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This test consists of 5 multiple choice questions, 5 short answer questions, and 10 short essay questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. "The Dial, 1941-1804-1941" goes back and forth between two stories. Who are the two stories about?
(a) Yankel and Brod.
(b) Safran and Zosha.
(c) Alex and Little Igor.
(d) Jonathan's grandfather and Brod.

2. After leaving Lista and drinking vodka, what do Grandfather, Alex, and Jonathan argue about?
(a) What to eat.
(b) Whether or not they should open the box.
(c) Where to go the next day.
(d) What to talk about.

3. In "What We Saw When We Saw Trachimbrod or Falling in Love," who says "I don't want to hear any more?"
(a) Alex.
(b) Grandfather.
(c) Jonathan.
(d) The old woman.

4. What happens to the Kolker when he goes to work?
(a) He has a saw blade imbedded in his head.
(b) He loses an arm to the machinery.
(c) He dies.
(d) He is robbed.

5. What is the relationship between Alex and Jonathan in "Letter Dated 12 December 1992"?
(a) They are co-workers.
(b) Alex only works for Jonathan as a translator.
(c) They dislike each other immensely.
(d) They are friends and penpals.

Short Answer Questions

1. Why does Alex lie to his brother?

2. In "Letter Dated 26 January 1998," what does Alex tell about Grandfather?

3. When the old woman's father was told to do something or his wife would be shot, what did he do?

4. How does Alex feel about Safran having sex with older women and women who are not his wife?

5. What happens to the Gypsy girl after Safran gets married?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why does Alex send back the money that Jonathan sent him? Why is he angry?

2. Alex has changed throughout the novel. Identify how he has changed by the time he writes "Letter Dated 24 December 1997." What do you think brought about the change?

3. Why is it ironic that Safran asks his great-great-great-grandfather to not "let me hate who I become" (141)?

4. Safran muses "the more you love someone . . . the harder it is to tell them" (234). What is he referencing? Is this true? Why?

5. Is Jonathan a reliable narrator? Defend your response.

6. In "Falling in Love," what does "Augustine" look like?

7. Alex asks Jonathan to finish writing the chapter "An Overture to Illumination." Why? Does Jonathan do it? How can you tell?

8. In "Letter Dated 12 December 1997," what does Alex think about Jonathan's writing about Safran? Is this hypocritical? What has Alex learned?

9. With everything that has happened to Jonathan, Alex, and Grandfather, even Grandfather goes through some significant changes. In "An Overture to Illumination," Grandfather makes the waitress apologize to Jonathan. Why? What is different about Grandfather? How and why has he changed?

10. Why does Alex lie about his sex life?

(see the answer keys)

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