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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. After what practice do the members of Starr's family always join hands and offer a prayer to Black Jesus?

2. When Starr's mom and dad take her home after Khalil gets shot, what does Starr's mom do until Starr falls asleep?

3. With whose picture does Maverick replace Martin Luther King's picture when he buys Carter's Grocery?

4. What does the detective call the event of Khalil's death that causes Starr to correct her, saying, "You mean the night he was killed?" (97).

5. What is the breed of Starr's family dog?

Short Essay Questions

1. What kind of memories flood Starr's mind as she walks up Rosalie's walkway when they go to visit Rosalie instead of attending church?

2. What does Starr cite as the reason for her parents enrolling her in a private school in a rich neighborhood six years prior to the start of the novel's events?

3. What dichotomy does Starr describe between her Garden Heights persona and her Williamson Prep persona?

4. What reasons does Starr give for keeping from Chris the fact that she had witnessed Khalil's murder?

5. What does Starr say happened when she invited Hailey and Maya to her house for a sleepover in the 7th grade?

6. What does Starr reveal about the makeup of her family's religious beliefs in the opening chapters?

7. What reasons does Starr give for wondering if she should go to Khalil's funeral and for feeling like a phony once she does go?

8. What is going on outside of Khalil's funeral when it is over, who decides to participate, and why?

9. At what moments does Starr feel she has overstepped her bounds or has made mistakes within her interview with the detectives who question her about the night of Khalil's death?

10. Though Starr's family is used to hearing gunshots in their neighborhood, what causes them to turn the lights off and to eat dinner on the floor the night after Khalil's funeral?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Explain the author's comparison among Riverton Hills, Garden Heights, and Brook Falls. What is her purpose in presenting these three neighborhood archetypes?

Essay Topic 2

Trace Starr's dynamic character arc across the novel's narrative.

Essay Topic 3

How does the author get across her message about the importance of community unity within the novel?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 1,216 words (approx. 5 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample