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This test consists of 15 multiple choice questions and 5 short answer questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. What did Robert show the author after the author tracked him down in Cape Town?
(a) A photo album tracking the author's career.
(b) A forged birth certificate accurately listing Robert as the author's father.
(c) An old family photo album of Robert's past.
(d) A shiny new car.

2. Why did people in Soweto use the author as a landmark for giving directions when he was young?
(a) He was always singing very loudly so you could always tell where he was.
(b) His house had an unusual shape.
(c) He was the only light-skinned person in the area.
(d) He was famous for his work on The Daily Show.

3. On what does the author blame most of the things that have gone wrong in his life?
(a) Second-hand cars.
(b) Apartheid.
(c) The death of his mother.
(d) Fear.

4. How would Fufi escape the author's yard?
(a) She would jump over the fence.
(b) She would crawl through a small tunnel.
(c) She would sneak through a broken gate.
(d) She would beg and whine until passers by let her out.

5. Why does the author think Santa Claus is unpopular in Africa?
(a) African parents do not want to give a fat white man credit for their gifts.
(b) Christmas in Africa does not include gift giving.
(c) Belief in Santa is seen as a form of idolatry.
(d) Christianity is unpopular in Africa.

6. How did arguments between the author and his mother change after the author turned eight?
(a) They started arguing about more mature topics.
(b) They stopped arguing altogether.
(c) They began to argue in writing instead of in person.
(d) Their arguments became nastier and more personal.

7. Where did Abel go after he was forced to move out of the home of the white family he lived with?
(a) He bought an identical house across the street.
(b) He moved in with Patricia and the author.
(c) He left to make it big in America.
(d) He was forced to live on the streets.

8. What were the two main things Patricia would spend money on when her son was growing up?
(a) Electronics and jewels.
(b) Fancy cars and designer shoes.
(c) Clothes and furniture.
(d) Food and books.

9. Who taught Patricia how to navigate Johannesburg without being deported to the Bantustans?
(a) Food vendors.
(b) Prostitutes.
(c) Mini-bus drivers.
(d) Police.

10. What happened to the cats that Patricia adopted after moving to Eden Park?
(a) They ran away.
(b) They had too many kittens.
(c) They got sick and had to be put down.
(d) They were mutilated.

11. What language does the author indicate was especially valued for making prayers while he was growing up in Soweto?
(a) English.
(b) Swahili.
(c) Xhosa.
(d) Afrikaans.

12. Why did the author think it was ironic when a black security guard was convicted of animal abuse for killing a cat on live TV?
(a) The author believes cats would do much worse things to humans if they were in charge instead.
(b) The security guard came from a long line of cat breeders.
(c) Traditionally, security guards in South Africa keep cats as helpers.
(d) White people were horrified by the animal abuse yet were silent about violence against black humans during apartheid.

13. How did Robert feel when Patricia asked him to impregnate her?
(a) He said he wanted to start a family right away.
(b) He said he was not physically attracted to Patricia.
(c) He said he did not like Patricia at all.
(d) He said he did not want a family.

14. What did Patricia do when the author kept pestering her for toffee apples?
(a) She bought him a toffee apple.
(b) She beat him.
(c) She called the police.
(d) She pretended to have never see him before.

15. What does the author indicate would probably happen if a black man had sex with a white woman under the apartheid system?
(a) The white woman would probably be charged with rape.
(b) The police would not care at all.
(c) The black man would probably be charged with rape.
(d) The police would probably let them off with a warning.

Short Answer Questions

1. How did the author view the "destructive" (79) antics from his youth?

2. Why was the author difficult for his caretakers to handle when he was very little?

3. Why was the author unable to play with his cousins when he was very young?

4. Which racial group was most common in Soweto, according to the author?

5. Why did Frances Noah refuse to beat the author when the author was a little boy?

(see the answer keys)

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