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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 sounds does Misha think he hears in the middle of the night?

2. Where are the horses located?

3. What do the men in the black coats do on the street?

4. What does the narrator say his name is?

5. What explodes in front of the train?

Short Essay Questions

1. What carnival ride does Misha discover near the orphanage?

2. What happens when Misha sneaks out to ride the horses?

3. How do Uri and Misha get food for themselves?

4. What did the boys think of Misha when he first met them?

5. What does Misha start doing with Janina after her birthday party?

6. Who is not in the stable on the morning the Jackboots come to the sable, and where is he?

7. What happens to the merry-go-round the morning after Misha sneaks out to ride it?

8. Who comes into the stable one morning, in Chapter 17, and force the boys out?

9. What is the significance of the yellow stone necklace that hangs on Misha's neck?

10. What are the men in black coats doing on the first day of the parade?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Write an essay in which you explore the relationship between Janina and Misha. What is significant about this relationship, and why?

Essay Topic 2

Misha becomes a regular smuggler once he discovers a two-brick hole in the wall the separates the ghetto from the rest of the city. How does Misha's smuggling directly affect the plot of the novel? Use specific passages from the text to support your ideas.

Essay Topic 3

Surviving trauma and tragedy is at the heart of the novel. Analyze how the narrator deals with the traumas and tragedies that he experiences, both during and after the war.

(see the answer keys)

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