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

Multiple Choice Questions

1. In "Reasons for Staying," where do the speaker's best words come from?
(a) Farthest from himself.
(b) The sun.
(c) The moon.
(d) The past.

2. Who is "Toy Boat" written for?
(a) Lily West.
(b) Heather Friend.
(c) Tamir Rice.
(d) Byron Hayes.

3. Who were the victims of the poorly-documented lynchings in "The Punctum"?
(a) Mostly bankers.
(b) Mostly college students.
(c) Mostly Mexican Chinese, and Native American.
(d) Mostly young girls.

4. In "Künstlerroman," what is one tragic scene the speaker revisits?
(a) His son's funeral.
(b) A fire in his old apartment.
(c) A lynching.
(d) A car accident.

5. In "Scavengers," who does the fisherman become at the end of the poem?
(a) A priest.
(b) A husband.
(c) A ghost.
(d) A boy with too much to carry.

6. In "Nothing," what does the speaker brush from Peter's beard?
(a) Ice.
(b) Crumbs.
(c) Fuzz.
(d) Chocolate.

7. In "Künstlerroman," who does the man in the movie end up being?
(a) A famous actor.
(b) The speaker.
(c) The speaker's best friend.
(d) The speaker's father.

8. In "No One Knows the Way to Heaven," what happens when two men walk holding hands into a bar?
(a) The room clears.
(b) The joke is on them.
(c) Time stops.
(d) Nothing.

9. In "Reasons for Staying," by what light does the speaker read his books?
(a) The light of the lightbulb.
(b) The light of "riotfire."
(c) The light of the sun.
(d) The light of the moon.

10. In "Nothing," what do the speaker and his partner do together?
(a) Sing.
(b) Dance.
(c) Go to church.
(d) Shovel snow.

11. In "Amazon History of a Former Nail Salon Worker," what sweet snack does the worker buy?
(a) M&Ms.
(b) Gummi bears.
(c) Little Debbie cakes.
(d) Sweet dumplings.

12. In "Not Even," what does the speaker say a morgue can also be?
(a) An omen.
(b) A church.
(c) A library.
(d) A community center.

13. In "Reasons for Staying," what sounds "like footsteps" when you play it?
(a) The window.
(b) The broken piano under a bridge in Windsor.
(c) The flute.
(d) The guitar.

14. In "Reasons for Staying," what does the speaker's mother apply before heading to chemo?
(a) Lipstick.
(b) A coat.
(c) A scarf.
(d) Blush.

15. In "Scavengers," what does the speaker compare himself and his lover to?
(a) Poems.
(b) Flowers.
(c) Trout on the shore.
(d) Songs.

Short Answer Questions

1. In "Reasons for Staying," how does the speaker describe the suicide of his uncle?

2. In "No One Knows the Way to Heaven," where does the speaker see his own reflection?

3. In "Künstlerroman," when does the speaker dance with his mother?

4. In "Nothing," what does Peter's grandmother survive?

5. In "Not Even," what does the speaker say he used to be?

(see the answer keys)

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