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This test consists of 5 multiple choice questions, 5 short answer questions, and 10 short essay questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. What did the author's mother buy for him that he rejected, saying they were the "wrong kind"?
(a) Pretzels.
(b) Pants.
(c) Shoes.
(d) Art supplies.

2. In "Eight Years Old," what made the author feel worse than being at the bottom of his class at Higgins Elementary School?
(a) The judgment from his mother.
(b) The teasing and taunting from other kids.
(c) The teacher who belittled him.
(d) The principal who wrongfully accused him of cheating.

3. What did the author discover when he began to read Proverbs?
(a) A string of verses about angry people.
(b) The language of the Bible made him even more angry.
(c) A chapter about a doctor who was a great healer.
(d) He did not understand the Bible.

4. Who introduced the author to Schubert's Eighth Symphony (Unfinished)?
(a) Mrs. Miller.
(b) Sgt. Hunt.
(c) Sharper.
(d) Curtis.

5. In "A Serious Step," who helped the author get a summer job at Sennet Steel?
(a) A stranger.
(b) His mother.
(c) A classmate
(d) Candy.

Short Answer Questions

1. How does the author say Curtis' grades changed in the last year?

2. What holiday does the author recall made being 8-years-old the best year of his childhood?

3. Why was the author surprised when he read the exam problems in the booklet, in "College Choices"?

4. Why does the author say he felt the stigma of being poor more acutely?

5. In "Changing the Rules," the author says that _____ could get him in the door but _____ and quality of work were the real tests.

Short Essay Questions

1. Why didn't the author get the job he was promised in the summer of 1971?

2. Describe the author's relationship with his father, prior to his leaving the family.

3. How does the author take on the challenge of being student-sergeant for a rambunctious unit?

4. What role did the English teacher, Mrs. Miller, play in the author's life, in "ROTC Triumph"?

5. Describe capping.

6. How did the author's mother protect him and his brother?

7. Why did the author initially fall behind in his college studies?

8. How does the author learn about the arts in "ROTC Triumph"?

9. How did the author's mother respond to his announcement that he wanted to become a doctor?

10. What is the reason people say the author has "gifted hands"?

(see the answer keys)

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