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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. Who does Rasheed help immigrate to Europe in the chapter titled "But How Butch Are You"?

2. What work does Mazen do?

3. Where does Pete Jones eventually do some service work after he is discharged from the army?

4. What do the journalists say that makes Mazen really lose his temper?

5. Who talks to Sumaiya and Sammy that Mazen does not like in the chapter "Avoid Getting Liver Cancer if you Can"?

Short Essay Questions

1. What does Mina know happened to Lesbos and the refugee situation there after she left?

2. What happened to Linda Abdullah's father at the end of his life?

3. How did Rasheed help two Iraqi gay men get settled in Europe?

4. What does Mina think of George W. Bush's post-9/11 speech?

5. What does Mina really think of the man who says he worked for a jewler?

6. What particular topic does Mina remember Francine having written about in 2009?

7. What is the jewel in the dream house the writer's father built in Lebanon?

8. Who is Sumaiya most worried about in her family for after she dies?

9. What does Rasheed say Mina should wear so the women in the refugee camp will trust her more?

10. How does Mina's and Mazen's blood pact work?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Why does Emma think Mina will be particularly helpful during the refugee crisis on Lesbos in the beginning of the novel? Write an essay explaining your answers, citing specific references to the text to help support your conclusions.

Essay Topic 2

Why does Mina become so emotionally involved with Sumaiya, and what does Alameddine reveal about the particularities of a doctor-patient relationship in a refugee setting through these two characters? Write an essay explaining your answers.

Essay Topic 3

How and why does Alameddine use humor most effectively in the novel? Write an essay explaining your answers, citing specific references to the text to help support your conclusions.

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