Sucker Quiz

I felt too happy and keyed up to get in a comfortable position and I was awake thinking about Maybelle a long time. Then I dreamed about her and it seemed I kissed her. It was a surprise to wake up and see the dark. I lay still and a little while passed before I could come to and understand where I was. The house was quiet and it was a very dark night.

Sucker’s voice was a shock to me. “Pete? . . .”

I didn’t answer anything or even move.

“You do like me as much as if I was your own brother, don’t you, Pete?”

I couldn’t get over the surprise of everything and it was like this was the real dream instead of the other.

Which BEST explains why Sucker’s voice “was a shock” to Pete?

• A. Sucker usually slept soundly whether Pete was awake or not.

• B. Pete had told Sucker not to talk when he was trying to sleep.

• C. Sucker’s voice did not sound the same as it usually did.

• D. Pete had been thinking and dreaming so forgot where he was.

Tags

CCSS.RL.7.1

CCSS.RL.7.3

Which BEST describes a character trait Sucker displays when he says, “No matter what you did I always knew you liked me” (19)?

• A. Indecision

• B. Nervousness

• C. Faith

• D. Helpfulness

Tags

CCSS.RL.7.1

CCSS.W.7.9A

I was wide awake and my mind seemed mixed up in a strange way. There was this happiness about Maybelle and all that — but at the same time something about Sucker and his voice when he said these things made me take notice. Anyway I guess you understand people better when you are happy than when something is worrying you. It was like I had never really thought about Sucker until then. I felt I had always been mean to him. One night a few weeks before I had heard him crying in the dark. He said he had lost a boy’s beebee gun and was scared to let anybody know. He wanted me to tell him what to do. I was sleepy and tried to make him hush and when he wouldn’t I kicked at him. That was just one of the things I remembered. It seemed to me he had always been a lonesome kid. I felt bad.

Select the TWO choices that BEST describe what the line “That was just one of the things I remembered” implies about Pete’s thoughts regarding Sucker.

• A. Pete is starting to feel guilty for being less than nice to Sucker.

• B. Pete has forgotten many things about Sucker because of Maybelle.

• C. Pete is proud of himself for noticing so many details about Sucker.

• D. Pete knows he has acted badly toward Sucker more than once.

Tags

CCSS.RL.7.1

CCSS.RL.7.6

There is something about a dark cold night that makes you feel close to someone you’re sleeping with. When you talk together it is like you are the only people awake in the town.

How does the night setting of this passage impact Pete?

• A. The night setting causes Pete to dream that Maybelle is important to him.

• B. The night setting causes Pete to dream that Sucker is important to him.

• C. The night setting causes Pete to feel united with Sucker.

• D. The night setting causes Pete to feel alienated from Sucker.

Tags

CCSS.RL.7.3

Select a quote from the text that BEST matches the following inference: The night setting causes Pete to feel united with Sucker.

• A. “Then I dreamed about her and it seemed I kissed her. It was a surprise to wake up and see the dark. I lay still and a little while passed before I could come to and understand where I was.” (11)

• B. “I couldn’t get over the surprise of everything and it was like this was the real dream instead of the other.” (15)

• C. “One night a few weeks before I had heard him crying in the dark. He said he had lost a boy’s beebee gun and was scared to let anybody know. He wanted me to tell him what to do. I was sleepy and tried to make him hush and when he wouldn’t I kicked at him.” (20)

• D. “There is something about a dark cold night that makes you feel close to someone you’re sleeping with. When you talk together it is like you are the only people awake in the town.” (21)

Tags

CCSS.RL.7.1

CCSS.RL.7.3

Read the sentence from paragraph 23. “I felt good all over and it was like when they play sad music in the movies.” With the phrase, “…it was like when they play sad music at the movies…” the author is most likely trying to imply that _____

• A. the story’s rising action is reaching its climax

• B. Pete is feeling a strong emotion but can’t put it into words.

• C. there is a record player in the room the boys share.

• D. Pete spends a lot of time imagining things that aren’t real.

Tags

CCSS.L.7.4A

CCSS.L.7.5A

CCSS.RL.7.1

CCSS.RL.7.2

CCSS.RL.7.4

We talked for a good while that night. His voice was fast and it was like he had been saving up these things to tell me for a long time. He mentioned that he was going to try to build a canoe and that the kids down the block wouldn’t let him in on their football team and I don’t know what all. I talked some too and it was a good feeling to think of him taking in everything I said so seriously. I even spoke of Maybelle a little, only I made out like it was her who had been running after me all this time. He asked questions about high school and so forth. His voice was excited and he kept on talking fast like he could never get the words out in time. When I went to sleep he was still talking and I could still feel his breathing on my shoulder, warm and close.

Which statement BEST captures what is unusual about the interaction between Pete and Sucker in this paragraph?

• A. Sucker has questions that he wants Pete to answer.

• B. Pete is having a real conversation with Sucker.

• C. Sucker is behaving toward Pete in a respectful way

• D. Pete’s stories show himself in a favorable light.

Tags

CCSS.RL.7.1

CCSS.RL.7.3

CCSS.RL.7.6

CCSS.W.7.9A

We talked for a good while that night. His voice was fast and it was like he had been saving up these things to tell me for a long time. He mentioned that he was going to try to build a canoe and that the kids down the block wouldn’t let him in on their football team and I don’t know what all. I talked some too and it was a good feeling to think of him taking in everything I said so seriously. I even spoke of Maybelle a little, only I made out like it was her who had been running after me all this time. He asked questions about high school and so forth. His voice was excited and he kept on talking fast like he could never get the words out in time. When I went to sleep he was still talking and I could still feel his breathing on my shoulder, warm and close.

Select TWO sentences from paragraph 24 above that BEST support the inference that it has been a long time since someone listened to Sucker.

• A. We talked for a good while that night.

• B. His voice was fast and it was like he had been saving up these things to tell me for a long time.

• C. He mentioned that he was going to try to build a canoe and that the kids down the block wouldn’t let him in on their football team and I don’t know what all.

• D. He asked questions about high school and so forth.

• E. His voice was excited and he kept on talking fast like he could never get the words out in time.

Tags

CCSS.RL.7.1

CCSS.W.7.9A

Once I started to point him out to Maybelle and tell her he was my kid brother. It was an afternoon when a murder mystery was on at the movie. I had earned a dollar working for my Dad and I gave Sucker a quarter to go and get candy and so forth. With the rest I took Maybelle. We were sitting near the back and I saw Sucker come in. He began to stare at the screen the minute he stepped past the ticket man and he stumbled down the aisle without noticing where he was going. I started to punch Maybelle but couldn’t quite make up my mind. Sucker looked a little silly — walking like a drunk with his eyes glued to the movie. He was wiping his reading glasses on his shirt tail and his knickers flopped down. He went on until he got to the first few rows where the kids usually sit. I never did punch Maybelle. But I got to thinking it was good to have both of them at the movie with the money I earned.

By the end of paragraph 27, Pete and Sucker’s relationship undergoes a big change. By the end of this excerpt, Sucker can BEST be described as _____

• A. feeling more negative toward Pete than before

• B. feeling less negative toward Pete than before.

• C. feeling the same toward Pete but acting more happy and relaxed.

• D. feeling different toward Pete and acting more nervous and strange.

Tags

CCSS.RL.7.1

CCSS.RL.7.3

CCSS.RL.7.6

CCSS.W.7.9A

Once I started to point him out to Maybelle and tell her he was my kid brother. It was an afternoon when a murder mystery was on at the movie. I had earned a dollar working for my Dad and I gave Sucker a quarter to go and get candy and so forth. With the rest I took Maybelle. We were sitting near the back and I saw Sucker come in. He began to stare at the screen the minute he stepped past the ticket man and he stumbled down the aisle without noticing where he was going. I started to punch Maybelle but couldn’t quite make up my mind. Sucker looked a little silly — walking like a drunk with his eyes glued to the movie. He was wiping his reading glasses on his shirt tail and his knickers flopped down. He went on until he got to the first few rows where the kids usually sit. I never did punch Maybelle. But I got to thinking it was good to have both of them at the movie with the money I earned.

Read paragraph 27 above. Which of the following BEST describes Pete’s feelings when he sees Sucker at the movie theater?

• A. Pete is proud of Sucker and wants to show him off to Maybelle.

• B. Pete is ashamed of Sucker and hopes that Maybelle doesn’t see him.

• C. Pete is hurt that Sucker chooses not to sit with him and Maybelle.

• D. Pete has conflicted feelings about Sucker and isn’t sure what to do.

Tags

CCSS.RL.7.1

CCSS.W.7.9A