Read the next two selections. Then choose the best answer to each question. There will be two questions to answer after the passages.
The Antique Shop
1 Jesse walks the short distance from school to the front door of Tio Roland and Tia Gloria's small antique business, just as he does every Monday and Wednesday afternoon. He passes by the neighborhood cafe where his friends sit in booths, talking and laughing. He wishes he could join them, but "helping family is important." Or at least that's what Papa tells him every time he complains about working for his uncle for free.
2 As he approaches the shop, Jesses sees his uncle through the large window, chatting happily with a customer. Pausing to glance at all the junk set out in the window display, Jesse remembers Papa bringing him here when he was little. The shop had seemed magical then, packed with shiny instruments, diverse decorations, and some strangely shaped furniture.
3 One summer morning, Papa had released Jesse's tiny hand to open the door, inviting him to enter this wonderland. Jesse's eyes shot from one end of the wide room to the other, taking in its treasures.
4 "Mi hijo," Papa said, "come see what is back here."
5 At the top of the shop, behind the glass counter was a shelf displaying a cowboy hat like Jesse had seen in those old movies Papa liked to watch.
6 "This is the first item your abuelo displayed when he opened the shop over 40 years ago," Papa explained. "It's nineteenth-century charro cowboy sombrero, given to him by his own grandfather back in Mexico.
7 Jesse's young mind tried to grasp this information. His abuelo had an abuelo, and that hat was old!
8 "Is Tio Roland going to sell it?" Jesse asked.
9 "Oh, no," Papa had replied. "This is a family heirloom. We just keep it here for customers to admire."
10 The bell on the door rings as a customer leaves, and Jesse snaps out of his thoughts.
11 He enters the shop and joins his uncle behind the counter, letting his backpack fall to the floor. The store no longer fills Jesse with awe. Although the sombrero still sits in its stately place, everything else seems like old junk.
12 Jesse sits on a tall wooden stool and watches people come and go. Not everyone who comes into the store buys something, but those who do often find that one perfect item in the sea of clutter and always seem to have silly grins on their faces when they leave, like children exiting a candy store.
13 "Why do people like all this junk?" Jess wonders out loud as he looks around the store. "It's old, and some of it doesn't work anymore."
14 Tio Roland sighs and shakes his head. "When people come here, they're not just buying a rusted trombone or an old bicycle. Customers are taking a piece of history with them, something that brings back a happy memory or sparks their imagination."
15 Jesse can tell that Tio Roland is tired of trying to explain this to him, so when Tia Gloria walks in carrying a large brown box, Jesse welcomes the diversion.
16 "Here," Tia Gloria grins as the box lands on the counter with a heavy thud. "This is what I got from that garage sale yesterday."
17 "What's this?" Tio Roland asks as he reaches into the box. Inside, in perfect condition, is an action figure from one of Jesse's favorite film sagas, and it is still in the original packaging.
18 "Oh, wow! How cool!" Jesse gasps as he grabs for the action figure.
19 "Ha!" Tio Roland exclaims, pointing to Jesse with a huge grin on his face. "You feel that? That's what customers feel when they come here, like they found just the thing they needed."
20 Jesse nods as if to tell his uncle that he understands. He turns the item over, squinting to read the print on the package and wiping the dust off his shirt. "Can I keep it?" Jesses asks quietly, feeling a little sheepish. Tio Roland and Tia Gloria look at each other, and after a brief moment, they both nod. Jesse waves the action figure triumphantly in the air.
21 "Thank you!" Jesse exclaims as he slips the item in his backpack. Maybe this shop is a place of great discoveries and history, he thinks, glancing back at the sombrero.
Don't Go Into the Library
by Alberto Rios
The library is dangerous--
Don't go in. If you do
You know what will happen.
It's like a pet store or a bakery--
5 Every single time you'll come out of there
Holding something in your arms.
Those novels with their big eyes.
And those no-nonsense, all muscle
Greyhounds and Dobermans,
10 All non-fiction and business,
Cuddly when they're young
But then when the first page is turned.
The doughnut scent of it all, knowledge,
The aroma of coffee being made
15 In all those books, something for everyone,
The deli offerings of civilization itself.
The library is the book of books,
Its concrete and wood and glass covers
Keeping within them the very big,
20 Very long story of everything.
The library is dangerous, full
Of answers. If you go inside,
You may not come out
The same person who went in.
Question 1
#1 Which statement expresses a theme found in BOTH the story "The Antique Shop" and the poem "Don't Go Into the Library"?(1 point)
Responses
Answers to difficult questions are often found in unexpected places.
Making judgments based on appearances alone is foolish.
People can learn when they are willing to take necessary action.
New perspectives and frames of mind can bring joy.
1 answer
The best answer that expresses a theme found in both "The Antique Shop" and "Don't Go Into the Library" is:
New perspectives and frames of mind can bring joy.
In "The Antique Shop," Jesse initially views the shop as just a place of "old junk," but he gains new appreciation and understanding of it as he experiences the joy of finding the action figure and acknowledges the historical significance of the shop. In "Don't Go Into the Library," the poem suggests that entering the library can change a person, implying that exposure to new knowledge and experiences can bring joy and transformation.
