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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 example from her own life did Rebecca cite when she told Magda not to ruin her life like she had?
(a) That she had not attended college.
(b) That she had quit school.
(c) That she had gotten pregnant at 16.
(d) That she had married a man she did not love.

2. What did Manny list as Nardo's sole physical flaw?
(a) His ears were too big.
(b) He had a birthmark on his shoulder.
(c) His knees were knobby.
(d) His eyes were far apart.

3. What was the name of Grandma Rosa's cat?
(a) Armando.
(b) Elvis.
(c) Bernardo.
(d) Horacio.

4. What author was Miss Van der Meer referencing when she said that Lencho was a regular Hotspur?
(a) Willa Cather.
(b) James Joyce.
(c) John Steinbeck.
(d) William Shakespeare.

5. Why did Lencho prevent his boxers from lifting weights?
(a) He did not want them to have to fight over the weights with Coach Rogers' boxers.
(b) He wanted them to remain quick rather than bulking up.
(c) He did not want them to hurt themselves.
(d) He did not have the money it would cost for them to buy weights.

Short Answer Questions

1. Why did Manny and Albert sit outside to eat even though it was too cold for most students to do so?

2. What action did Rebecca finally take when Manny kept insisting that they needed to take Magda back to the hospital?

3. How many weeks of training did the boxers get before the big fight?

4. What unusual items did Lencho mention that Miss Van der Meer had in her classroom?

5. What did Manny use to keep Pedi occupied while he was watching her during Magda's date with her secret boyfriend?

Short Essay Questions

1. What actions did Manny hope Rebecca would take in response to Manuel's abusive actions that resulted in his being jailed?

2. What made Chico want to back out of his scheduled boxing match at the last minute?

3. What actions did Manuel take on the day Magda went to the hospital that were indicative of his usual tendency to take a hands-off approach to his family's problems?

4. How did the various family members act differently from one another at the wake for Grandma Rosa that was held after the funeral?

5. How does the way in which the hospital receptionist treated the Hernandez family highlight the theme of same-race discrimination?

6. When Manny dreamt of Grandma Rosa the night before her funeral, what happened within his dream and how did he react once he woke up?

7. Why was Manny so reluctant to let Nardo go into Grandma Rosa's house to fix them some Kool-Aid?

8. How does Miss Van der Meer's classroom represent the theme of racial inequality?

9. How does Manny's act of nearly shooting his little sister Pedi play into the novel's theme regarding the power of choice?

10. Why did Nardo have a particularly difficult time in the first few hours of hard work he and Manny did in their grandmother's yard?

(see the answer keys)

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