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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. What was the greatest mystery about the Soloveys?

2. What was the keyword when referred to Mendy?

3. Where did Mrs. Solovey grow up?

4. Where did the author first head when playing follow the leader?

5. The author needed something urgent at the end of the chapter, The Block and Beyond, Pages 109-131. What did he need?

Short Essay Questions

1. What did the author spend much of his time doing when he wasn't reading or in school?

2. What was it about the Solovey's that had the entire neighborhood intrigued?

3. What did the second hand furniture shops remind the author of?

4. The author read from his prayer book every morning. What were his feelings and experiences?

5. When the author would play games with his friends, he would usually hide in the monument works. What was significant about the monument works?

6. The author gave Mrs. Solovey an alternative name -- what was the name and why did he give it to her?

7. Where did the author's walks take him when he walked to the edge of Brownsville?

8. What was the reaction of the person who read the author's final high school paper?

9. What is so significant about the author not being able to find his mother during the funeral service for Mrs. Solovey?

10. During the summer nights in Brownsville, many groups met to have meetings on the streets. What were some of those groups and what were their causes?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

In the narrative, the author continually describes his struggle with feeling like an outsider. The author also talks about how he tried to escape being an outsider.

Part 1) Have you ever felt like an outsider?

Part 2) What ways have you discovered help you not feel like an outsider?

Essay Topic 2

How much of the author's unhappiness was self-inflicted? How could he have done or interpreted things differently in his life in such a way that he would have been less resentful and more content? Cite specific examples.

Essay Topic 3

The author walks through his childhood neighborhood describing significant places and moments. What could his reasoning for walking through his childhood be?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 908 words (approx. 4 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample