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This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. What job does Alice, Maya's friend, find in Ghana?

2. After living with a friend in Accra, Maya and her son move to the:

3. What happens to Maya's son early in the story?

4. What is Maya's son's name?

5. As they share a meal at a local restaurant, Sheikhali tells Maya that he was a:

Short Essay Questions

1. Why does Maya decide to return to the United States?

2. How does Malcolm's encounter with Muhammad Ali go?

3. How are the Americans in Ghana regarded following an assassination attempt on the nation's president?

4. Explain why Kojo's family visits Maya.

5. What does Maya do in order to look more like Ghanaian women?

6. What happens to Comfort, Maya's hairstylist?

7. How is Maya regarded in the market at Keta?

8. After seeing her son in good spirits and recovering well at the hospital, how does Maya get out of the depression she's been in?

9. How does Maya react in the Senior Common Room when she hears Europeans and Ghanaians making disparaging remarks?

10. Why does Sheikhali believe that he is doing Maya a favor by offering to marry her?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

The importance of having a sense of community is a prevalent theme throughout this book.

1. How does Maya convey a sense of community in Ghana? In Germany? In Venice? In Egypt?

2. How does plugging into a community "save" Maya?

Essay Topic 2

Explain how the author uses the following to create a vivid sense of place:

1. Food.

2. Dialogue.

3. Traditions and celebrations.

Essay Topic 3

Maya's friends help shape her attitudes and even her behavior. Explain how Maya's friends in Ghana help her to "grow up" and adjust to life in another country.

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 742 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample