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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. The narrator says every family is a what?

2. How did Roberta hide the carvings she and Chick made in their mother's kitchen table when their mother returned from work?

3. Why did Len Benetto often spend long chunks of time away from his family?

4. What sport does the narrator claim the main character once played?

5. What did Chick do about the peeping tom?

Short Essay Questions

1. What is Posey's reaction to Chick's insistence that her presence in the house is impossible?

2. What phrase does Chick feel describes him completely?

3. Why did Posey refer to Chick as a Daddy's boy?

4. Who does Chick see when he jumps from the water tower?

5. What impact does the setting have on Chick's family after the divorce?

6. To whose wedding is Chick Benetto not invited?

7. What was Posey's profession at the time of the divorce?

8. Why is the word please carved into the side of tree?

9. What question does the narrator pose at the end of the Introduction?

10. Who tells the narrator about Chick Benetto?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Discuss symbolism. Chick's father gives him a pair of old shoes that he once used while playing ball. Discuss the significance of these shoes and how the author uses them as a symbol of Chick's life and of his relationship with his father.

Essay Topic 2

Discuss baseball. Why does Chick decide to go out for baseball? Why does Chick continue to play baseball? Why does Chick not tell his mother that his father comes to his college baseball games? Why does Chick leave college to play professional baseball? How does Posey feel about Chick making this choice? Does this baseball career give Chick the life he wants? Why or why not? Why does Chick finally decide to quit baseball? Why does Chick's father pressure him into playing an old-timers game? What is significant about this game?

Essay Topic 3

Discuss father-daughter relationships. How is Chick's relationship with his daughter like his own relationship with his father? How is Chick's relationship with his daughter like his relationship with his mother? Why is Chick's relationship with his daughter important to the plot of the novel? Who is Chick's daughter? How is Chick's sister's relationship with their mother different from Chick's relationship with their mother? Is this difference important to the developing plot? Explain.

(see the answer keys)

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