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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 does Ahmad say he is doing in Chapter 8?

2. In Chapter 28, what does Omar offer Ben?

3. What is similar about how Mike's and Ben's parents both got married?

4. What do Ben and his father eat together in Chapter 19?

5. What does Ben cook with Mitsuko that she does not grimace at tasting in Chapter 31?

Short Essay Questions

1. In Chapter 21, what does Mike tell Ben he is trying to figure out?

2. Where does Ben take some of the food that he and Mitsuko are cooking in Chapter 22?

3. How does Ben feel about his job at the daycare?

4. What is Mike's reaction when Ben asks him once if he wants kids?

5. What is one of the most striking similarities between Mike's parents and Ben's parents?

6. What does Ben's father say about his sexuality in Chapter 19 that is entirely offensive?

7. Which child is Ben closest to at the daycare, and what kinds of problems does this child have?

8. In Chapter 15, what does Ben's father ask him that makes Ben realize how lonely his father is?

9. What do Ben and Mitsuko start doing together in the apartment in Part I?

10. What does Mitsuko tell Ben a story is like when he asks her to tell him a story about Mike?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Why do you think Ben pursues a relationship with Omar, and Mike pursues one with Tan? Write an essay explaining your answers, citing specific references to the text to help support your conclusions.

Essay Topic 2

How does the reader find out that Benson is HIV positive, and why do you think Washington chose to let the reader know this information at this point in the book and in this manner? Write an essay explaining your answers, citing specific references to the text to help support your conclusions.

Essay Topic 3

How do both Ben and Mike seem to handle the idea of monogamy in their relationship? Write an essay explaining your answers, citing specific references to the text to help support your conclusions.

(see the answer keys)

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