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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. Which of Celaya's cousins seems to always get upset at the family gatherings?

2. What is a chillona?

3. How many children did Senora Regina have?

4. What was the most striking feature that the young Narciso Reyes had?

5. What was the name of Narciso's household?

Short Essay Questions

1. How do the family stories foreshadow what will come in the novel?

2. How was Senora Regina both kind and cruel to Soledad?

3. What are the two criteria to determine a person's class?

4. How does the Grandmother advise Inocencio about his hysterical wife?

5. What are the circumstances that have Soledad moving into the Reyes household with Narciso's family?

6. Why does the family rely on little white lies?

7. Describe the Awful Grandmother's life after her mother died.

8. Describe the childhood of the Awful Grandmother and what role rebozos played in her life.

9. Describe Narciso Reyes.

10. How did Soledad find the man she would marry?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Explain the significance of the book's title--CARAMELO. Why did Cisneros choose this title? Is there an understood message in the title? Is there another title you can suggest that might be more appropriate?

Essay Topic 2

Explain the concept of loneliness as it exhibits in the book. Why would Hispanics have lonely lives in America? Explain the loneliness and the methods and attempts to overcome it.

Essay Topic 3

The author uses more than one theme in the novel. Identify at least two themes in the story and then cite an example to support each theme.

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