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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. What race does Piri say he thought he always was part of up to the interview?

2. Why can Piri's father not talk to his son the following day?

3. When does Piri wish he had run away?

4. In what part of the school is the music being played?

5. What does Piri's father offer to buy him?

Short Essay Questions

1. Describe Piri's time with Pane and his sister, Lorry.

2. How do Piri and his mother react differently to Paulie's death?

3. How does Piri injure his hand?

4. Why does Marcia claim she cannot dance with Piri?

5. What problems does Piri have at school in the second section?

6. Why do Piri and his gang decide to go with Alfredo?

7. Describe the fight between Piri and Rocky in the opening section.

8. Why does Piri decide to return home instead of running away?

9. How do Marcia and her friends react to Piri's asking Marcia to dance?

10. Describe Piri's time with the baseball team at his new school.

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

What problems have mixed relationships caused in the past? Why were people so against mixed relationships? Is part of the attraction between Piri and Betty the antagonism they know their relationship will cause?

Essay Topic 2

Discuss differences between the novel and autobiography formats. What are the main elements of a novel? What are the main elements of an autobiography? What can novelists express that an autobiographer cannot? How can autobiographies keep to the facts while still maintaining a level of entertainment?

Essay Topic 3

Identify the main themes of the story. Why do you think these themes are so important to the story? How does Piri use character and setting to express his themes?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 741 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample