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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 Amy tell Joel that the house doesn't have because Randolph doesn't approve of it?

2. What does Joel pray for at the end of Chapter 3?

3. What is the name of the proprietress who offers Joel a grape soda in Chapter 1?

4. What is the name of the old Negro pygmy who offers Joel a ride to his father's house?

5. What can Joel not find in his room when he finally awakes on his first day at his father's house?

Short Essay Questions

1. What happens to John Brown when Joel and Randolph take him to Little Sunshine's house?

2. What does Sydney Katz ask of Sam Radclif at the beginning of the book?

3. How is Joel's first encounter with Zoo described?

4. Why does Joel say he chooses to enter his own imaginary place in his head?

5. What does Randolph do towards Joel while Amy plays the pianola?

6. What is Joel's reaction to his first prayer service?

7. How are Zoo and Jesus Fever described at the beginning of the prayer service?

8. How does Amy react to Joel's questions about his father in Chapter 2?

9. How does Amy react when she learns Joel tried to run away?

10. How does Joel react after his haircut from Zoo is finished?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

The subject of homosexuality is present throughout much of the book and offers an important insight into the nature of the book's characters.

Part 1.) What can the reader learn about the nature of the local's acceptance of homosexuality based on Idabel's need to escape the town and be her true self?

Part 2.) In what way might the author's portrayal of Joel represent the journey of first discovering homosexuality?

Part 3.) How might Randolph be seen as the most open and understanding of homosexuality in the book?

Essay Topic 2

Much of the dialogue used by the author provokes a distinct southern dialect that immerses the reader into the characters' surroundings.

Part 1.) How does the author's use of the Southern dialect in characters like Idabel help inform the readers about the nature of the book's setting?

Part 2.) In what way might the author's use of dialect be geared towards entertaining the reader?

Part 3.) What can the reader learn about the author's writing technique based on his masterly use of dialect in the book?

Essay Topic 3

Examine the role scenery plays in the book with respect to the portrayal of the South. What scene does the author appear to be setting in the first chapter of the book through the use of immense attention to detail in regards to the scenery of fictional Louisiana?

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