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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 Howie suggest of Gemma in Chapter 4?

2. What is the name of the Oswego newspaper where one of the articles in the box is from?

3. How many granddaughters does Gemma have?

4. Who is Eve?

5. What do Becca's nieces and nephew ask for in Chapter 4?

Short Essay Questions

1. In Chapter 5, what frightens Becca's friend?

2. What does Sylvia press Gemma for a definition for in Chapter 9?

3. What do Sylvia and Shana make fun of Becca for in Chapter 2?

4. While going through Gemma's box of mementos in Chapter 6, what does Becca realize about them?

5. What are Shana and Sylvia begging their grandmother for at the beginning of the novel?

6. What does Becca do in Chapter 2, which he sisters urge her not to?

7. In Chapter 6, why does Becca suppose Gemma was so caught up with the part of her story which said the curse would affect Briar Rose's whole family?

8. What do the Berlins debate about Gemma's real name in Chapter 4?

9. In Chapter 4, what do we learn about Gemma's past?

10. As she continues the story in Chapter 6, how long does Gemma say the cursed people in the story slept for?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Discuss the struggles faced by Becca throughout the novel. What struggles does Becca face? How does she overcome them?

Essay Topic 2

What is an allegory? How is the novel "Briar Rose" an allegory of the sufferings experienced by those imprisoned in concentration and extermination camps during WWII?

Essay Topic 3

What happens at the end of the novel "Briar Rose"? Is everything resolved? Are there any surprises at the end of the novel? What happens to the principle characters?

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