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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. In what city did Toru go to college?

2. What does Midori's family do?

3. What does "Midori" mean?

4. When Toru tries to call Midori, where is he told she probably is?

5. What shape is Naoko's barrette?

Short Essay Questions

1. How did Toru and Naoko celebrate her twentieth birthday?

2. How does Toru spend the summer break?

3. What is Midori's job?

4. How did Ami Hostel come into existence?

5. Why is Naoko's roommate referred to as "Dr. Ishida"?

6. Describe the day Kizuki died.

7. What causes the narrator to feel dizzy in the opening scene of the novel?

8. What sorts of things do Naoko and her fellow patients do for entertainment at the hostel?

9. How was Toru's dorm room different from most of the others?

10. Why is Toru writing this book?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

How does the author's use of foreshadowing throughout this novel enhance or detract from the story? Be specific.

Essay Topic 2

Discuss how the story of the field well at the beginning of the novel represents the future of Toru and Naoko's relationship and why he might have placed it so early in the story.

Essay Topic 3

Discuss the meaning of Murakami's use of letters throughout the novel.

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