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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 game did the person in #152 introduce Bryson to?

2. What was the one constant in the potluck suppers in town?

3. At whose house was Bryson playing when he broke the body part in #133?

4. What did Bryson love about the town in #122?

5. For how long was Bryson in a cast?

Short Essay Questions

1. What was the recovery process for Bryson's broken leg?

2. For what was Bryson most notorious in high school and what did he do after graduation?

3. What were the weather extremes in Winfield?

4. Where did Bryson's grandparents live and what did he love about the place?

5. What was Bryson's opinion of staying in Des Moines versus moving to a bigger city?

6. Describe the Audio Visual Club and why the boys were anxious to join.

7. What were Bryson's favorite books in school and why did he like them?

8. What happened to The Thunderbolt Kid's sacred jersey?

9. What were the circumstances when, for the second time, Bryson realized that adults could not be trusted?

10. How did the Bryson family end up staying in a hotel in Harlem?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

What is the point of view of this book? Why did Bryson use this point of view? Is it the only way the book could have realistically been written? How else could Bryson have used point of view to alter the rhythm of the book? Explain.

Essay Topic 2

Why did Bryson choose to use the first person perspective for the stories? What does this point of view entail? What do you know about the characters and the plot lines that you would not know from a different point of view? What do you NOT know about the characters and plot lines based on this point of view?

Essay Topic 3

Explain Bryson's childhood growing up in Des Moines, Iowa, in the 1950s. What was his family life like? Who were his friends? What were his school experiences? How did these people and experiences form him into the adult he became?

(see the answer keys)

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