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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. How did Smith's wife compare his job to that of a soldier's in Vietnam?

2. How did Smith view the Kelly Street fire after the culprit was found?

3. For which time period did Smith work as a firefighter in the South Bronx?

4. Who was responsible for the most malicious false alarms?

5. Why does Smith say there are fewer fires today compared to the period during which he served?

Short Essay Questions

1. What did Katherine Anne Porter mean by "a book will find its author" and how did that apply to Dennis Smith?

2. Why does Smith tell his mother that he feels compelled to continue working in the dangerous South Bronx neighborhood?

3. What did the firemen do when they got the second teenager out of the Intervale Avenue apartment building, which was torched in the arson attack in Chapter 1?

4. How does the fire department announce the death of a fellow firefighter in the line of duty?

5. Why was Smith reminded of the sun when he entered the burning room on Forest Avenue in Chapter 5?

6. How does Smith describe the fire marshals sent to investigate the Intervale Avenue fire?

7. How did Smith's mother's attitude toward work reflect an old-fashioned way of viewing labor in New York City?

8. Why did Artie think the 20th century should be called the "Great Zap"?

9. Why were the firefighters remaining at the scene of the fire on Forest Avenue (in Chapter 5) unsure of the names of the injured firemen?

10. What did Dennis Smith observe about the attitude of the driver who hit the young boy and was then beaten by the crowd in Chapter 2?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Firefighters come across as three-dimensional human beings in this book--we see their bravery, their humanity, their occasional pettiness, and their frustrations and prejudices. In what ways has reading this book changed or not changed your view of firefighters? Before reading the book, did you have a particular image of firemen? Was that image reinforced or shattered? Do you have more respect or understanding of them now?

Essay Topic 2

In Chapter 2, a young boy was injured when a driver known for hot-rodding sped through the neighborhood; the driver was beaten by the gathered crowd before being rescued by police. Smith pointed out that while the boy never cried, the driver was weeping in the police car because he was worried he wouldn't be protected. How did the firefighters react to the man's attitude? In what way is physical pain sometimes easier to handle than mental pain? Does knowing you have been guilty of a crime cause pain? Did the man's crying indicate that he felt remorse for what he had done or was it simply cowardice? Is it ever easy to face up to despicable acts?

Essay Topic 3

Some of the South Bronx children, including Tina de Vega, occasionally visited Engine Co. 82 when they were younger. Why do you think these children made these visits to talk to Smith and the other firemen? Were they simply bored? Were they looking for some sort of adult guidance? Were they reaching out to the adult world?

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