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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 does Sam get people to open up?

2. How long had Kim not been tending the plants?

3. What problem does Sam complain of, in terms of water?

4. What does Kim plant?

5. What does Wendell do the following Monday?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why do you think Ana is so suspicious of Kim?

2. Describe the bottle incident, and Sam’s fears.

3. What tragedies has Wendell experienced, and what are the effects on his life?

4. What does Wendell mean when he discusses the phrase “And a little child shall lead them”?

5. Why does Leona decide she needs to do something about the lot?

6. What is the “Garcia Equation”?

7. Why does Kim wonder about whether her father sees her?

8. How does Sam try to make people in the neighborhood friendlier?

9. Why do you think Wendell becomes attached to the bean plants, as Ana did?

10. What are Leona’s experiences with calling the city?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Gonzalo learns a valuable lesson in the novel as he witnesses his father being less than perfect. This moment has a profound impact on him in the book, as his emotions follow the realization. Explain how Gonzalo’s processing of his father’s imperfections leads him to an understanding about his father. What did Gonzalo learn?

Essay Topic 2

What is the importance of Kim in the novel? She is present in the opening of the novel as the pioneer of the garden, and she is the first at the end of the novel to go back and begin planting in the spring. She is also mentioned in Wendell’s chapter as the child who gave him hope. What do you think the significance of this is?

Essay Topic 3

Florence notes that the first gardeners were the pioneers, the original Seedfolks. Over time, how has the area changed, according to her stories? What do landlords begin to do? How did Sam’s watering efforts lead to a permanent solution? What has changed with the soil? What has been the lasting effect of the garden on the society as a whole?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 830 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample