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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 Brittany say to Alex before she zooms out of the library parking lot?

2. Who tells Brittany that she should not worry about Carmen?

3. What grade is Brittany starting as the novel begins?

4. Who is Hector?

5. What does Shelley do to Brittany when Brittany tries to intervene between the fight between Shelley and her mother?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why is Alex's bet with his friends an especially challenging one?

2. What prevents a possible ugly situation when Brittany, who is drunk, wanders into the area of the beach where Alex and his Bloods are hanging out?

3. How does Alex help take care of his widowed mother and two younger brothers?

4. Why are Alex and Brittany punished after the first day in Chemistry class?

5. In what way do Brittany and Alex have much in common?

6. Why does Alex need Isabel's help regarding Brittany at the beach?

7. Why are Alex, Brittany and Colin forced to go to the principal's office after Chemistry class?

8. How does being a Latino Blood gang member make Alex's life harder at school and in his home life?

9. What does Brittany begin to realize about Alex that shows her that they have more in common than she thought?

10. What halts a confrontation between Brittany and Carmen?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Substance abuse seems to be an unnamed character in the book. How pervasive is the abuse? Why does it have such a prevalent place in the characters' lives? How does it affect the abusers? How does it affect those impacted by the abusers? Explain how an inanimate object or characteristic can be a character.

Essay Topic 2

What is the tragic story of "Romeo and Juliet"? How are Alex and Brittany like these two star-crossed lovers? In what ways are they different?

Essay Topic 3

Explain the role of demographics in the makeup of gangs. What is the racial demographic? What is the age demographic? Why are youths in poverty-level households more susceptible to gang influence?

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This section contains 957 words (approx. 4 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample