View a FREE sample

This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. On what occasion does Guido walk Valeria to church?

2. Where does Valeria's aunt live?

3. Who sees Valeria and Guido standing close together?

4. Who does Valeria urge to advise Mirella on her relationship with Sandro?

5. What did Valeria's father do when he heard there would be war?

Short Essay Questions

1. When the children's friends visit, how do they respond to Valeria?

2. Why does Mirella say she would like to hear that Valeria enjoys her work?

3. What personal checks does the director ask Valeria to deal with, and how does she react?

4. What does Clara tell Valeria about Michele's film?

5. What does Valeria remember happening one night when she sat up late with Mirella when she was little?

6. What does Guido tell Valeria he has been afraid of?

7. Describe Guido and Valeria's walk to San Carlo church.

8. How does Mirella respond when Valeria asks her to bring Riccardo his eggs?

9. How does Valeria feel in Guido's car?

10. What does Mirella say to Valeria about authority?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Compare the characters of Valeria and Clara. How have societal expectations affected them?

Essay Topic 2

How does Valeria's relationship with her daughter develop over the course of the novel? What do they learn from each other?

Essay Topic 3

Examine the idea of friendship in the novel. What does the book teach its readers about friendship, its value, and its limitations?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 664 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample