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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. Which lawyer requests a sidebar when Bobo enters the courtroom to testify?

2. What, according to Bobo, is a "chrome"?

3. What is Steve's reaction to mopping the floor?

4. How is Steve's verdict communicated visually to the reader?

5. The witness, Nipping, stipulates that Bobo uses predominately which hand?

Short Essay Questions

1. How is the visual image of the courtroom just before Steve's verdict is read represented?

2. When Briggs questions Henry about identifying King, what does she admit about the photographs the police showed her?

3. Who owns thel gun used in the crime, and is it a legal gun?

4. Why was Lorelle Henry in the pharmacy?

5. What is Briggs' objection to what Bobo is wearing when he testifies?

6. What does O'Brien say about Petrocelli's bringing the crime scene photos out again just before the long weekend recess?

7. Describe the type of music Steve writes in his journal on July 17th that he is going to put on the soundtrack of his film.

8. How do Steve's parents act when they come to visit on Sunday the 12th?

9. What happens when Steve is made to mop the floor?

10. Once each lawyer has rested her case, Steve writes in his journal on Friday, July 17 that it's understandable why other prisoners are obsessed with appeals. What does he realize about their obsession?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

This story relies not only on journal entries, but also on scenes from a screenplay to establish plot, setting, characterization, action, and other fictional elements. Write an analytical essay explaining how Walter Dean Myers establishes Steve's point-of-view in these screenplay scenes. In addition, be sure to include detailed analyses of how this specific point-of-view effectively communicates fictional elements including, but not limited to plot, setting, or characterization.

Essay Topic 2

The time line and time frame of this novel are not chronological, but are told rather in flashbacks. Pick at least three specific examples of flashbacks in this book. With each example, describe and contextualize what came before it and what came after it. In addition, write analytical descriptions of the flashbacks. Be sure to include in your analysis why Myers chose to convey this specific information in flashback structure rather than in chronological order. What does the specific structure of each flashback add to the memory that Myers could not achieve with chronological order?

Essay Topic 3

One major theme of this novel is teenage violence. Explain the role violence between teenagers and violence perpetrated by teenagers plays in the plot and characterization of this novel, and describe the ways in which Walter Dean Myers explores this theme. Be sure to indicate what you think Myers is trying to communicate to the reader about teenage violence, using specific textual examples.

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