View a FREE sample

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

Short Answer Questions

1. Why does T.C. say Alicia is not right in the head?

2. Who does Terry say he worried about when he was on the street?

3. What excuse does T.C. give for getting an early release?

4. What does T.C. call Alicia when he sees her?

5. Where was T.C. going when he got pulled over?

Short Essay Questions

1. What is Evelyn's outlook on her pregnancy?

2. Why does Jackie have a stressful relationship with Sybil?

3. Why is Jackie in a hurry to get Sybil out of her apartment?

4. Why does Evelyn not approach Renard when she goes to his work?

5. What is the scene when Alicia is giving birth?

6. What does Evelyn mean when she says the baby will salvage her?

7. What did T.C. do when he lost his scholarship to LSU?

8. Why is T.C. resentful of his Aunt Sybil?

9. Why does Sybil talk so poorly about her clients?

10. How does Renard show Evelyn he is thinking of her from overseas?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Racism is an ongoing theme at the root of Evelyn's story. Write an essay describing what Jim Crow laws are. Include at least one example of how those laws affected Evelyn's family, specifically in the South during the 1940s.

Essay Topic 2

Write an essay on the significance of Nancy Reagan, an affluent white woman, posing with a young black child on a Just Say No billboard in the housing projects.

Essay Topic 3

Write an essay highlighting the different eras shown through the novel's three timelines. Include how the political movements and social issues affect each of the protagonists and their families.

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 558 words (approx. 2 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample