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This test consists of 5 multiple choice questions, 5 short answer questions, and 10 short essay questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. What causes Arn's thought that maybe it would be okay if the Vietnamese never come to rescue him and the other captives?
(a) He is fed enough that his stomach rarely is in pain like it used to be constantly.
(b) He feels content within the close relationships he has with Siv, Kha, Mek, and Sombo.
(c) He has finally been given some semblance of normalcy back in the form of fairly regular deep sleep on a comfortable bed.
(d) He has given up on ever reuniting with his family again.

2. Why does Sombo leave Arn and the other boys to fend for themselves?
(a) He leaves because he knows that if there is one fewer mouth to feed, the boys will be more likely to survive.
(b) He leaves because Koong is sick with a fever and he wants to take him to a Thai hospital.
(c) He leaves because he is mad at Arn for Arn's reaction after he murders the villagers.
(d) He leaves because he is fed up with taking care of so many boys.

3. What is the name of the only other boy at the Children's Center who was formerly a child soldier besides Arn?
(a) Koong.
(b) Sojeat.
(c) Runty.
(d) Ravi.

4. Mek and Arn differ in their assessment of what their parting means. What are their two separate feelings about their separation?
(a) Arn feels certain they will see each other again, while Mek feels certain they will not.
(b) Mek feels the need to put on a brave face and pretend he is joyous despite their parting, while Arn cannot hide his grief and weeps.
(c) Mek feels certain they will see each other again, while Arn feels certain they will not.
(d) Arn feels the need to put on a brave face and pretend he is joyous despite their parting, while Mek cannot hide his grief and weeps.

5. What happens to cause Arn to say that now "even the earth is our enemy" (126)?
(a) Their rice girl steps on a land mine and loses her leg.
(b) Vietnamese soldiers leap out of a ditch to attack their group.
(c) When they bury their dead, the earth expels their bloated bodies.
(d) The vegetables they plant won't grow.

Short Answer Questions

1. What does Arn do when the pretty woman with the long braid begs Arn to shoot her?

2. After the first battle when the Little Fish are used by the adult soldiers as bait for the Vietnamese, how many of the original number of boys are left?

3. What is Arn's reaction to seeing his sister again?

4. Thinking he hears gunfire one night at the hospital, Arn awakes with a start and reaches for his gun. What is actually making the sound that he mistakes for gunfire?

5. What happens the first time Arn and and another Little Fish go to drop grenades into the tanks of the Vietnamese soldiers?

Short Essay Questions

1. How is the theme of family shaped and twisted within the narrative when the camp erupts into chaos at the news that the Vietnamese soldiers are close?

2. Why does Arn distrust the radio reports he hears at the hospital?

3. What is the author's purpose in including the two conflicting accounts of the war emanating from Sombo's radio?

4. Why does Arn turn over all of the dead bodies of the villagers to look into their faces?

5. How does the author present the theme of the unnatural when Kha tells Arn and Siv that if they stay hidden, they can watch the girls bathe in the nude?

6. What new privileges does Arn receive while acting as the leader's assistant of sorts and what feelings do these new privileges inspire in him?

7. Why does Arn begin to shake after he boards the bus with the other refugees?

8. When the leader allows Arn to ride his white horse to a neighboring camp to deliver a letter, why does Arn not run away?

9. What words does the dying lady in the village spit at Arn and why do her words hurt him so much?

10. For what reasons does Arn choose Sojeat and Ravi as his two favorites when Mr. Pond asks him for two names?

(see the answer keys)

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