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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. On page 70, what does Cantu see on his way home from working the swing shift that unsettles him?

2. What does the elderly man from Michoacan ask Cantu if he can do while he wants to be deported on page 31?

3. Where does Cantu's supervisor say he hopes to be transferred to eventually?

4. What does the woman from Guadalajara tell Cantu and Mortenson she aspires to on page 37?

5. Why do Border Patrol agents destroy migrants' belongings they find in the desert?

Short Essay Questions

1. What does Cantu feel when he goes to visit Morales in the hospital following his motorcycle accident?

2. What is one main reason why Cantu's mother does not want him to become a Border Patrol agent?

3. What does Cantu discover that some coyotes, or smugglers who are paid to help immigrants cross the border illegally, give to immigrants to "help" on their journey?

4. What does the dentist who works on Cantu's mouth surmise about his problem grinding his teeth?

5. Why do Cantu and other Border Patrol agents destroy any of the belongings and provisions they find in the desert?

6. Why do some of the agents at the Border Patrol station call Cole "Black Death"?

7. How did the two young sisters who were brought in to the Border Patrol station alone react to their processing and questioning?

8. What does Adam say when Cantu asks him why his town is called the vampire town?

9. How does Mortenson treat Cantu when they first meet on the job?

10. What do some of the other Border Patrol agents suggest might help combat the smell of dead bodies when going out to recover them in the desert?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

In the last few pages of the book, Cantu visits Big Bend National Park on the Rio Grande River, right on the U.S./Mexico border. For a moment, as he stands in the river, he forgets what country he is standing in. What does Cantu's experience in Big Bend represent about his own feelings and hopes for the future as they relate to the border? Write an essay explaining your answer.

Essay Topic 2

How does Cantu's uncle's guilt about the work he did marring the natural landscape relate to Cantu's own feelings about the work he has done as a Border Patrol officer? Write an essay explaining your answer.

Essay Topic 3

What does Cantu learn from some of the people he interviews that live in border towns on the U.S. side of the border about how the U.S.'s immigration crackdowns have affected their daily lives? Write an essay explaining your answer, citing specific references to the text.

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