40 pages 1 hour read

Raymond Carver

So Much Water So Close to Home

Fiction | Short Story | Adult | Published in 1981

A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more. For select classroom titles, we also provide Teaching Guides with discussion and quiz questions to prompt student engagement.

During Reading

Reading Questions & Paired Texts

Reading Check and Short Answer questions on key points are designed for guided reading assignments, in-class review, formative assessment, quizzes, and more.

Reading Check

1. Whom does Claire suggest might be calling?

2. What is on the front page of the newspaper?

3. Where does Claire tell Marnie she is going?

4. How does Claire respond to the woman’s statement that the killer had been caught?

5. Whom does Claire ask Stuart about at the end of the story?

Short Answer

Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.

1. What did the men find while camping at Naches River? How did they respond to finding this object?

2. After Stuart relays the story to Claire, what does Claire suggest they do? How does her husband respond?

3. Who are the Maddox brothers? What story does Claire share about them and how does Stuart respond?

4. Describe Claire’s interaction with the green pickup driver. What is the outcome of the situation?

5. How does Stuart respond to his wife’s arrival home? What does the couple do?

Paired Resources

Female Domestic Violence and Alcohol Use

  • The American Addiction Center’s page on Female Domestic Violence and Alcohol Use examines the relationship among alcoholism, narcotics, and femicide.