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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 profession did Pong's parents hold?

2. Where did Tiller tell Val he was from when they first met?

3. Who is described in Chapter 8 as "an alarmingly dry-complexioned white dude" (107)?

4. What kind of liquor did Pong provide shots of when Tiller first met him and went out with him and his friends?

5. What is the "grease-soaked foot-long hoagie" called that Val buys for Victor Jr.?

Short Essay Questions

1. What happened at the playground in Chapter 6?

2. What were Tiller's first impressions of Pong when they met?

3. How did Pong describe Drum Kappagoda to Tiller in Chapter 4?

4. How are Pong's parents described?

5. Where does Tiller describe going with VeeJ in Chapter 7? Why?

6. Who invited Tiller on the Asia trip and why?

7. What were Tiller's circumstances like when he met Pong?

8. What information about her past did Val relate to Tiller when they met?

9. What activity did Pong's father do daily that upset him, as revealed in Chapter 4?

10. How is Getty described? Why was he at Lucky's Hawaii home?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Discuss the timeline of events and narrative structure in My Year Abroad. How does the author distinguish between the different timelines in the novel? What are the main timelines? What stories step beyond those timelines? How does this structure lend itself to the story? How does it create tension?

Essay Topic 2

Describe and analyze the character of Lucky in My Year Abroad. What is Lucky's profession? Where does he live? What is his family like? What are Lucky's motivations in the story? What becomes of this character?

Essay Topic 3

Identify and discuss three examples of imagery in the novel. What different literary devices comprise imagery? How are they employed in this narrative? How extensive are the author's depictions of imagery throughout the book?

(see the answer keys)

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