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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 comes to hear Ryan sing during the finals in the young singers' competition at the Met?

2. What does Ryan wait for from his father as a child?

3. Which famous rap star grew up in a high-rise complex next to the one Valerie, Ryan's mother, grew up in?

4. What did Valerie find when she came home hastily from Korea?

5. What was Adrian very good at as a child?

Short Essay Questions

1. What important task does Camille LaBarre help Ryan with before the second round of the Met's competition in Chapter 3?

2. Why does Valerie still seem bitter about the way Cecil proposed to her?

3. What is the main reason Ryan has asked people to call him "Speedo" at different points in his life?

4. What does Ryan remember his brother Adrian being really good at as a child, and why was the effect of Adrian's talent on their lives?

5. What law that Dr. DeJarnette was instrumental in passing was struck down by the U.S. Supreme Court in the 1960s?

6. How does Ryan's second practice session with Patrick Summers go in Chapter 7, after he has worked with the pronunciation coach?

7. In Chapter 7, what is Ryan worried is contributing to his difficulties with Italian pronunciation?

8. In Chapter 6, what are some of the negative impacts of Valerie's religious beliefs on Ryan and Adrian as they grow up?

9. In Chapter 5, what is the conductor, Patrick Summers, worried there might be too much of an emphasis on in opera these days?

10. In Chapter 5, what does Bernger note about the appearance of the three women who were picked for the Met's young singers' competition final round?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Ryan's mother, Valerie, was offered the opportunity for a promising career in the military, but this did not come to fruition. Write an essay analyzing how Valerie's life took some turns toward the worst and how her life's path affected Ryan.

Essay Topic 2

Ryan's family is perplexed when they realize he is serious about studying opera, to the point that his aunt Esther says "Isn't that a white thing?" (118). Write an essay analyzing the reasons Bergner puts forward explaining why black opera singers are still facing a more difficult road in building successful careers at the highest levels of opera.

Essay Topic 3

At several different points in Ryan's career, he is drawn to compositions that deal with emotional situations and issues that resonate directly with him because of his own experience. Select one specific piece of music that Ryan has a special, significant connection with because of his own experiences and write an essay analyzing that connection, using specific examples from the text to support your answer.

(see the answer keys)

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