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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 does the woman fix for dinner?

2. The train the family is on is bound for _______________.

3. The woman packs away comics and _______________ in her son's room.

4. What season is it when the story begins?

5. Which one in the family is a good artist?

Short Essay Questions

1. Describe the living conditions of the mother, the boy and the girl in Utah.

2. How does the father recognize the girl's birthday even though he is incarcerated?

3. Where is the family headed in September 1942 and where had they been living since the spring of the year?

4. What is the irony of the picture the boy hangs on his wall in the camp?

5. What does the boy recall about his father being taken away and what his mother did after that night to try to keep the family safe?

6. What does the soldier advise the girl to stop doing on the train and what does he make the train's occupants do while passing through a town in Nevada?

7. Why are the hardware store owner's actions significant?

8. What does the boy think he might have done that caused the family to be in such distressing situations?

9. Describe how the woman goes about packing up the family's belongings.

10. Describe the family's experience at Tanforan as explained by the girl.

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Otsuka uses more than one instance of irony in the story. Cite at least two other examples you can identify in the story and note why they are examples of irony. What is the major irony in the story? Explain.

Essay Topic 2

Otsuka is a master at dramatic devices. Choose an example of symbolism, metaphors, and irony, briefly describe them and identify the technique which they embody.

Essay Topic 3

Explain Otsuka's use of regionalism in the book. Cite examples of at least two different instances of regionalism and explain why the author used them where he did.

(see the answer keys)

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