2. What does Ma say to Paps on the way home from the lake?
(a) "What? Do you want me to teach him how to fly?" (22).
(b) "How else do you expect to him learn?" (21).
(c) "He is going to learn" (21).
(d) "He's alive! He's alive!" (23)

3. What role does the narrator play in the "magic of God" (25)?
(a) The Son.
(b) The Holy Spirit.
(c) The Father.
(d) God.

4. Where do the brothers hide after their bath in Chapter 10, YOU BETTER COME?
(a) The attic.
(b) The bathtub.
(c) Ma and Paps' bedroom.
(d) The crawlspace.

5. What tool do the boys use to smash the tomatoes?
(a) A big rock.
(b) A hammer.
(c) A mallet.
(d) A stick.

Short Answer Questions

1. Whys is Ma upset that Paps gets a new truck for the family?

2. How does Ma respond when Manny asks worriedly if Paps is having a heart attack in Chapter 9, TALK TO ME?

3. How does the narrator know that Ma is delighted when Paps returns at the start of Chapter 10, YOU BETTER COME?

4. What kind of accent does Old Man have?

5. Where is Lina from?

Short Essay Questions

1. What metaphorical significance can be determined by the fact that Ma and the narrator cannot swim and hang on to Paps in order to stay afloat?

2. Even though it is not explicitly mentioned in the novel, how does the author convey that Ma has been abused by Paps in Chapter 4?

3. How does the reader know that Ma was a naive teenager when it came to sex as explained in Chapter 6, US PROPER?

4. Why is the narrator confused when Ma asks him why he is unable to swim in Chapter 5, LAKE?

5. What are some examples at the start of Chapter 12, BIG-DICK TRUCK that demonstrate the financial situation of the narrator's family?

6. As the brothers hid in the bathtub, Paps and Ma pretend to not know and do not immediately come to find them. What deep fears does the narrator share about this lack of attention?

7. Why do the brothers dig up Old Man's garden?

8. How does the narrator differentiate the brothers' behavior in relation to when Ma is awake or asleep?

9. How come Ma does not answer Paps' phone calls in Chapter 9, TALK TO ME?

10. How do you know that the novel is being written in first-person?

(see the answer keys)

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