Black Betty

D) Long Rifle

Answer · why

A) Brown Bess

Brown Bess was the nickname of the British Army's standard flintlock musket for more than a century. Sam's father refuses to hand his over, and the qu...

Q 04/05

Sam Meeker quits which college to join the Patriot army in My Brother Sam Is Dead?

A) Harvard

B) Columbia

C) Rutgers

D) Yale

Answer · why

D) Yale

Yale is where Sam picks up his rebel ideas, since talk of independence was spreading fast through the colonial colleges. His brother Tim begs him to g...

Q 05/05

What does Sam Meeker call British soldiers while recounting a battle in My Brother Sam Is Dead?

A) Old Contemptibles

B) Roundheads

C) Lobsterbacks

D) Bluejackets

Answer · why

C) Lobsterbacks

Lobsterbacks was a jibe at the bright red coats of British regulars. Sam uses it at the supper table while boasting about the first fight of the war.