View a FREE sample

This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. What is the opposing team in Asa's Little League game?

2. From what illness does Asa's mother suffer?

3. What do Asa's cousins do that bothers him?

4. Which Little League team has not scored a single run in the first four games of the season?

5. What happens to the car when Dave is driving Asa and his mother to Raleigh?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why does Asa have to pack his things on the day he tells Jean he loves her?

2. In what area do Asa and Dave build some sort of relationship?

3. Why does Asa find it impossible to tell Dave that he loves him?

4. What does Asa's mother tell him about love when he tells her that he is in love with someone?

5. How well is the game going for Asa and his Little League team and what good plays does Asa make?

6. What is Asa's mother's psychological condition and what responsibility does Asa have for her on a daily basis?

7. What position does Asa play on his Little League team and how good of a player is he?

8. Why does Asa's mother decide that she no longer wants to take her antidepressant medication?

9. Why do Asa and his mother not end up moving into the apartment in Raleigh?

10. Who gives Asa the candy hearts and how is the loving mood broken by the teacher's announcement?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Explain the significance of the book's title. What does the author mean by calling it simply "What Hearts". What is he trying to emphasize with this emphatic style? Suggest three alternate titles for this book with supporting rationale for each.

Essay Topic 2

Create a brief character study of Asa. What did he look like? What were his positive personality traits? What were his dreams and fears? What was most valuable to him in his world?

Essay Topic 3

The author uses more than one iteration on the theme of the search for love. Identify at least two instances about the search for love in the book, and then cite examples to support your answer.

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 820 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample