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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. When Magda went to meet a boy behind the house and Rebecca was putting things away at Grandma Rosa's and Manny stayed home to watch Pedi, where was Manuel?

2. What analogy did Manny use to describe how little attention Miss Van der Meer paid to him?

3. What was Magda's reply when she came back from her date and Manny asked her why her hair was messy?

4. Where did Manny suspect that the bullet had lodged when he had narrowly missed accidentally shooting Pedi?

5. What did Manny suspect was Albert's real reason for joining the boxing team?

Short Essay Questions

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

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

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

4. 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?

5. 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?

6. Who were the Berets?

7. When Magda came home and her family rushed her to the hospital, what symptoms was she exhibiting and to what prognosis did her symptoms point?

8. Manny relates that his maternal grandfather died a few years back. What was his grandfather's health like before he died?

9. Why did Manuel assume that Grandma Rosa's house would go to Rebecca and what were his plans for it when that happened?

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

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

What do housework, cleaning, and chores symbolize within the novel? Support your claim with concrete details from the narrative.

Essay Topic 2

Compare and contrast Manny Hernandez, the protagonist of Parrot in the Oven: Mi Vida, to Holden, the protagonist of The Catcher in the Rye. Which of the the messages sent by Victor Martinez and J.D. Salinger are the same and how do those messages differ? Provide concrete details from both novels in order to support your claims.

Essay Topic 3

Many characters within the novel exemplify pervasive stereotypes about Mexican-Americans, including Nardo's laziness, Manuel's violent nature, and Rebecca's passivity in the face of abuse. Write an argumentative essay about whether or not the novel should be read in schools. Support your points with concrete details from the narrative.

(see the answer keys)

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