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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. When did Hamper's great-grandfather begin working in the car factory?
(a) 1925.
(b) 1930.
(c) 1910.
(d) 1905.

2. Why did Hamper fight the career trend toward the GM factory?
(a) He wanted to spite Joanie by staying lazy and poor.
(b) He didn't want to do anything the way his father had.
(c) He had bigger dreams than the factory.
(d) He'd known since tenth grade that he would work there.

3. What was the job Hamper first wanted to have?
(a) Airline pilot.
(b) Factory worker.
(c) Ambulance driver.
(d) Construction worker.

4. What car part did Hamper's father install at the factory?
(a) The dash wires.
(b) The bumper.
(c) The windshield.
(d) The wheel rivets.

5. According to Hamper, what percentage of Flint was linked to the auto factories?
(a) 50.
(b) 66.5.
(c) 10.
(d) 23.5.

Short Answer Questions

1. At the beginning of Chapter Three, what reason did Hamper give that Joanie was unhappy in their marriage?

2. Why did Hamper and Mike come to hate their fathers?

3. What was the most significant thing that acid did for Hamper?

4. As told in Chapter Four, how much money did Hamper make while working at the factory?

5. What job did Dale hold during the first part of his day?

Short Essay Questions

1. What role did Hamper's mother play in his life?

2. How does Hamper describe the Cab Shop the first time he goes there? What about the description is the most informative about the scene?

3. How did Hamper's marriage to Joanie end? Given his tone in the writing, what do you think his attitude was during this time?

4. How is Hamper's portrayal of his mother pathetic at times? Is it a fair character description?

5. "I'm thinking that rock stars, even dead ones, don't come cheap" (pg xix). In the context of the Prologue, what does this quote mean?

6. Hamper said that Same-O was quite likely the only genius he ever met at the General Motors factory (pg 66). Why did he say this?

7. How was Hamper's father an anomaly among fathers? Even at a young age, what was Hamper's opinion of him? How might this affect his own development in the future?

8. At the end of Chapter 4, Hamper reveals his place in the present time and lets the reader know that the events took place some nine years before he wrote about them. What effect does this have on the reader's perception of the book?

9. To what does Hamper attribute his success at the beginning of high school? How does this fit into his plans for his life?

10. What system did Dale and Hamper rig up at work? How did this again change Hamper's attitude toward his job?

(see the answer keys)

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