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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 country do the inhabitants of the boat disembark?

2. Kieu is related to Thi in what way?

3. In what country does Ma say she was born?

4. Thi is depicted as trying what kind of juice in Malaysia?

5. Seats on the escape boat are described as being "bought in" what "or in promises of repayment" (229)?

Short Essay Questions

1. What extreme action do Bo and Hai take in order to keep Hai's children quiet during the escape?

2. What objects must the Bui family burn when the Communists begin to search the people's homes?

3. What occurs on April 30, 1975?

4. Who was Truong Chinh and whom did he emulate?

5. What is ironic about Ma's openness with Travis, as depicted within the setting of the car?

6. What do the glamorous photographs of Ma symbolize to Thi during her childhood?

7. What happens when Bo's father visits Bo for the first time in 20 years?

8. How do the policies of the Communist party affect the Bui family?

9. How does Bui visually depict the many different perspectives about April 30, 1975?

10. In what way did the Communist party leaders use language to mask their true actions?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Sensory details are used frequently by Bui in order to create vivid pictures of each character's progression through the narrative of The Best We Could Do. Choose three scenes in which sensory details are heavily used and discuss how the sensory details used serve Bui’s creation of vivid characters to populate the narrative.

Essay Topic 2

Discuss how and why Bui instills three different humanist messages into the narrative of The Best We Could Do.

Essay Topic 3

Discuss Bui’s messages about guilt and responsibility within The Best We Could Do.

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