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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. Why does Teddy Laskov go into the stratosphere on the way home?

2. What solution does Miriam Bernstein propose?

3. How long does the second attack last?

4. Which colorful character's end is not known, so that he might turn up again in another DeMille novel?

5. What does Miriam Bernstein think her mother could have written?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why does Dr. Al-Thanni remind Joshua Giddel of Archimedes?

2. Why do Jacob Hausner and Nathan Burg conclude that the conduct of a war is too important to be left to politicians?

3. Why does Jacob Hausner think it is better for Miriam Bernstein to cry and howl when she is suffering pain and grief?

4. Which countries are now involved in the events in Babylon?

5. Who suffered disproportionately during the captivity, and why?

6. What is the purpose of Ibrahim Arif's taunting of Salem Hamadi?

7. Why does Dr. Al-Thanni recommend that Joshua Giddel make no attempt to rescue Benjamin Dobkin?

8. What does Naomi Haber do that leads to the death of Nathan Brin?

9. What incentives do the young Ashbal fighters have that they did not have during the first attack?

10. To what does Major Bartok eventually attribute the successful defense of Concorde 02?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

The setting is critical to this story. In your essay, outline the cultural and political setting in which the characters find themselves. Consider the contrast between the tourists who will come later in the year to visit the site of the ancient Babylonian captivity and the characters who are themselves actually captive there.

Essay Topic 2

Transformation is a theme in this story. Many characters undergo significant changes. In your essay, select two characters (apart from Jacob Hausner and Miriam Bernstein) who are not the same in the return flight as they were when the story began. Discuss the causes and effects of the changes they have undergone.

Essay Topic 3

The hot desert wind has many names: Hamseen, Sharav, and Sherji. It has importance as a symbol to the Arabs and Israelis in this story as well as playing a physical part in the outcome of the story. In your essay, explain the effect of the wind on the minds and bodies of the characters.

(see the answer keys)

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