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This test consists of 5 short answer questions and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. What does Rusty-James steal from the drugstore?

2. What happens to Rusty-James when he discovers Motorcycle Boy is dead?

3. After leaving the skin flick, to what kind of bar do Rusty-James, Steve, and Motorcycle Boy go?

4. Why does Rusty-James' mother marry his father?

5. Who shows up and meets Smokey at Benny's?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

How does the author's methods at the beginning of the novel set the tone?

Part 1) How does Steve's arrival promote the tone of the novel at the beginning?

Part 2) How does Steve's mentioning Rusty-James' resemblance to someone enhance the tone set forth at the onset of the novel?

Part 3) How does Rusty-James' forgetfulness set up the suspense?

Find descriptions from the text to support your answer and to provide evidence for your opinion.

Essay Topic 2

Explain why, and how, Rusty-James succeeds in reaching his goal of becoming like his brother, Motorcycle Boy, by novel's end. Find descriptions from the text to support your answer and to provide evidence for your opinion.

Essay Topic 3

How does the perspective of distance between the past and the present affect the main protagonist, Rusty-James? Analyze how Rusty-James' character has/has not changed during the five years since the night of the knife fight.

(see the answer keys)

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