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 wrong with the hallways in "First-Day Fly"?

2. What color Cadillac does Cornell's Pop-Pop have?

3. On page 8, how far is Fort's mother from her baby's due date?

4. On page 5, what do Fort's mother, Aunt Jess, and Mimi call a funeral?

5. In "First-Day Fly," how old were you when your mother taught you how to iron?

Short Essay Questions

1. What does Cornell's mother do for a living?

2. What happens in the school cafeteria on Fridays?

3. Who is Noah Nguyen?

4. Who does Fort run into on page 6?

5. What does Mbalia do when he is happy?

6. In "First-Day Fly," how are sneakers prepared for the first day of school?

7. Why does Mbalia dislike watching the news?

8. What message do Jamal and Dre hear after they figure out how to open the gold door?

9. How does Jevon accidentally create his own new Lawrence family recipe?

10. How does Jamal remember that his granddad told him a breathworm can be defeated, and does it work?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

In “Coping,” CJ Walker deals with fear and frustration. How does CJ Walker deal with fear and frustration? How does he learn to cope with those feelings?

Essay Topic 2

Slang is an informal way of speaking. How do characters use slang in the stories in Black Boy Joy? What does the use of slang reveal about the characters?

Essay Topic 3

Percival moves from Trinidad to the U.S. in "Percival and the Jab." How does he try to change his identity with the move? How and why does Percival strive to fit in in the U.S. and act like an American? How does he learn that he can embrace both cultures? How does that realization affect his identity?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 821 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample