Money Hungry

Reading Check and Short Answer questions on key plot points are designed for guided reading assignments, in-class review, formative assessment, quizzes, and more.

Chapters 1-4

Reading Check

1. Raspberry is angry at Momma because Momma has begun dating the father of which of Raspberry’s friends?

2. When Raspberry walks through her apartment building, why does she instinctively pinch her nose in the hallway?

3. Why does Zora sell chocolates for Raspberry? What is she saving up to buy?

4. It turns out that Zenna is sick not because of Raspberry’s chocolates, but because she is ill with something else. Why is Zenna really sick?

Short Answer

Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.

1. Name two of Raspberry’s traumatic life experiences that have already deeply affected her, even at the young age of 13.

Paired Resource

“Effects of Domestic Violence on Children”

• The devastating effect that witnessing domestic abuse can have on children is well-documented. In this governmental paper from the Office on Women’s Health (US Department of Health and Human Services), those effects are outlined and discussed in depth. (Content Warning: Includes discussion of abuse and domestic violence)
• Which of these effects do you see manifested in Raspberry thus far? How are the negative consequences of domestic violence exacerbated by poverty in her case?

Chapters 5-8

Reading Check

1. How does Raspberry get the idea to begin cleaning houses?

2. Why does Mai refuse to clean other people’s houses?

3. When Sato jokes about Raspberry’s love for Washington and Lincoln, what is he referring to?

Short Answer

Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.

1. In Chapter 7, an argument starts between Mai and Ja’nae concerning biracial identity. What is each girl’s position?

Paired Resource

“Race and Racial Identity”

• This article from the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture discusses the connections societies make regarding race.
• Why might the author have included the argument between Mai and Ja’nae in Chapter 7? How do the topics in their argument connect to the overall plot and conflict in the story?

Chapters 9-12

Reading Check

1. When Kevin tries to flirt with Mai but she turns him down, how does Kevin respond?

2. What is the sole reason why Ja’nae ultimately decides to join Raspberry’s house-cleaning business?

3. Who is the first client of Raspberry’s house-cleaning business, referred to her by Ja’nae’s grandmother?

Short Answer

Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.

1. How does Raspberry justify stealing the $50 bill from Ja’nae?

Chapters 13-15

Reading Check

1. In Chapter 13, why does Raspberry awaken from a sound sleep in the middle of the night?

2. What type of government funding does Momma hope to get so she can rent a house in Pecan Landing?

3. What type of cuisine is served at the food truck run by Mai’s family?

Short Answer

Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.

1. Money is the main source of stress for Raspberry and her family, but what are some of the other issues or challenges that are sources of conflict for Raspberry’s friend group? Name at least two conflicts in your response.

Chapters 16-20

Reading Check

1. Every night when Ja’nae’s grandparents go to sleep, whom does Ja’nae use phone cards to call?

2. On what street is Ms. Baker’s house located?

3. How much does Ms. Baker pay the girls instead of the $62 that they were promised?

4. Why does Ja’nae’s grandfather think that Raspberry stole $200 from Ja’nae?

Short Answer

Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.

1. What are some of the different reasons why each of Raspberry’s friends joins Raspberry’s latest money-making venture of cleaning houses?

Paired Resource

“Four Questions for Sharon G. Flake”

• In this author interview, Sharon G. Flake discusses her life, her biography, and her 2021 novel, The Life I’m In.
• In the interview, she references Money Hungry and how revisiting the characters in that novel was an entirely different experience than revisiting the characters from The Skin I’m In in her latest novel.
• As gleaned from this interview, how did money influence the characters’ world in The Skin I’m In as compared to in Money Hungry?

Chapters 21-23

Reading Check

1. When Raspberry confronts Ja’nae in Chapter 21 about repaying the money she owes, what amount of money does Ja’nae throw at Raspberry in response?

2. What kind of business is run by Raspberry’s neighbor Odd Job?

3. When Momma and Raspberry are robbed, what three major items are stolen from their apartment?

Short Answer

Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.

1. At the end of Chapter 23, Raspberry has a dream that she is back on the streets, homeless again. In the dream, she is forced to “push the cart” all night long. What is the symbolic meaning of her pushing the cart?

Paired Resource

“Why Is It So Hard to Escape Poverty?”

• This 5-minute animated TED-Ed video looks at how cycles of poverty can be perpetuated through generations in a family.
• Connects to the theme of The Lasting Effects of Poverty and Financial Insecurity
• How is Raspberry and Momma’s experience of financial insecurity cyclical? As described in the video, what factors have made it so difficult for them to escape poverty?

Chapters 24-28

Reading Check

1. While working at Odd Job’s car wash, whose car does Raspberry unexpectedly clean?

2. In Chapter 26, which of Ja’nae’s relatives holds her hand in the principal’s office?

3. What item did Ja’nae steal her grandfather’s money to purchase?

Short Answer

Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.

1. According to Odd Job, who broke into Raspberry and Momma’s apartment? What does he recommend that she do?

Recommended Next Reads

The Skin I’m In by Sharon G. Flake

• Prior to Money Hungry, Sharon G. Flake wrote The Skin I’m In, which follows 13-year-old Maleeka Madison III as she struggles with bullies due to her dark complexion.
• Like Money Hungry, The Skin I’m In deals with themes of Financial Insecurity and The Endurance of Friendship Through Conflict.
• The Skin I’m In on SuperSummary.com

The Tequila Worm by Viola Canales

• This novel, published in 2005, tells the story of Sofia, a Mexican American girl who finds herself embarking on a new adventure when she earns a scholarship to an esteemed and expensive school. Sofia’s family, though poor, experiences the richness of their many cultural traditions; she fears she will lose touch with her heritage when she goes away to school.
• Like Money Hungry, The Tequila Worm tells the story of a young girl living in poverty—however, Sofia does not feel the same sense of Financial Insecurity that Raspberry does.
• The Tequila Worm on SuperSummary.com