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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 Toph join in this chapter?

2. Why does Dave have to move out of the apartment in this chapter?

3. How does Dave secure the apartment he wants to move into?

4. Where do Dave and Toph eat their meals?

5. Who asks Dave about his situation?

Short Essay Questions

1. What is Dave and Beth's plan?

2. Give an example of Dave and Toph's being late.

3. What does Dave think about as he holds ice to his mother's nose?

4. What different directions do the characters take in Chapter 2?

5. What problems do Toph and Dave have living together?

6. What is wrong with Dave's mother at the beginning of Chapter 1?

7. Why does Dave struggle to discard of some of his parent possessions?

8. How does Dave act in the club with his friends?

9. Why does Dave feel uncomfortable when he takes Toph to Little League games?

10. What problems does Dave have cooking?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Look at the structure of the book.

1) Discuss elements of the narrative structure: exposition, conflict, complication, climax, resolution and conclusion. Do all the elements make for a logical and linear story? How does the story's structure express the book's ideas?

2) Examine the way Eggers uses other people in the story to express his ideas.

Essay Topic 2

Choose two of the following people and outline his/her influence on Dave Eggers' life:

1) Toph

2) His father

3) His mother

4) Beth

Essay Topic 3

Examine Dave's relationship with his parents.

1) Why does Dave hold his mother in much higher regard than his father?

2) How have Dave's parents affected his personality and the decisions he makes in the book?

(see the answer keys)

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