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This test consists of 15 multiple choice questions and 5 short answer questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. What were the two main things Patricia would spend money on when her son was growing up?
(a) Fancy cars and designer shoes.
(b) Clothes and furniture.
(c) Electronics and jewels.
(d) Food and books.

2. What did the vet reveal to the author about his dog, Fufi, after she died?
(a) Fufi was actually a coyote.
(b) Fufi was deaf.
(c) Fufi had been pregnant.
(d) Fufi died of natural causes.

3. According to the author, how do black people treat dogs in South Africa?
(a) They treat them like alarm systems.
(b) They treat them like children.
(c) They treat them like tools.
(d) They treat them like toys.

4. Why did Robert's steakhouse close?
(a) Robert ran out of money.
(b) The government insisted that he needed to have separate toilets for every racial category.
(c) Robert closed it after changing his mind about apartheid.
(d) They received a health code violation.

5. What nationality is listed on the author's birth certificate?
(a) Swiss.
(b) Swazi.
(c) South African.
(d) Xhosa.

6. How did the author respond when another boy claimed that Fufi was his dog?
(a) He negotiated shared custody of the dog.
(b) He pretended to let the boy keep Fufi, then kidnapped her under cover of night.
(c) He cussed the kid out.
(d) He allowed the boy to keep Fufi full-time.

7. What was the only part of a person's home that could not be improved in Soweto?
(a) The ceiling.
(b) The bathroom.
(c) The walls.
(d) The driveway.

8. Where did Patricia move at age nine?
(a) She moved in with her aunt.
(b) She ran away from her family entirely.
(c) She moved in with her father.
(d) She moved in with her mother.

9. What did the school counselor warn the author about when he asked to transition into the B classes at H. A. Jack Primary?
(a) She warned him that the kids in the B classes would beat him up.
(b) She warned him that he was not smart enough for the B classes.
(c) She warned him that the B classes were too full.
(d) She warned him the kids in the B classes would hold him back.

10. When does the author believe that a person is most themselves, according to the story "Pray, Trevor"?
(a) When working.
(b) When looking into the eyes of a loved one.
(c) When suffering.
(d) When defecating.

11. In the foreword to the story "Fufi," how does the author explain his observation that most black people in Africa dislike cats?
(a) Cats are associated with witchcraft.
(b) Cats are annoying.
(c) Cats carry disease.
(d) The author explains that distaste for cats is actually an ugly stereotype that does not match his observations.

12. When was the Immorality Act passed?
(a) 1927.
(b) 1877.
(c) 1827.
(d) 1977.

13. Which of the following is NOT a reason why the author lost touch with Robert when he was 13?
(a) The author was a teenager and was distracted by video games and computers.
(b) Robert had moved to Cape Town.
(c) Patricia's husband, Abel, did not want Robert around.
(d) Robert alienated him by sharing a dark secret.

14. How did the shopkeeper in the story "Chameleon" respond when Patricia proved she could understand Afrikaans?
(a) He insisted he never said anything inappropriate.
(b) He insulted her pronunciation.
(c) He apologized for racially profiling her.
(d) He began speaking a language she could not understand.

15. In what country did the author grow up?
(a) North Africa.
(b) South Africa.
(c) Nigeria.
(d) South America.

Short Answer Questions

1. Why does the author say he never felt poor when living alone with Patricia?

2. Where did Nelson Mandela and Steve Biko go to school?

3. Why was Patricia allowed to stay on the farm at age nine?

4. Which church does the author describe as "passionate" and "cathartic"?

5. What happened to the cats that Patricia adopted after moving to Eden Park?

(see the answer keys)

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