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This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. When was author Gary Soto born?

2. What is Eddie’s principle mode of transportation in the novel?

3. What is the name of Eddie’s cousin who was recently murdered in Chapter 1?

4. Chapter 2 ends with Eddie saying that the "east was one large bruise that was slowly becoming” what?

5. How old is Eddie’s mother in Chapter 3?

Short Essay Questions

1. Who has stolen the truck in Chapter 2? What is Eddie’s response to the situation?

2. What leads to Eddie’s encounter with the police in Chapter 3?

3. What do Eddie and José find when they stop to pick up onions after eating in Chapter 4?

4. How does Eddie respond to the news about Jesús’s murder in Chapter 4?

5. What is Angel’s objective with Eddie in Chapter 1?

6. What does José represent symbolically to Eddie in the narrative?

7. Where does Eddie work in Chapter 1? How is this neighborhood described?

8. Who visits Eddie after he leaves Mr. Stiles’s house in Chapter 3?

9. What leads to Mr. Stiles’s truck being stolen in Chapter 2?

10. What does the author establish through the exposition in Chapter 1?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Discuss the themes of death and violence established in the beginning of Buried Onions. How do the deaths of Eddie’s friends and family members affect him? How is death related to the symbolism of onions in the narrative?

Essay Topic 2

Describe and discuss examples of foreshadowing in Chapters 1 and 2. How is the theft of Mr. Stiles’s truck foreshadowed in the narrative? How effectively does the author employ foreshadowing? What is foreshadowed by Eddie’s Aunt Delores?

Essay Topic 3

Discuss the character of Mr. Stiles in the narrative. How does Eddie feel about Mr. Stiles? How is Mr. Stiles’s home described? Is Mr. Stiles a likable character? Why or why not?

(see the answer keys)

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