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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. Who unofficially runs the state?

2. What does the narco hope to acquire?

3. How do Vampi's parents die?

4. How is Tacho's business doing in Chapter Three?

5. Who is quoted in the Epigraph?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why is corn so expensive in Chapter Two?

2. How does the group of four friends fund their trip?

3. What happens after Nayeli watches The Magnificent Seven?

4. What are the bandidos's jobs?

5. What does Nayeli want for her future?

6. Why do the older women in the village doubt Irma for office?

7. Where are the men in Yolo's family?

8. Which groups have tried to convert the villagers?

9. What is the story of The Seven Samurai?

10. What do the two bandidos argue about?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

At the border, what do Rigo's instructions to Tacho say about people's preconceived ideas of wealth and status? How do they use their relationship?

Essay Topic 2

Why do the four friends keep walking along the border fence when they know there is no magic pathway through? How does the author show the state of mind that they are in?

Essay Topic 3

What does the name of Tacho's Taqueria e Internet “La Mano Caída,” meaning The Fallen Hand Taco Shop and Internet Café, signify about his sexual identity? How does Tacho transform a derogatory idea into a gay pride stance?

(see the answer keys)

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