2. What prize did William Saroyan turn down for his play, "The Time of Your Life," in 1943?
(a) Tony.
(b) PEN.
(c) Nobel.
(d) Pulitzer.

3. What singer did the man in the motorcycle jacket on the bus remind Peter of?
(a) Buddy Holly.
(b) Elvis Presley.
(c) Roy Orbison.
(d) Jerry Lee Lewis.

4. At what age did Balakian's father leave France for the United States?
(a) Six.
(b) Four.
(c) Ten.
(d) Eight.

5. In what New Jersey town did Bedros Aroosian work in the silk mills?
(a) Newark.
(b) Tenafly.
(c) Paterson.
(d) Teaneck.

Short Answer Questions

1. To what town was Balakian taking his girlfriend when he refused to return home for his grandmother's memorial service?

2. What stock did grandmother recommend buying after she had a dream?

3. How many miles away was Tenafly from Teaneck?

4. What meat did the Balakian family frequently eat for dinner?

5. For what did Balakian win a trophy at the end of his first year at the private high school?

Short Essay Questions

1. What impression did the writer, William Saroyan, make on Balakian during the party at his aunt's apartment?

2. Why did Balakian's father send him the newspaper clipping about the Armenian Soviet republic and how did Peter react?

3. When the Balakian family was preparing to move to another town, what was the deeper significance of Balakian's mother's insistence that her son not get too attached to any one place?

4. Why were books so important to Balakian's Aunt Nona?

5. How did Balakian's father's fear of germs, as well as other family member's obsession with health and safety, reflect their experiences during the genocide?

6. Why did Balakian and Auntie Anna argue about literature?

7. How did Balakian's grandmother continue to affect him even after her death?

8. How did Balakian's mother differ from most of the other mothers on Crabtree Lane in Tenafly?

9. Describe Balakian' s father.

10. Why did Balakian's father insist his son leave the public schools and attend a private school?

(see the answer keys)

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