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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. What does Toby tell Mrs. Howard when she asks how his mother is coping with her son moving so far away?

2. Dwight really got the dog:

3. What does Mr. Howard think will be difficult for Toby to adjust to at Hill?

4. What does Toby buy at a drugstore?

5. Why does Norma start dating Kenneth after high school?

Short Essay Questions

1. How does Kenneth act when he comes for Christmas dinner?

2. Why do Toby and his friends go to the Welsh's farm? What happens as a result of their actions?

3. How does Toby find a letter from Rosemary's brother, Stephen? What does Toby do about it?

4. Who does Rosemary campaign for? Why does this make Dwight angry? How does this affect Toby's home life?

5. At the end of the book, what does Toby say about children? Give an example of this from the book.

6. Why does Toby try to spend more time with Pearl? What does this show about how their relationship has changed?

7. Describe the dog Toby is given.

8. Why can't Toby apologize to the Welshes? How do Chuck and Mr. Bolger react to this?

9. How does Toby feel about his fight with Arthur? How does Dwight feel? How does Rosemary feel?

10. How does Toby attempt to convince Mr. Howard that he deserves a scholarship to Hill?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

When Toby's friends get him drunk, he falls from a tree branch and down a concrete hill. As he falls, he keeps his hands in his pockets. What does this demonstrate about Toby? How does this incident affect our understanding of Toby's character? In your opinion, what would have to be different about Toby to motivate him to take his hands out of his pockets?

Essay Topic 2

How does Toby feel about girls at the beginning of the book? Give three specific examples of how this changes. How does this attitude differ from the attitudes of Toby's friends?

Essay Topic 3

Throughout the book, Toby believes that by changing his name and his appearance, he will change his identity. Provide specific examples of this. Discuss why Toby has this belief and how it influences what he presents to the world.

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 902 words (approx. 4 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample