Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky

Use this activity to engage all types of learners, while requiring that they refer to and incorporate details from the text over the course of the activity.

“Meet the Myth”

In this activity, students will conduct a fictional interview with one of the mythical characters from the book.

Throughout the novel, Tristan meets many mythological creatures from Black folklore. In pairs, research and interview one of the mythical characters from the novel to learn more about their background and their role in the story.

• First, choose which character you would like to interview. This character should be one about whom you do not have extensive prior knowledge.
• Conduct research regarding your chosen character. Use these guiding questions and other questions you brainstorm.

o What kind of creature is the chosen character?

o What story or tales are they most known for?

o What idea do they represent to modern people?

o How has their story been changed/altered over time?

o How does their background connect in a unique way to their role in the novel?

• Write a script that interviews the mythical character as if they were on a podcast or talk show. One member of the pair should ask the questions, and the other should provide answers as if they are the embodiment of the chosen character. Make inferences about how your character might act, think, and speak based on your research and based on their characterization in the novel.

Present your interview to the class. You can do this live, as a podcast, or as a video recording. As you listen to other presentations, note in your reading journal the ways in which this new knowledge of the character adds to the novel you just read.

Teaching Suggestion: Because this activity is based on presentation, it may be helpful to assign characters and/or pick groups for equal work distribution. Additionally, the class might evaluate resources and compile the most reputable ones in a shared file before beginning research.

Use these essay questions as writing and critical thinking exercises for all levels of writers, and to build their literary analysis skills by requiring textual references throughout the essay.

Differentiation Suggestion: For English learners or struggling writers, strategies that work well include graphic organizers, sentence frames or starters, group work, or oral responses.

Scaffolded Essay Questions

Student Prompt: Write a short (1-3 paragraph) response using one of the bulleted outlines below. Cite details from the text over the course of your response that serve as examples and support.

1. Consider the two stories Tristan tells of his friendship with Eddie: making soda and the day of Eddie’s death.

• What is the author trying to show readers about how Tristan views their friendship? (topic sentence)
• In the body of your essay, analyze in 3 points how these two stories are both related and contradictory to each other. Use direct quotations and text details to support your points.
• Then, conclude by connecting these stories to Tristan’s Black Hero’s Journey.

2. Throughout the novel, Tristan observes many definitions of what it means to be a hero.

• Is Tristan a hero? (topic sentence)
• In your argument, explain why you took your stance using multiple pieces of evidence from the text. Consider Tristan’s successes as well as his faults, plus the multiple definitions of hero you may have to fully support your answer.
• Finally, in your concluding sentences, disprove a counter argument for those who may disagree with you.

Full Essay Assignments

Student Prompt: Write a structured and well-developed essay. Include a thesis statement, at least three main points supported by text details, and a conclusion.

1. Consider the relationship between Gum Baby and Tristan over the course of the novel. Gum Baby both antagonizes and supports Tristan throughout his journey. What is the author trying to say about enemies and allies through this relationship? Explore and analyze this message in a 3- or 5-paragraph essay. You may want to consider how this relationship adds depth to the archetype of the hero as a part of the theme The Black Hero’s Journey.

2. Eddie’s final warning to Tristan is one he has given more than once: Tristan is “talking to the wrong one” (Chapter 14). To whom does this quote refer, and why are they the “wrong” one? Is there a deeper, double meaning to this quote as well? Analyze and discuss Eddie’s warnings to Tristan in a 3- or 5-paragraph essay. Consider in your answer how Eddie serves as a driving force for Tristan’s decisions. Be sure to support your argument with multiple pieces of evidence from the text.

3. Tristan is a storyteller. Near the end of the novel, he says that “as Anansesem, it was [his] job to carry the stories of the land to its people. All the stories. If we ignored the past, how would we learn from it?” (Chapter 46) Do you agree that all stories need to be told? Consider modern events, such as the removal of Confederate statues and the return of ancestral land to tribal communities. How might Tristan respond to events like these? Be sure to ground your answer in evidence from the text as well as outside research, if needed.

Multiple Choice and Long Answer Questions create ideal opportunities for whole-text review, exams, or summative assessments.

Multiple Choice

1. What are the creatures from human stories considered in MidPass?

A) Human

B) Fake

C) Gods

D) Villains

2. How does Nana’s version of John Henry differ from the traditional myth?

A) Her story explains the horrors of slavery and Jim Crow laws.

B) Her story has different events and a happy, more fulfilling ending.

C) The myth version has multiple John Henrys who share several perspectives.

D) The myth version shows how John Henry becomes the villain. 

3. How does Uncle C primarily communicate with Tristain?

A) He arrives unexpectedly in person.

B) He appears to Tristan in dreams/visions.

C) He appears as a ghost and speaks cryptically.

D) He sends minions with messages.

4. What does Tristan mean when he says that “storytelling is an exchange”? (Chapter 45)

A) It is important for everyone to share their stories.

B) A storyteller interacts with the audience.

C) Stories can be used as currency.

D) You have to tell stories to understand the stories of others.

5. What does the Maafa represent?

A) The pain the survivors of slavery brought with them

B) The greater evil that is within every person

C) Tristan’s fear of letting others down

D) The growing discontent between the regions of Alfi

6. What type of figurative language is used this quote about grief?  “Can’t live your life with grief whispering in your ear, pulling you this way and that. But you can’t shove it in a drawer deep inside yourself, neither. Naw, you got to sit grief down and talk to it.”? (Chapter 42)

A) Simile

B) Allusion

C) Allegory

D) Personification

7. The inclusion of characters like Brer Rabbit and Anansi best supports which of the following themes?

A) The Cultural Context of Black Folklore

B) The Power of Storytelling

C) The Black Hero’s Journey

D) Good Versus Evil

8. Apart from storytelling, what other talent does Tristan have?

A) Rapping

B) Basketball

C) Boxing

D) Video gaming

9. Which larger evil does Uncle C as the villain likely represent?

A) Mystical powers in the real world

B) Slavery and the slave trade

C) Dictators removing political freedoms

D) Parents not supporting their children

10. Which character is the ally that cannot be trusted, as prophesied by Nyame?

A) Brer Rabbit

B) Gum Baby

C) Uncle C

D) Eddie

Long Answer

Compose a response of 2-3 sentences, incorporating text details to support your response.

1. How does Tristan’s grief over Eddie push him forward?

2. Why is Anansi’s punishment more than it appears?