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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 caused the estrangement between Nick and his grandmother, Su Yi?

2. While Astrid is at the hospital who does she text?

3. How does Astrid greet Nick in Part Two?

4. How did Su Yi avoid being killed by a brutal Japanese colonel?

5. In Part Two, Chapter 2, Su Yi dreams about a priest who gives her a message. Who is the message from?

Short Essay Questions

1. What do you learn about Rachel's personality when she encourages Nick to reconcile with his grandmother?

2. Why is Nick Young ambivalent about returning to Singapore to see his grandmother, Su Yi?

3. What kind of relationship does Nick have with his mother, Eleanor?

4. What does the reader learn about Kitty Bing from her visit to the dress salon?

5. Su Yi dreams she is in Ranakpur, India. Who does she meet in her dream?

6. What do Nick and Astrid have in common?

7. Who is Lucia Shang? How does her character fit into the novel's plot?

8. In Part One, Chapter One, what is foreshadowed by Charlie's concern about Isabel's missed doctor's appointment?

9. What is Victoria's reaction when Ah Ling announces that Alexandra and her family have arrived to see Su Yi?

10. Who is Oliver T'sien and what is his relationship to Kitty Bing?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

The storyline with Rachel's brother, Carlton, and Scheherazade Shang is introduced late in the novel. Why do you think the author included this relationship? How does it fit into the plot of the story?

Essay Topic 2

Eddie Cheng is a unique character in the novel. How does his character develop in the book? What role does he play in the overall plot? What does his character represent? Did Eddie change as a character as the novel progressed?

Essay Topic 3

Many of the subplots in the novel center around the family relationships between the characters. Does money make the relationships stronger? If so, why? Does money negatively impact family relationships? Explain how.

(see the answer keys)

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