View a FREE sample

This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. Who is Taj?

2. Why does Sandy drop a jar of jam in the store?

3. In Chapter 10, what school does Birdie imagine she is attending?

4. How does Nicholas offend Birdie at the end of Chapter 10?

5. Why is Birdie suspicious of Jim?

Short Essay Questions

1. What does Birdie do after Dennis' party?

2. Who is Jim?

3. What happens to Birdie and Sandy's relationship after Birdie moves to Boston?

4. Why won't Sandy allow Birdie to try and contact Deck and Cole in Brazil?

5. Why does Jim scold Birdie for lying?

6. Why does Birdie feel betrayed by Sandy in Chapter 13?

7. How does Birdie endanger her and Sandy's cover story?

8. Who is Exu and why does Birdie pray to him?

9. What reaction does Birdie expect her mother to have about her absence?

10. Why do the girls in New Hampshire make fun of Birdie in Chapter 9?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Discuss Birdie's inability to tell the truth. How does she develop the habit of lying and what effect does this habit have on her character? What event motivates Birdie to begin speaking the truth and what might this foreshadow for her character?

Essay Topic 2

Compare and contrast Sandy and Deck's attempts to promote racial equality. How does Deck plan to change perceptions of race? How does Sandy plan to change perceptions of race? How do their actions and attitudes affect their children, their families, and their own characters? What might Deck be trying to prove? What might Sandy be trying to prove?

Essay Topic 3

What is the value placed on skin color in the novel? How does skin color relate to racial perceptions and attitudes? How does the attitude prevalent towards skin color in the novel affect the education, social acceptance, and emotional well-being of the characters in the novel? How might perceptions about skin color affect Birdie's future children? Cole's future children?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 1,179 words (approx. 4 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample