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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. Who used coal to cleanse Isaiah's mouth?

2. In Book I, why does David knock a boy to the pavement?

3. Of the Schearl family, who arrives in America first?

4. How does Rabbi Yidel feel about the younger generation of Jewish boys?

5. Why did Genya marry Albert?

Short Essay Questions

1. What does Albert do when he learns that milk has been stolen from his wagon?

2. After moving to the Lower East Side, why does David have to be quiet or stay outside during the day?

3. Why do the boys chase the canary?

4. How does David come to realize that there are some important things he does not know about his parents?

5. When David returns home from his and Leo's visit to Bertha's daughters, what is David afraid his parents will find out?

6. When David goes to Aunt Bertha's candy shop to see if Bertha has what he needs to go to Leo's neighborhood, what does Bertha ask David to do?

7. Why does Luter want to find a wife that has money?

8. When he returns home from cheder after the milk route incident, why does David have to wait for Genya to open the door?

9. What saves David after he kicks the milk dipper on the rails?

10. What is Genya's reaction to Albert's foul mood when she arrives in New York?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Freedom or independence is one of the themes present in the book. Who in the book has freedom or independence? How does David feel about being independent? Who does not have independence? Why?

Essay Topic 2

Albert and David are both manipulated by people they consider friends. Albert is manipulated by Luter and David is manipulated by Leo. Compare and contrast the relationships between each of these pairs. How are Albert and David manipulated? Why do they allow themselves to be manipulated?

Essay Topic 3

Why does David have a feeling of triumph at the end of the book when Albert is clearly upset by his son's near death? Why does he seem to believe he has achieved a victory?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 655 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample