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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. At what institution did Gary Soto earn his M.F.A. in poetry?

2. What Spanish word is used in the novel meaning district or neighborhood?

3. In what area of the city is Eddie’s apartment, as described in Chapter 1?

4. What item does Eddie spot and take with him while running an errand for Mr. Stiles in Chapter 2?

5. What pests inhabit Eddie’s apartment much to his chagrin in the novel?

Short Essay Questions

1. Where do Eddie and José go to eat in Chapter 4? Who do they encounter there?

2. How is the relationship between Eddie and José described in Chapter 4?

3. What information about Jesús’s murder does Eddie learn in the beginning of Chapter 4?

4. Who is Angel? How is he described in Chapter 1?

5. What does Eddie discover at the dump in Chapter 2?

6. What leads to Mr. Stiles’s truck being stolen in Chapter 2?

7. How is Eddie’s neighborhood described in Chapter 1?

8. What is Angel’s objective with Eddie in Chapter 1?

9. What does Eddie take to Mr. Stiles’s home in Chapter 3?

10. How is the Spanish term “barrio” defined and described in Chapter 1?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Discuss the objectives and actions of Eddie in the novel. What does Eddie want as a character? What actions does he take in order to gain those objectives? Is Eddie successful in achieving his objectives? Why or why not?

Essay Topic 2

Describe and analyze the setting of Holmes playground in the novel. Where in the barrio is this setting located? Who are the regular “characters” in the setting? What does Samuel represent symbolically? What is Samuel’s relationship to Eddie?

Essay Topic 3

Discuss the character of José Dominguez in Buried Onions. What does José represent symbolically to Eddie? What was their history together like? How does José differ from Angel? How have José and Eddie developed as characters since their childhood?

(see the answer keys)

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