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This test consists of 5 multiple choice questions, 5 short answer questions, and 10 short essay questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. Which girl (August, Sylvia, Gigi, and Angela) was the most popular, as mentioned in Chapter 5?
(a) August.
(b) Angela.
(c) Gigi.
(d) Sylvia.

2. What was the first thing Sylvia asked August when they met?
(a) "Do you want to have lunch with us. I have an extra sandwich" (33).
(b) "What's your name? I've never seen you before" (36).
(c) "Why do you look at us that way? We don't like you" (35).
(d) "Why do you stare at us like that? What are you looking for?" (36).

3. How does August describe her friend Sylvia when she accidentally ran into her on the train years after leaving Brooklyn?
(a) Sylvia had a child on her lap and looked content.
(b) Sylvia looked so different that August barely recognized her.
(c) Sylvia had not aged at all and had reddish brown hair.
(d) Sylvia had not aged at all and was dressed in expensive clothing.

4. How did August, Sylvia, and Angela respond to Gigi's rape?
(a) August, Sylvia, and Angela made a plan to run away with Gigi.
(b) August, Sylvia, and Angela promised to find the man and kill him.
(c) August, Sylvia, and Angela told Gigi that she could stay at Sylvia's house to get away from him.
(d) August, Sylvia, and Angela insisted that Gigi immediately tell her mother.

5. What did August and her brother feed the neighboring children in her apartment building at the end of Chapter 6?
(a) Potatoes, colorful salads, and almonds.
(b) Ham sandwiches and popcorn.
(c) Potato chips, apples, and nuts.
(d) Fried pork chops and fruit.

Short Answer Questions

1. What was the color of the pullout sofa in August's childhood apartment?

2. What trains did August and her family take on their Saturday trips to Coney Island?

3. As an adult returning to New York, where did August and her brother go after their father's funeral?

4. As a young girl, why did August roam the streets at the start of Chapter 3?

5. In what condition did August, Sylvia, Angela, and Gigi find the man who raped Gigi in Chapter 4?

Short Essay Questions

1. In what ways did August and her friends protect themselves from the streets when they were adolescents?

2. What did Gigi's mother tell her about her appearance when she was six?

3. What is the career choice that August has chosen? Why is this significant?

4. Who was Miss Dora and how is she described in the narrative?

5. What about Angela reminded August of her mother? Why?

6. What are the circumstances of August's brother in the most-recent timeline in the novel?

7. What did Angela want to be when she grew up? Why?

8. What does the jar of ashes represent in the novel?

9. What tragic event befell Gigi when she was 12?

10. What is the Nation of Islam? How does it factor into the novel?

(see the answer keys)

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