View a FREE sample

This test consists of 5 multiple choice questions, 5 short answer questions, and 10 short essay questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. What job does Gertie take after dropping out of college?
(a) Cook at a restaurant.
(b) Teller at a bank.
(c) Receptionist at a law firm.
(d) Typist at a medical office.

2. What is the title of the homemade flier Simon and his friends see taped to a window?
(a) THE GAY CANCER.
(b) LEATHER GATHERING.
(c) NO TRESPASSING.
(d) HELP WANTED.

3. What date does the narrator finally reveal as the one foretold to Simon by the fortune teller?
(a) June 21st.
(b) March 5th.
(c) December 20th.
(d) February 19th.

4. Simon remembers that he had drawn which same-suit cards from the deck during his encounter with the fortune teller?
(a) Four diamonds.
(b) Four hearts.
(c) Four spades.
(d) Four clubs.

5. At what location do Raj and Klara scavenge for wood to build Klara's magician's cabinet?
(a) In the Haight district.
(b) Fisherman's Wharf.
(c) The bookstore called A Clean and Well-lit Place.
(d) Ghiradelli Square.

Short Answer Questions

1. Gali tells the members of his ballet company often that their "movements must have" (85) what?

2. What is the one thing Simon tells Daniel when he calls him for the first time since leaving home?

3. In what month do the Gold siblings visit the fortune teller?

4. What does Simon NOT count among the events that occurred directly as a result of the fortune teller's intervention?

5. What is the name of the Gold siblings' paternal grandfather?

Short Essay Questions

1. How does the author depict Simon's mixed feelings about his mother's decision to relinquish him at the police station?

2. How does Robert's story about his friend Dante demonstrate the themes of violence and hate?

3. How many years pass between the first knock Klara believes Simon is using to communicate with her from the afterlife and the second knock she hears?

4. What is Robert's reaction to the AIDS epidemic and how does it differ from Simon's?

5. Describe the significance of Simon's dream about salmon and how it relates to his mindset at the time of his dream.

6. Which of the Gold siblings is the most apprehensive about the prospect of visiting the fortune teller and why?

7. What differences between Robert and Simon does the author depict as those that drive Simon to cheat on Robert?

8. What do the Gold children bring to the fortune teller as payment for her services and why?

9. What is the symbolism of the sequins that turn up everywhere inside Klara's home?

10. How is the theme of guilt depicted within Gertie's feelings about her son after his death?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 1,390 words (approx. 5 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample