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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. Who begins to visit the boy's mother regularly in Chapter 6?

2. What does Jimmy do before he is found dead?

3. In September 1954, the boy's teacher asks several unanswerable questions in which class?

4. What is wrong about the boy taking Irene to the cinema?

5. What language does the boy use to his advantage because his parents do not understand it?

Short Essay Questions

1. Describe the relationship between Tony, Katie, and the boy's mother.

2. What does the boy mean when he says he has become the "plague himself" by wanting to know what had "plagued her"?

3. What does the boy's mother say that upsets Katie?

4. What causes the boy to realize his mother doesn't care what he reveals to anyone?

5. What is important about the boy's reading of the story of Eddie's death in Irish?

6. Why does Sergeant Burke say he beat up Frank and why does he apologize for it?

7. What scripture passages does the boy enjoy reading, but why do they trouble him?

8. What does Crazy Joe know about the mystery surrounding Eddie's death?

9. Why does the boy's mother turn hostile toward him in Chapter 6?

10. How does the boy conclude that it was his mother who tipped off McIlhenny?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Compare and contrast Aunt Katie and the boy's mother.

1.) Why does the boy's mother react negatively toward Katie?

2.) Compare and contrast the women's behavior toward the boy narrator.

3.) Ultimately, they both experience the loss of the same man. How does it affect each of them?

Essay Topic 2

Throughout the novel, the boy's mother deals repeatedly with depression as her role in Eddie's death is progressively revealed.

1. How is she involved in the mystery surrounding Eddie's disappearance?

2. How is her relationship with Tony McIlhenny a factor in her involvement?

3. Do you think she should feel guilty?

Support your answers with evidence from the text.

Essay Topic 3

Which characters in the novel would be considered guides for the boy narrator? What do they teach him? Are they positive or negative mentors?

(see the answer keys)

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