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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. In "Secret Samantha," where is the new girl from?

2. In "Sol Painting, Inc.," who shows up in the gym, messing up the paint job?

3. In "Sol Painting, Inc.," who is Mr. Falco?

4. In "How to Transform," how far out is the narrator's jumper pure now?

5. In "Secret Samantha," what do others in her class keep asking Samantha to do?

Short Essay Questions

1. In "Sol Painting, Inc.," what does Merci plan to do when she grows up?

2. In "Secret Samantha," what happens when Samantha goes to the mall with her mother to buy a gift for Blade?

3. How does "How to Transform" end, and what has the narrator learned by the end?

4. In "The Beans and Rice Chronicles," how does the relationship between Isaiah and his mother erupt?

5. In "How to Transform," why does the narrator decide to give up going to the gym, and what happens when he does?

6. In "The Difficult Path," what is Li Po's poem "The Difficult Path" about, and why is the poem significant to the story?

7. In "Sol Painting, Inc.," what do Merci's business cards look like?

8. Explain why Tianyi in "The Difficult Path" insists that Bisi is "too plain" to trade to other pirates.

9. In "How to Transform," what kind of student is the narrator?

10. In "Sol Painting, Inc.," what does Roli want to be when he grows up?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Many of these stories are told in an unusual way. For example, "Choctaw, Bigfoot, Midnight in the Mountains" is the story of someone telling a story; "Seventy-Six Dollars and Forty-Nine Cents "is told in verse; "The Beans and Rice Chronicles of Isaiah Dunn" is told as a series of journal entries." Choose at least two stories from the collection and compare and contrast how they are told and how the storytelling method affects the stories' meanings.

Essay Topic 2

In an essay, consider how the title "Sometimes a Dream Needs a Push" relates to the story itself. What does it literally mean? What does it mean metaphorically? How does it set up the writer's theme(s)?

Essay Topic 3

Write an essay in which you explain how the structure of "Choctaw Bigfoot, Midnight in the Mountains" influences the messages the writer is trying to convey.

(see the answer keys)

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