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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. James is told he should mash up what and wrap it in cotton?

2. James can't ever be scared or can't ever what?

3. How many animals did Monsieur Bayonne have outside?

4. What does James pretend he's not scared of?

5. Why doesn't James want to open his mouth at night?

Short Essay Questions

1. What does James think about as he is walking to the cafe?

2. Why does James look at the nurse all pitiful?

3. Why did James pretend he was asleep?

4. What kind of birds does James claim he has eaten?

5. What happens when James and Mama get back to the dentist's office?

6. What does James think about when he is so cold he feels like he's going to die?

7. What happens between the woman on the bus sitting beside Mama and James?

8. Why does James say he had to kill the redbird?

9. What type of people are waiting in the dentist's office?

10. What does Mama do when James pushes one of the cakes towards her after stating that he "can't eat all this"?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Throughout the story, The Sky is Gray, James and his mother are almost always together. Describe Octavia and James' relationship. Would you consider their relationship to be a normal mother/son connection? Why or why not? How does James feel about his mother? How does Octavia feel about her son? Why doesn't Octavia express her love for James and do you think she really loves him?

Essay Topic 2

In the story, The Sky is Gray, Mama takes James into a cafe to get warm and buy some food. After Mama and James get their food and start to eat, the man in the cafe asks Mama to dance. Mama ends up throwing the man against the wall. Why do you think Mama agreed to dance with the man when obviously she didn't want to? Why didn't Mama let James jump in to help her with the man? Why do you think Mama threw the man up against the wall? Why do you think the man asked Mama to dance in the first place?

Essay Topic 3

The author, Ernest J. Gaines does a wonderful job in describing the outdoor surroundings and scenes in the story. What benefit do these descriptions give the reader of The Sky is Gray? How does it make you feel when you can picture the cold wintry scene in your head and know that Mama and James are having to walk in the cold, wet sleet? Why do you think it was important to give details of the dirt road, the river, and other objects in the story? What element does this add to the story? Does it connect the reader to the characters more? How?

(see the answer keys)

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